Technical Research- Spatial

One example demonstrating spatial relationships is the Establishing Shot. An example of an establishing shot is in Christopher Nolan’s vision of Batman, particularly The Dark Knight (2008). The scene opens with an establishing shot of the City’s skyline, then zooming in on a window which is then smashed. The camera shot then changes to an over the shoulder shot with the guy who’s just caused this change of mood. This is a typical convention of an action film as it sets the scene and introduces the audience to what is going on.

Another example demonstrating special relationships is the Shot/Reverse Shot. The Shot/Reverse Shot is a technique in which the camera shot alternates between two or more people having a conversation and it shows both sides of a conversation. There are several ways in which this kind of shot can be achieved, with the following camera shots being used; angled shots, left/right alternating shots, over the shoulder shots and often a combination of the three. In Bad Santa (2003) there is a scene which implements this editing technique, where two of the characters are quite relaxed and lethargic while another is quite stern and agitated and using a close up camera shot it shows the contrast between the different facial expressions of the characters.