How was 1917 filmed as a continuous shot?

How was 1917 filmed as a continuous shot? - Person in Red Shirt Standing on Brown Rock Formation Near Body of Water

I just saw the new Sam Mendes film 1917 and was really impressed with the continuous shot approach, especially given the setting in the trenches of WW1. I've seen this effect done before and know there are different ways of making a whole movie using this effect.

What methods were used in this film specifically to give it the single continuous shot effect?



Best Answer

Similar techniques were used in Birdman which was also visualised as a single shot, and the opening scene of The Revenant.

Usually, if you're looking out for them you can see the wipes they use - watch for someone crossing camera in such a way as they completely cover the shot, or in Birdman, they used transitions between rooms, covered by CGI to keep the central actor apparently in a continuous motion.




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How was 1917 filmed as a continuous shot? - Aerial View and Grayscale Photography of High-rise Buildings
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How did they make 1917 look like one continuous shot?

The film's appearance as one long shot is actually composed of numerous tracking shots stitched together. To be able to operate a camera for these long shots, the camera had to be lightweight. So, Deakins turned to ARRI with a request to create a lightweight camera with the performance level that they needed.

Was 1917 actually shot in one take?

The entirety of "1917," a drama set during World War I, follows a pair of young soldiers trying to deliver a message to stop an attack. It was not actually shot in one take, but rather a series of continuous, uncut shots that were then cleverly connected to give the feeling of one long take.

How many takes was 1917 filmed in?

In the case of 1917, the one-shot technique is used to tell a story about two young British privates (George MacKay and Dean-Charles Chapman) who are tasked by their general (Colin Firth) with taking a message from their trenches and across no man's land to Colonel MacKenzie (Benedict Cumberbatch), who's leading his ...

How long was the continuous shot in 1917?

According to Mendes, the shortest unbroken shot was 39 seconds long, while the longest single continuous shot was 8 1/2 minutes long. Inspired by Sir Sam Mendes' grandfather's experiences in WWI: "The Autobiography of Alfred H. Mendes 1897-1991."



How to make a movie look like one long shot




More answers regarding how was 1917 filmed as a continuous shot?

Answer 2

Quoting from Wikipedia under filming section.

Filming was accomplished with long takes and elaborately choreographed moving camera shots to give the effect of one continuous take.

Careful editing was employed to trick the viewer’s eye into thinking they were watching films unfolding in one unbroken take. (source)

Sam Mendes explained it quite well himself in behind the scenes of 1917.

This one explains too.

As explained in a screenrant article:

Anytime something fills the screen, such as soldiers walking in front of the camera and occupying the entire frame for a split second, a cut can be hidden.

Answer 3

Most of the movie is filmed with 8-9 minutes long scenes and then edited to make it look as a continuous shot. Sometimes they pass the camera behind some objects (I remember some rocks and buildings) and cut the scene, then they can continue with the next scene without the audience noticing the cut.

There's an article with most of the process explained.

Answer 4

American filmmaker Rian Craig Johnson tweets the following regarding the 1917 movie in his twitter account.

Last night at the PGA awards Mendes told me 1917 was ACTUALLY shot in one continuous take, if an actor flubbed a line they’d go all the way back and start again from the beginning. They paid Cumberbatch to show up every day and wait in that room at the end. He was there 6 months

They paid him 23 million dollars

They had a production walkie stashed in the bunker. He’d wait in character. A few times a day the walkie would squawk “going again”

link

Answer 5

This youtube video shows how this was accomplished.

Two men run with a camera and video-stabilization is used afterwards. The camera is passed off while shooting.

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Images: Simon Gough, Tatiana Fet, Kyle Loftus, Chay García