Examples and/or name for this film shot?
June 6, 2018 7:54 AM Subscribe
There is a shot of someone rushing to deliver news used in TV and movies. I feel like it's common but I don't know if it has a name or what search terms to use to find examples.
In movies and TV shows there is a scene where a person is walking (or running) away from camera shot only waist down or sometimes just their feet. They are rushing to deliver a letter or memo, or just tell someone important news. The camera might widen out on the same shot to show the whole person and the recipient of the news without cutting. They might be going down hallways and turning corners to get to the other person. This may also include a burst through a door at the end of their walk. I feel like this is a common scene but I am struggling to come up with actual examples from memory.
a) Is this a common shot or am I imagining it?
b) Is there a name for this type of shot, a TV Tropes page, etc.?
c) Are there examples of this to prove to myself that I'm not inventing it in my head?
Bonus question) If this is common, are they all copying one proto-scene that invented this and is famous for it?
If it helps at all this hit me when I was watching the Silicon Valley episode Fifty-One Percent. A few minutes into the episode Dinesh rushes in to tell Richard some news. It's shot like this and I thought "They're doing that thing!" Sorry, I can't find a clip to link outside of HBO GO.
In movies and TV shows there is a scene where a person is walking (or running) away from camera shot only waist down or sometimes just their feet. They are rushing to deliver a letter or memo, or just tell someone important news. The camera might widen out on the same shot to show the whole person and the recipient of the news without cutting. They might be going down hallways and turning corners to get to the other person. This may also include a burst through a door at the end of their walk. I feel like this is a common scene but I am struggling to come up with actual examples from memory.
a) Is this a common shot or am I imagining it?
b) Is there a name for this type of shot, a TV Tropes page, etc.?
c) Are there examples of this to prove to myself that I'm not inventing it in my head?
Bonus question) If this is common, are they all copying one proto-scene that invented this and is famous for it?
If it helps at all this hit me when I was watching the Silicon Valley episode Fifty-One Percent. A few minutes into the episode Dinesh rushes in to tell Richard some news. It's shot like this and I thought "They're doing that thing!" Sorry, I can't find a clip to link outside of HBO GO.
Response by poster: I'll not threadsit here but YES bondcliff's example is exactly what I'm talking about and now that I see it it's one that was in my head that I couldn't dig out. That's much more helpful than my trying to describe it.
posted by Clinging to the Wreckage at 8:03 AM on June 6, 2018
posted by Clinging to the Wreckage at 8:03 AM on June 6, 2018
Here's a memorable clip of Joan Cusack in Broadcast News doing something similar. It feels to me more like an homage to the kind of trope you're looking for, but in the same ballpark.
posted by briank at 8:10 AM on June 6, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by briank at 8:10 AM on June 6, 2018 [2 favorites]
There's a little bit of this in the Dunder Mifflin commercial.
posted by TomFoolery at 9:49 AM on June 6, 2018
posted by TomFoolery at 9:49 AM on June 6, 2018
c) Are there examples of this to prove to myself that I'm not inventing it in my head?
I can't recall these in enough detail to know whether they fit the leg close-up specification, but here are some maybes:
-Quiz Show has a scene where a producer character is elatedly rushing through the TV studio building to deliver news that he has found the perfect applicant for their show.
-The Thick of It or In the Loop contain a lot of running-for-memo-or-news scenes.
-All the President's Men has some rushing-through-office-to-deliver-news action.
Bonus question) If this is common, are they all copying one proto-scene that invented this and is famous for it?
My guess is that it's just an easy way to insert some action and build-up to a revelation, especially in genres that lack physical movement or action (office settings, lawyers/politicians, espionage, etc.).
The initial close-up makes it more intense and makes you feel more part of the scene, and the zoom-out transitions you back to the bigger story or perspective.
posted by Sockin'inthefreeworld at 2:19 AM on June 7, 2018 [1 favorite]
I can't recall these in enough detail to know whether they fit the leg close-up specification, but here are some maybes:
-Quiz Show has a scene where a producer character is elatedly rushing through the TV studio building to deliver news that he has found the perfect applicant for their show.
-The Thick of It or In the Loop contain a lot of running-for-memo-or-news scenes.
-All the President's Men has some rushing-through-office-to-deliver-news action.
Bonus question) If this is common, are they all copying one proto-scene that invented this and is famous for it?
My guess is that it's just an easy way to insert some action and build-up to a revelation, especially in genres that lack physical movement or action (office settings, lawyers/politicians, espionage, etc.).
The initial close-up makes it more intense and makes you feel more part of the scene, and the zoom-out transitions you back to the bigger story or perspective.
posted by Sockin'inthefreeworld at 2:19 AM on June 7, 2018 [1 favorite]
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posted by bondcliff at 7:59 AM on June 6, 2018