One-shot film explained

A one-shot film (also one-take film, single-take film, continuous shot feature film) is a full-length movie filmed in one long take by a single camera, or manufactured to give the impression it was.[1]

Use and theory

In a 2019 article, discussing the award-winning film 1917 (2019), Eric Grode of The New York Times wrote that very long takes were becoming popular in more mainstream films "as a sobering reminder of temporality, a virtuosic calling card, a self-issued challenge or all of the above", also citing the Academy Award-winner from several years prior, Birdman (2014).[2]

History

Grode notes that before such films as 1917 and Birdman, the idea of experimenting with long uninterrupted takes had a history of over 80 years, with Alfred Hitchcock being a pioneer. Aside from early experiments like Young and Innocent and Notorious, the most famous early example of a film that extensively uses long takes is the 1948 Rope, which was shot in mainly seven-to-ten–minute continuous takes (the physical limit of film stock at the time) that appear as four long takes of around 15 to 20 minutes each, close to the maximum length allowed by the cinema projectors of the time.[3] Reportedly, James Stewart, star of Rope, did not like the long takes and apparently muttered on set that the cameras were more important than the actors. Hitchcock intended to shoot the film as if it were a play, and timed five of the ten segments to allow for hidden edits behind furniture; elaborate camera and actor choreography was used. He wrote Rope this way because he felt "if time passed between cuts, the suspense of whether the body was still in the trunk would be lost".[4]

Grode also examines the 1958 film Touch of Evil as an example, though only its three-minute opening sequence is shot in real time. However, the use of a real time ticking bomb through the single shot is seen as a standard.

Although animated films are not included in a list of one-shot films, The Wolf House (2018) is a deconstructed example of (stop-motion) animated film that presented in a form of single, unbroken shot sequence.[5] [6] [7]

Notable examples

Actual "one shot"

YearTitledata-sort-type="number" LengthDirectorNationality
1982Macbeth57 min. (longest shot)Béla TarrHungary[8]
1998Big Monday74 min.Michael RehfieldUnited States[9]
2000Timecode97 min.Mike FiggisUnited States[10]
2002Russian Ark96 min.Alexander SokurovRussia[11]
200365 min.Matías BizeChile[12]
2007Alternation11 minMehdi Fard GhaderiIran[13]
2007PVC-185 min.Spiros StathoulopoulosColombia[14]
2008Still Orangutans81 min.Gustavo SpolideroBrazil[15]
2011Reversing Circles21 min.Mehdi Fard GhaderiIran[16]
2013Rati Chakravyuh102 min.Ashish AvikunthakIndia[17]
2013Fish & Cat134 min.Shahram MokriIran[18]
2013El triste olor de la carne87 min.Cristóbal ArteagaSpain[19]
2013Ana Arabia85 min.Amos GitaiIsrael[20]
2013Somebody Marry Me98 min.John AsherUnited States[21]
2013Daikuko98 min.Mitani KokiJapan[22]
2014Agadam123 min.Mohamad IssackIndia[23]
2015Victoria140 min.Sebastian SchipperGermany[24]
2015Anino sa likod ng buwan120 min.Jun LanaPhilippines[25]
2015The Story Of A Rainy Night24 minMehdi Fard GhaderiIran[26]
2015Daksha142 min.S. NarayanIndia[27]
2016Paint Drying607 min.Charlie ShackletonUnited Kingdom[28]
2016Eight81 min.Peter BlackburnAustralia[29]
2016Immortality145 min.Mehdi Fard GhaderiIran[30]
2016King Dave99 min.PodzCanada[31]
2017Fourplay77 min.Dean RonaldsUnited States[32]
2017The Wedding Party119 min.Thane EconomouUnited States[33]
2017One Shot-Fear Without Cut140 min.Haroon RashidIndia[34]
2017One Cut of the Dead37 min. (longest shot)Shin'ichirō UedaJapan[35]
2017Watch The Sunset83 min.Tristan Barr & Michael GosdenAustralia[36]
2017Lost in London103 min.Woody HarrelsonUnited Kingdom[37]
2018Heegondhu Dina106.11 min Vikram YoganandIndia[38]
2018The Silent Pasture of Sparrows20 min.Qmars MootabUnited States[39]
201890 min.Erik PoppeNorway[40]
2018Blind Spot98 min.Tuva NovotnyNorway[41]
2018Jaalo101 minAraaj Keshav GiriNepal[42]
201888 min.Dani LevySwitzerland[43] [44]
2018A Boy. A Girl. A Dream: Love on Election Night 89 min. [45]
2019El Amor No Puede Esperar (Love Can't Wait)76 min.Juan Carlos CarrascoMexico
2019Last Call77 min.Gavin Michael BoothCanada[46]
2019Shonibar Bikel83 minMostofa Sarwar FarookiBangladesh[47]
202089 min.Tim DünschedeGermany[48]
2020Let's Scare Julie83 min.Jud CremataUnited States[49] [50]
2021Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam85 min.Don PalatharaIndia[51]
2021Rendez-Vous105 min.Pablo Olmos ArrayalesMexico[52]
2021Roaring 20's85 min.Elisabeth VoglerFrance[53]
2021Boiling Point94 min.Philip BarantiniUnited Kingdom[54]
2021Causalidad115 min.Who (Marcelo Politano)Argentina[55]
2022Iravin Nizhal98 minR. ParthibanIndia[56]
2022Yuddha Kaandam90 minBose VenkatIndia[57]
2023Tales from the Neighborhood Café41 min.Al HallakUnited States[58]
2023The Night Inside23 minAntonio CuestaSpain[59]

