Amateur Photographer & Cinematographer (1935)

October 2nd, 1935 The AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHER p 6 CINEMATOGRAPHER a NEWS, NOTES AND MATTERS OF IN¬ TEREST FOR ALL CINEMATOGRAPHERS USING AMATEUR CINfi APPARATUS. Ci nematography Use and Abuse of the Angle Shot SIGURD MOIR. The angle shot can be one of the most effective in the whole of cinematography. It can also be one of the most exasperating. The following article sets a clear line which may safely be adopted by the serious cinematographer. A WELL-KNOWN “ movie ” critic once accompanied me to a film society performance in which a supposedly “ arty ” production of the modern school had been included. Angles there were in excelsis (though also ad nauseam ) and I was hardly surprised when he leaned across and whispered : " These films give me a crick in the neck ! ” Now, newspaper criticism does not greatly concern itself with how a film has been made — “ fan ” psychology and similar trifles presenting much easier ground, yet my friend realised that there was something wrong with the technical work on this particular film. There was. For many of the angles employed showed an entire disregard for the requirements of perfect “ drawing.” When I use this word, I use it in the sense that graphic artists will appreciate. Where horizontal lines predominate, there should be a faultless horizontal as the base of the picture — and from this the receding parallels should converge to form a pleasing perspective. Alterna¬ tively, where the uprights have to be stressed, a strong vertical should form the keystone. Any departure from this simple rule is certain to annoy the spectators, for — like my friend — they will experience a desire to turn their heads first this way and then that in an effort to correct the false lines of the picture. ments gone through — when it will be observed that all these angles are com¬ prised in a single vertical swing of the camera. Hence, without disturbing the level of the camera, it is possible to bring the panoramic movement into operation — the result being that a wide variety of new angles is rendered im¬ mediately possible. Any or all of these angles may be used without fear of disturbing audiences. Importance of Editing. Even where they are intelligently shot, " extreme ” angles can easily bewilder or mystify an audience. In the Reunion film, “ Breakers Ahead,” for example, there is more than a marked tendency in this direction — and doubtlessly the same tendency would prevail in other films were they to include a similar number of such shots. But it is the editing rather than the avoidance of angle shots that governs the clarity of any film, and of this we have a striking example in the amateur production “ Eight ” (Burke and Bodingtonj shortly to receive its premiere in London. On the second reel of this film, an episode of cutting culminates in an extreme angle shot of youth in despair — a shot which, but for the con¬ sidered assembly of supporting images, would have been almost unrecognisable. The episode opens with a " straight ” shot of the boy seated on one of the “ stairs ” of London river. This is fol¬ lowed by moderate angle shots of the overtonal images, then by the first violent angle of the boy himself and, finally, by the extreme shot upon which the directors relied to create their atmosphere of hopeless despair. This technique can, of course, be adopted by other amateurs, the impor¬ tant point being to ensure that the subject has been familiarised to the audience before the extreme-angle shot is worked into the film. Apart from this, it is stupid to use angles just because they are angles — whilst the laboured use of the device is even riskier still. Notes on Shooting. Obviously, gross faults of this kind in any film mean that the cameraman does not know how to use his instrument. It is not " art ” or even workmanship to adjust the camera in any position without thought or due consideration. Bearing in mind the rule we have just been discussing, it is apparent that the one essential in all shooting with the stationary camera is for a level base-line. To illustrate this point, we cannot do better than consider the Cine-Kodak Model K or any flat-bottomed camera. Let us place it on the edge of a bench or table. Now, by tilting the camera lever-fashion so that the bottom front edge rests perfectly level upon the table, we can obtain a fair number of legiti¬ mate angles. Similarly, by using the bottom rear edge as a fulcrum we can obtain many further angles of a different though still valid type. The camera may now be levelled upon a cine-tripod and the same move Effective angle shots contribute materially to the excellence of a film. The illustration above is from the author's “ River Trip" — latest complete production of the Co-operative. Film Group. 341 27