Point of view shot
Encyclopedia
A point of view shot is a short film scene that shows what a character (the subject) is looking at (represented through the camera
). It is usually established by being positioned between a shot of a character looking at something, and a shot showing the character's reaction (see shot reverse shot
). The technique of POV is one of the foundations of film editing
.
A POV shot need not be the strict point-of-view of an actual single character in a film. Sometimes the point-of-view shot is taken over the shoulder of the character (third person), who remains visible on the screen. Sometimes a POV shot is "shared" ("dual" or "triple"), i.e. it represents the joint POV of two (or more) characters.
"Point-of-view , or simply p.o.v., camera angle
s record the scene from a particular player's viewpoint. The point-of-view is an objective angle, but since it falls between the objective and subjective angle, it should be placed in a separate category and given special consideration. A point-of-view shot is as close as an objective shot can approach a subjective shot - and still remain objective. The camera is positioned at the side of a subjective player - whose viewpoint is being depicted - so that the audience is given the impression they are standing cheek-to-cheek with the off-screen player. The viewer does not see the event through the player's eyes, as in a subjective shot in which the camera trades places with the screen player. He sees the event from the player's viewpoint, as if standing alongside him. Thus, the camera angle remains objective, since it is an unseen observer not involved in the action."
- Joseph V. Mascelli in The Five C's of Cinematography
A POV shot need not be established by strictly visual means. The manipulation of diegetic sounds can be used to emphasize a particular character's POV.
It makes little sense to say that a shot is "inherently" POV; it is the editing of the POV shot within a sequence of shots that determines POV. Nor can the establishment of a POV shot be isolated from other elements of filmmaking
— mise en scene
, acting, camera placement, editing, and special effects can all contribute to the establishment of POV.
With some POV shots when an animal is the chosen character, the shot will look distorted or black and white.
is the subject of the POV it is known as the subjective viewpoint. The audience sees events through the leading actor's eyes, as if they were experiencing the events themselves. Some films are partially or totally shot using this technique. In fact, there is an entire genre of pornography dedicated to filming technique known as Point of view pornography
.
One of the first films to use this technique was Rouben Mamoulian
's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
. Everything is seen through Jekyll's eyes, as he leaves his house to go to the medical lecture. Then, as he begins to speak, Jekyll is seen for the first time. When Jekyll first transforms himself into Hyde, Mamoulian once again uses the subjective camera to record his agonized reaction to his own drugged drink.
Film
, directed by Alan Schneider
written by Samuel Beckett
and starring Buster Keaton
also uses POV extensively, switching between the main character's point of view and the view of the camera as a way to illustrate Berkeley's
quote "to be is to be perceived and to perceive". Interestingly, Film is also said to refer to the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
In the film noir
Dark Passage, the protagonist has plastic surgery
, and when his bandages are removed, he is revealed to be Humphrey Bogart
. But until that moment, everything is seen through his eyes and the viewer has no idea what he looks like.
In another film noir, Lady in the Lake
, directed by and starring Robert Montgomery
as Raymond Chandler
's detective Philip Marlowe
, the entire film is shot from a subjective viewpoint, and Montgomery's face is seen only when he looks in a mirror. The film was not a critical or popular success.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
uses the POV shot with a tilt shift focus to imitate the lead protagonist loss of sight in one eye.
The Plainclothesman
, a moderately popular crime series aired on the DuMont Television Network
from 1949 to 1954, used the technique. According to David Weinstein
's book The Forgotten Network, the show was even used in police training in some cities.
Another example of a POV shot is in the movie Doom
, which contains a fairly long POV shot which resembles a head-up display
in a first-person shooter video game
, with the viewer watching through a character who is venturing through hallways shooting and killing aliens.
The British sitcom Peep Show
is shown mostly through the viewpoints of the characters and even lets you hear the two lead character's thoughts in the scenes.
In Gaspar Noé's 2010 film Enter the Void
the beginning of the movie is shot in first-person.
Dick Barrymore , an early action filmmaker akin to Warren Miller
, experimented with film cameras and counter weights mounted to a helmet. Barrymore could ski unencumbered while capturing footage of scenery and other skiers. Though the unit was heavy relative to its manner of use, it was considered hands-free, and worked.