Edited to appear as "one shot"

YearTitleLengthDirectorNationalityNotes
1964Empire485 min.Andy WarholUnited States[60]
2002Irréversible92 min.Gaspar NoeFranceAn experimental film combines with one-shot and reverse order.[61] [62]
2010The Silent House86 min.Gustavo HernándezUruguay[63]
2011Silent House87 min.Chris Kentis, Laura LauUnited States[64]
2014Birdman119 minutesAlejandro González IñárrituUnited States
20191917118 min.Sam MendesUnited KingdomActually edited to appear as two shots, with the camera cutting to black as the protagonist gets knocked out half-way. [65]
2020Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes70 min.Junta YamaguchiJapan[66]
2021One Shot97 min.James NunnUnited Kingdom[67]
2022Medusa Deluxe100 min.Thomas HardimanUnited Kingdom[68]
2023Shttl114 min.Ady WalterUkraine[69]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Best one shot (one-take) movies . 2016-09-25 . FEENTA . 2018-03-21 .
  2. News: Grode. Eric. December 25, 2019. 1917 Isn't the First (Supposedly) One-Shot Film. Here's a Timeline. The New York Times. June 24, 2020. 0362-4331.
  3. Book: Bordwell . David . Poetics of Cinema . 2008 . Routledge . New York . 9780415977791 . 32–36.
  4. Web site: 2019-12-23. '1917' and 12 Other 'One-Shot' Movies, From 'Timecode' to 'Birdman' (Photos). 2020-06-24. TheWrap. en-US.
  5. Web site: Ten Rules for Animating The Wolf House . 2023-04-30 . walkerart.org . en-US.
  6. Web site: Jutton . Lee . 2020-05-13 . THE WOLF HOUSE: A Delightfully Disturbing Fairy Tale . 2023-04-30 . Film Inquiry . en-us.
  7. News: Kenny . Glenn . 2020-05-14 . 'The Wolf House' Review: A Different Kind of Quarantine . en-US . The New York Times . 2023-04-30 . 0362-4331.
  8. Web site: Bela Tarr: Macbeth (1982) . 2010-08-03 . Can't Stop the Movies . 2016-03-27 .
  9. News: Reflections . 2019-10-13. The Austin Chronicle. Austin. Clay. Smith. 1999-03-19.
  10. News: Once upon a Time Code . 2013-06-03. The Guardian. London. Richard. Williams. 2000-08-11.
  11. Web site: Behind the Scenes of the 96 Minute Shot, The Russian Ark . Ward . Caleb . 2014-04-22 . The Beat . PremiumBeat . 2015-09-27 .
  12. Web site: Sábado (2003) . cinechile.
  13. Alternation (تناوب) by Mehdi Fard Ghaderi - Iran Drama Short Film Viddsee . en . 2024-05-07 . www.viddsee.com.
  14. Web site: A movie shot in real time recalls Colombian nightmare . Beale . Lewis . 2008-07-15 . NY Daily News . 2018-04-21 .
  15. Web site: Still Orangutans. The Hollywood Reporter. AP. Lowe, Justin. 2008-11-12. 2018-04-21 .
  16. Web site: http://BestDeveloper.ir . The Documentary And Experimental Film Center . 2024-06-19 . defcapp.ir . fa.
  17. Web site: Circling Time . Sorabjee . Deepika . 2014-07-06 . ArtSlant . 2015-10-07 .
  18. Web site: Venice Film Review: 'Fish & Cat' . Simon . Alissa . 2013-09-17 . . 2018-04-21 .
  19. Web site: The Sad Smell of Flesh (El Triste Olor de la Carne): Karlovy Vary Review . Dalton . Stephen . 2013-07-10 . . 2016-01-12 .
  20. Web site: Venice Review: Amos Gitai's Shot-In-One-Take 'Ana Arabia' . Lyttelton . Oliver . 2013-09-09 . . 2015-11-27 .
  21. Web site: Malibu local completes film . The Malibu Times . 2013-06-13 . 2020-04-04.
  22. Web site: Mitani Koki to film another single-cut drama starring Takeuchi Yuko . Tokyo Hive . 2013-04-19 . 2020-06-19.
  23. News: A record start . Jeshi . K. . 2014-01-02 . The Hindu . 2015-10-20 .
