Did The Steadicam Breathe New Life Into Cinema?

A stationary shot conveys such an entirely different feeling to one which is moving, & movement is one of our most glorious attributes in life. With this amazingly simple yet ingenious device, film is finally free from sticks & tracks to run & dance, glide & creep thru all the vicissitudes of the visceral experience.

Here is an homage to the Steadicam

The first & third songs I found strangely appealing - first one is by Alt J - Let's Tesselate (yes, I did have to look that word up).

I'm a fan of the stedicam, but like any tool it can be overused.

Motivated and well planned shots work well. Over use of the tool eventually draws attention to itself, and takes you out of the scene. Especially when the stedicam becomes almost like a POV, as if the viewer has suddenly become an extra character in the room thats walking around looking at the main characters with no motivation. I hate that.

Good philosophy for life, all things in moderation. There are some amazing shots in that montage though...

posts like this make fcp.co my favorite website at the moment.

Happy to oblige. My philosophy is, even if you're an editor, the greater appreciation you can acquire for all aspects of the art-form, the more empowered you are to express thru it.

What an honor to be in the presence of masters of their craft. It must be over 30 years ago now, but I remember being on a set with a man who was a master of lighting, just to be near someone like that while working is a gift. Tiny little details, improvising with odd tools, always the subtle things. The memory is as clear now as then. People like that are the true agents of change, because they are disciples of deep devotion, love & passion, with a yearning to express thru art.

Garrett Brown (Steadicam inventor) is such a man, & I believe he did breathe new life into cinema. Though I agree with Simon, we mustn't overuse the marvelous toys, but for certain scenes it adds a kind of realism like no other.

Right now, it's been 2 & a half days since I watched that Steadicam montage, yet one clip stands out in my mind clear as crystal; the shot moving into the party. For me, that is one of the perfect places to utilize this ingenious invention.