Numerous companies have developed successful POV designs, from laparoscopic
video equipment used inside the body during medical procedures, to high tech film and digital cameras mounted to jets and employed during flight. On professional levels, the equipment is well defined, expensive, and requires intensive training and support.
However the race for hands free POV cameras for use on a consumer level has always faced problems. The technology has had issues with usability, combining lenses with microphones with batteries with recording units; all connected using spidery cables, which proved cumbersome in use when compared to the quality of the end content.
Manufacturers such as Sony
, Panasonic
and Samsung
have developed the smallest of camcorders. However when introduced to the elements, mainly water, dust, dirt and snow and shock, and extremes in temperature, the plastic-encased parts can experience catastrophic equipment failure. With the advent of affordable digital technology, new cameras have made consumer POV recording more reliable. The digital units are extremely tough, water proof, dust proof and are fully self contained. DVD quality can be achieved. One touch recording does away with complex menus and operating systems. The camera head can be mounted almost anywhere to capture views from a unique perspective.
Camera
A camera is a device that records and stores images. These images may be still photographs or moving images such as videos or movies. The term camera comes from the camera obscura , an early mechanism for projecting images...
). It is usually established by being positioned between a shot of a character looking at something, and a shot showing the character's reaction (see shot reverse shot
Shot reverse shot
Shot reverse shot is a film technique where one character is shown looking at another character , and then the other character is shown looking back at the first character...
). The technique of POV is one of the foundations of film editing
Film editing
Film editing is part of the creative post-production process of filmmaking. It involves the selection and combining of shots into sequences, and ultimately creating a finished motion picture. It is an art of storytelling...
.
A POV shot need not be the strict point-of-view of an actual single character in a film. Sometimes the point-of-view shot is taken over the shoulder of the character (third person), who remains visible on the screen. Sometimes a POV shot is "shared" ("dual" or "triple"), i.e. it represents the joint POV of two (or more) characters.
"Point-of-view , or simply p.o.v., camera angle
Camera angle
The camera angle marks the specific location at which a camera is placed to take a shot. A scene may be shot from several camera angles. This will give different experience and sometimes emotion. the different camera angles will have different effects on the viewer and how they perceive the scene...
s record the scene from a particular player's viewpoint. The point-of-view is an objective angle, but since it falls between the objective and subjective angle, it should be placed in a separate category and given special consideration. A point-of-view shot is as close as an objective shot can approach a subjective shot - and still remain objective. The camera is positioned at the side of a subjective player - whose viewpoint is being depicted - so that the audience is given the impression they are standing cheek-to-cheek with the off-screen player. The viewer does not see the event through the player's eyes, as in a subjective shot in which the camera trades places with the screen player. He sees the event from the player's viewpoint, as if standing alongside him. Thus, the camera angle remains objective, since it is an unseen observer not involved in the action."
- Joseph V. Mascelli in The Five C's of Cinematography
A POV shot need not be established by strictly visual means. The manipulation of diegetic sounds can be used to emphasize a particular character's POV.
It makes little sense to say that a shot is "inherently" POV; it is the editing of the POV shot within a sequence of shots that determines POV. Nor can the establishment of a POV shot be isolated from other elements of filmmaking
Filmmaking
Filmmaking is the process of making a film, from an initial story, idea, or commission, through scriptwriting, casting, shooting, directing, editing, and screening the finished product before an audience that may result in a theatrical release or television program...
— mise en scene
Mise en scène
Mise-en-scène is an expression used to describe the design aspects of a theatre or film production, which essentially means "visual theme" or "telling a story"—both in visually artful ways through storyboarding, cinematography and stage design, and in poetically artful ways through direction...
, acting, camera placement, editing, and special effects can all contribute to the establishment of POV.
With some POV shots when an animal is the chosen character, the shot will look distorted or black and white.
Leading actor POV
When the leading actorLeading actor
A leading actor, leading actress, star, or simply lead, plays the role of the protagonist in a film or play. The word lead may also refer to the largest role in the piece and leading actor may refer to a person who typically plays such parts or an actor with a respected body of work...
is the subject of the POV it is known as the subjective viewpoint. The audience sees events through the leading actor's eyes, as if they were experiencing the events themselves. Some films are partially or totally shot using this technique. In fact, there is an entire genre of pornography dedicated to filming technique known as Point of view pornography
Point of view pornography
Point of view pornography , also known as , is adult entertainment that is filmed as if the watcher had experienced the sex-acts themselves....