  24. Web site: Adopt Films Picks Up One-Shot Heist Thriller 'Victoria' . Kohn . Eric . 2015-02-16 . IndieWire . 2015-09-27 .
  25. Web site: Shadow Behind the Moon . Five Flavours Film Festival . 2017-03-29 .
  26. Web site: Story of a Rainy Night wins San Pedro Filmfest . 2024-05-07 . en.irna.ir . 10 January 2016 .
  27. Web site: Duniya Vijay's 'Daksha' with S.Narayan . https://web.archive.org/web/20170205111344/http://www.sify.com/movies/duniya-vijay-s-daksha-with-s-narayan-news-kannada-oehjBmhigibsi.html . dead . 2017-02-05 . 2014-04-07 . Sify Movies . 2017-02-21 .
  28. News: BBFC rates Paint Drying film 'U', after sitting through all 607 minutes. Loughrey. Clarisse. 2016-01-26. The Independent. 2018-06-23. subscription.
  29. Web site: One shot wonders – how feature film Eight was made . Barry . Kristina . 2014-03-28 . The Creative Issue . 2018-04-21 .
  30. Web site: 2016-10-03. Rome Film Fest; Immortality, shot in a single take. Variety.
  31. Web site: Podz's King Dave: One-shot film premières at Fantasia . Kelly . Brendan . 2016-07-11 . 2017-06-10 . Montreal Gazette.
  32. Web site: Scheck . Frank . 'Fourplay': Film Review . . 2018-04-01 . 2020-04-01.
  33. Web site: 'The Wedding Party' Trailer Reveals Romantic Comedy Shot Entirely in One Take . Chitwood . Adam . 2017-05-16 . . 2018-04-21 .
  34. News: Shukla. Richa. Haroon Rashid's film in Guinness World Records. 2017-02-02. The Times of India. 2017-01-02.
  35. Web site: Bradshaw . Peter . One Cut of the Dead review – zombie films get a shot in the arm . The Guardian . 2019-01-04 . 2021-08-30.
  36. Web site: Cunningham . James . Australia's first single-take feature film, 'Watch the Sunset', with cinematographer Damien Lipp . Australian Cinematographer Magazine . 2017-03-01 . 2020-04-06.
  37. McGovern . Joe . Woody Harrelson will make history with world's first-ever 'live cinema' movie . . 2016-12-06 . 2022-09-14.
  38. Web site: 'Heegondhu Dina' review: This ambitious Kannada film deserves a watch for sheer audacity . 31 March 2018 .
  39. Web site: How a Sundance Film Pulled Off a 90-Minute Single Take . Buder . Emily . 2018-01-24 . 2018-01-24 . No Film School.
  40. Web site: Utøya massacre re-enactment stuns Berlin audiences. Kate. Connolly. 2018-02-19. The Guardian. 2018-02-20.
  41. Web site: Film Review: 'Blind Spot'. Guy. Lodge. 2018-10-03. Variety. 2019-02-26.
  42. Web site: Nepali Movie – Jaalo (Guinness world record holder one-shot film) – Nepal & Nepali . 24 September 2018 . 2023-01-01 . en-US.
  43. News: Luzern hören und sterben. Jan. Brachmann. 2018-08-05. Faz.net. 2020-02-26.
  44. comparison between the Swiss and Standard German versions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRcsqnJeQZw
  45. Web site: How a Sundance Film Pulled Off a 90-Minute Single Take . Buder . Emily . 2018-01-24 . 2022-04-11 . No Film School.
  46. Web site: Debruge . Peter . 2020-09-18 . 'Last Call' Review: A Split-Screen Stunt Obscures the Statement at the Center of This Suicidal Plea for Help . 2023-08-03 . . en-US.
  47. News: 10 May 2019 . Farooki's 'Shonibar Bikel' selected for Sydney Film Festival 2019 . . live . 9 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190521094557/http://www.dhakatribune.com/showtime/2019/05/10/farooki-s-shonibar-bikel-selected-for-sydney-film-festival-2019 . 2019-05-21.
