Elements of 4D_Christian Collins

 Movement

    Movement is an important tool which can be used to drive the narrative of an artwork. It can grab the audiences attention and direct it towards the focal point of the work. This element of design can also be used to create energy within the piece.   While filming an artist can use several camera techniques such as a pan which is a movement from side to side, pivoting up or down which would be a tilt, and zooming which is used to change the size of an object which can impact the significance and emotion of the subject matter. Tracking shots can be used to follow an actor through a scene. In the 2014 film "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)" director Alejandro González Iñárritu creates the illusion of a continuous shot that never breaks.  The use of this design tool creates a feeling like you are on a train with the characters in the film and someone has forgotten to install the brakes. The momentum keeps speeding forward and it seems like you are seconds from loosing control.  This emotion created by the camera movement helps the audience to understand the emotions of the main character of the film who is an actor past his prime, watching his life speed past while being caught up in the craziness which comes with creating a Broadway production.

"Tracking Shot"

    Birdman uses a continuous tracking shot to drive the narrative and pacing of the film.This helps with the flow and expression of emotion in the film. This tracking shot follows actors as they travel throughout the playhouse and out onto the streets of New York.  Birdman is not a true continuous tracking shot, the director uses doorways and objects blocking the frame to hide cuts in the film.  Although there are cuts, the director continues the momentum of the shot by continuing where the last shot left off.