.
One of the first films to use this technique was Rouben Mamoulian
Rouben Mamoulian
Rouben Mamoulian was an Armenian-American film and theatre director.-Biography:Born in Tbilisi, Georgia to an Armenian family, Rouben relocated to England and started directing plays in London in 1922...
's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931 film)
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a 1932 American Pre-Code horror film directed by Rouben Mamoulian and starring Fredric March. The film is an adaptation of The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde , the Robert Louis Stevenson tale of a man who takes a potion which turns him from a mild-mannered man of...
. Everything is seen through Jekyll's eyes, as he leaves his house to go to the medical lecture. Then, as he begins to speak, Jekyll is seen for the first time. When Jekyll first transforms himself into Hyde, Mamoulian once again uses the subjective camera to record his agonized reaction to his own drugged drink.
Film
Film (film)
Film is a film written by Samuel Beckett, his only screenplay. It was commissioned by Barney Rosset of Grove Press. Writing began on 5 April 1963 with a first draft completed within four days. A second draft was produced by 22 May and a forty-leaf shooting script followed thereafter...
, directed by Alan Schneider
Alan Schneider
Alan Schneider was an American theatre director and mentor responsible for more than 100 theatre productions. In 1984 he was honored with a Drama Desk Special Award for serving a wide range of playwrights...
written by Samuel Beckett
Samuel Beckett
Samuel Barclay Beckett was an Irish avant-garde novelist, playwright, theatre director, and poet. He wrote both in English and French. His work offers a bleak, tragicomic outlook on human nature, often coupled with black comedy and gallows humour.Beckett is widely regarded as among the most...
and starring Buster Keaton
Buster Keaton
Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".Keaton was recognized as the...
also uses POV extensively, switching between the main character's point of view and the view of the camera as a way to illustrate Berkeley's
George Berkeley
George Berkeley , also known as Bishop Berkeley , was an Irish philosopher whose primary achievement was the advancement of a theory he called "immaterialism"...
quote "to be is to be perceived and to perceive". Interestingly, Film is also said to refer to the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
In the film noir
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
Dark Passage, the protagonist has plastic surgery
Plastic surgery
Plastic surgery is a medical specialty concerned with the correction or restoration of form and function. Though cosmetic or aesthetic surgery is the best-known kind of plastic surgery, most plastic surgery is not cosmetic: plastic surgery includes many types of reconstructive surgery, hand...
, and when his bandages are removed, he is revealed to be Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
. But until that moment, everything is seen through his eyes and the viewer has no idea what he looks like.
In another film noir, Lady in the Lake
Lady in the Lake
Lady in the Lake is a 1947 American film noir that marked the directorial debut of Robert Montgomery, who also stars in the film. The picture also features Audrey Totter, Lloyd Nolan, Tom Tully, Leon Ames and Jayne Meadows...
, directed by and starring Robert Montgomery
Robert Montgomery (actor)
Robert Montgomery was an American actor and director.- Early life :Montgomery was born Henry Montgomery, Jr. in Beacon, New York, then known as "Fishkill Landing", the son of Mary Weed and Henry Montgomery, Sr. His early childhood was one of privilege, since his father was president of the New...
as Raymond Chandler
Raymond Chandler
Raymond Thornton Chandler was an American novelist and screenwriter.In 1932, at age forty-five, Raymond Chandler decided to become a detective fiction writer after losing his job as an oil company executive during the Depression. His first short story, "Blackmailers Don't Shoot", was published in...
's detective Philip Marlowe
Philip Marlowe
Philip Marlowe is a fictional character created by Raymond Chandler in a series of novels including The Big Sleep and The Long Goodbye. Marlowe first appeared under that name in The Big Sleep published in 1939...
, the entire film is shot from a subjective viewpoint, and Montgomery's face is seen only when he looks in a mirror. The film was not a critical or popular success.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is a translation of the French memoir Le scaphandre et le papillon by journalist Jean-Dominique Bauby. It describes what his life is like after suffering a massive stroke that left him with a condition called locked-in syndrome...
uses the POV shot with a tilt shift focus to imitate the lead protagonist loss of sight in one eye.