  48. News: Das ist das One-Shot-Experiment von fünf HFF-Absolventen . Ortmann . Joana . 2020-02-20 . Bayerischer Rundfunk . 2020-02-26 .
  49. Web site: How Jud Cremata pulled off a one-shot thriller with 'Let's Scare Julie' . 2020-05-07 . Screen International . 2021-02-15 .
  50. Web site: Let's Scare Julie . 2020 . Film Seekers . 2021-02-15 .
  51. News: Don Palathara's next is Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam . 2020-10-19 . Cinema Express . 2020-12-30 .
  52. News: Thriller Shot in One Take 'Rendez-Vous' Due on VOD Feb. 12 From Level 33 . 2021-02-11 . MediaPlayNews . 2021-02-15 .
  53. Web site: Elsa. Keslassy. Tribeca-Bound, Paris-Set 'Roaring 20's'Acquired by Films Boutique (EXCLUSIVE) . April 21, 2021. Variety. April 22, 2021.
  54. News: Boiling Point . 55th Karlovy Vary IFF . 2021-08-13 .
  55. News: Amazon Prime Video premieres Causalidad, a film made entirely in sequence shot . Market Research Telecast . 2021-12-17. 2022-01-29.
  56. News: A Single-Shot Film Of Phenomenal Power And Ambition . NDTV review. July 16, 2022 .
  57. News: India's First Single Shot Action Movie 'YUDDHA KAANDAM ' Will Be An Internationally Recognised And Awards Winning Movie Which Will Create A Lot Of Sensations . industryhit review. August 15, 2021 .
  58. Web site: Cranwell . Taylor . 2023-06-20 . 'Tales from the Neighborhood Cafe' Puts Alexandria's St. Elmo's Coffee Pub on the Movie Map . 2023-06-29 . The Zebra . en-US.
  59. News: La Noche Dentro - Film Distribution . LINE UP Film Agency. February 3, 2024 .
  60. News: Ciampaglia. Dante A.. August 5, 2014. Andy Warhol's Empire Turns 50. Architectural Record. November 28, 2022.
  61. Book: Sterritt . David . Guiltless Pleasures: A David Sterritt Film Reader . University Press of Mississippi . 2005 . 978-1-57806-780-0 . 184.
  62. Book: Renga . Dana . Unfinished Business: Screening the Italian Mafia in the New Millennium . University of Toronto Press . 2013 . 978-1-4426-1558-8 . 46.
  63. News: Gingold. Michael. May 11, 2019. A Walk Through The Silent House with Director Gustavo Hernández. Fangoria. November 28, 2022.
  64. News: Thompson. Bob. March 8, 2012. Elizabeth Olsen on Silent House and why she'll never co-star with Mary-Kate and Ashley. National Post. https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20120309011928/http://arts.nationalpost.com/2012/03/08/elizabeth-olsen-on-silent-house-and-why-shell-never-co-star-with-mary-kate-and-ashley/. March 9, 2012.
  65. News: Siegel. Tatiana. December 26, 2019. Making of '1917': How Sam Mendes Filmed a "Ticking Clock Thriller". The Hollywood Reporter. November 28, 2022.
  66. Web site: Balmont . James . Screen sensation: the single-shot thriller bringing time-travel into the Zoom era . . 3 December 2021 . 25 April 2022.
  67. News: Harvey. Dennis. November 5, 2021. 'One Shot' Review: Defending a High-Security U.S. Military Base in Gimmicky Single-Take Stunt. Variety. November 6, 2021.
  68. News: Lodge . Guy . 7 August 2022 . 'Medusa Deluxe' Review: One-Shot Hairdressing Murder Mystery Is an Elaborate, Backcombed Tease . 2 February 2023 . Variety.
  69. Web site: Tartaglione . Nancy . 2021-09-01 . 'SHTTL': Single-Shot Shoah Feature With Saul Rubinek Wraps In Ukraine; Sets To Be Maintained As Open-Air Museum . 2023-08-16 . Deadline . en-US.