The Plainclothesman
The Plainclothesman
The Plainclothesman was an early American television program broadcast on the now defunct DuMont Television Network.-Broadcast history:The series ran from 1949 to 1954. It was a detective show starring Ken Lynch, whose character was known only as "The Lieutenant"...
, a moderately popular crime series aired on the DuMont Television Network
DuMont Television Network
The DuMont Television Network, also known as the DuMont Network, DuMont, Du Mont, or Dumont was one of the world's pioneer commercial television networks, rivalling NBC for the distinction of being first overall. It began operation in the United States in 1946. It was owned by DuMont...
from 1949 to 1954, used the technique. According to David Weinstein
David Weinstein
David Weinstein may refer to:*David E. Weinstein, Carl S. Shoup Professor of Japanese Economy at Columbia University*David F. Weinstein, United States politician*David Weinstein , American musician and composer...
's book The Forgotten Network, the show was even used in police training in some cities.
Another example of a POV shot is in the movie Doom
Doom (film)
Doom is a 2005 science fiction horror film, loosely based on the Doom series of video games created by id Software. It was directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak....
, which contains a fairly long POV shot which resembles a head-up display
Head-Up Display
A head-up display or heads-up display is any transparent display that presents data without requiring users to look away from their usual viewpoints...
in a first-person shooter video game
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
, with the viewer watching through a character who is venturing through hallways shooting and killing aliens.
The British sitcom Peep Show
Peep Show (TV series)
Peep Show is a British sitcom starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb. The television programme is written by Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain, with additional material by Mitchell and Webb themselves, amongst others. It has been broadcast on Channel 4 since 2003. The show's seventh series makes it...
is shown mostly through the viewpoints of the characters and even lets you hear the two lead character's thoughts in the scenes.
In Gaspar Noé's 2010 film Enter the Void
Enter the Void
Enter the Void is a French film written and directed by Gaspar Noé, starring Nathaniel Brown, Paz de la Huerta, and Cyril Roy. Set in the neon-lit nightclub environments of Tokyo, the story follows Oscar, a young American drug dealer who gets shot by the police, but continues to watch succeeding...
the beginning of the movie is shot in first-person.
Technology
POV footage has existed since the first cameras were mounted in early airplanes and cars, anywhere a film’s creator intended to take viewers inside the action with the psychological purpose of giving viewers a feel of "What he or she is going through", he or she being a participant in the subject matter. Cameras were increasingly introduced into more difficult experiences.Dick Barrymore , an early action filmmaker akin to Warren Miller
Warren Miller (director)
Warren Miller is an American ski and snowboarding filmmaker. He is the founder of Warren Miller Entertainment and produced, directed and narrated his films until 1988. His credits include over 750 sports films, several books and hundreds of published non-fiction stories...
, experimented with film cameras and counter weights mounted to a helmet. Barrymore could ski unencumbered while capturing footage of scenery and other skiers. Though the unit was heavy relative to its manner of use, it was considered hands-free, and worked.
Numerous companies have developed successful POV designs, from laparoscopic
Laparoscopy
Laparoscopy is an operation performed in the abdomen or pelvis through small incisions with the aid of a camera...
video equipment used inside the body during medical procedures, to high tech film and digital cameras mounted to jets and employed during flight. On professional levels, the equipment is well defined, expensive, and requires intensive training and support.
However the race for hands free POV cameras for use on a consumer level has always faced problems. The technology has had issues with usability, combining lenses with microphones with batteries with recording units; all connected using spidery cables, which proved cumbersome in use when compared to the quality of the end content.
Manufacturers such as Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
, Panasonic
Panasonic
Panasonic is an international brand name for Japanese electric products manufacturer Panasonic Corporation, which was formerly known as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd...
and Samsung
Samsung
The Samsung Group is a South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea...
have developed the smallest of camcorders. However when introduced to the elements, mainly water, dust, dirt and snow and shock, and extremes in temperature, the plastic-encased parts can experience catastrophic equipment failure. With the advent of affordable digital technology, new cameras have made consumer POV recording more reliable. The digital units are extremely tough, water proof, dust proof and are fully self contained. DVD quality can be achieved. One touch recording does away with complex menus and operating systems. The camera head can be mounted almost anywhere to capture views from a unique perspective.