# A full-length movie that was shot in one continuous shot?! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 15, 2002, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874 "2002-12-15T10:11:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Muad\_Dib](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/35a633/32.png) [@Muad\_Dib](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muad_Dib)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/1 "2002-12-15T10:11:36Z")
[Russian Ark](http://www.apple.com/trailers/independent/russian_ark.html). :eek: Wow. How did they pull this off? Has anyone seen this? Is the movie any good? Did they use the continuity to good effect, or is it little more than a gimmick, albeit, an incredible one? ---
**Author:** ![Cyberhwk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7993a0/32.png) [@Cyberhwk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyberhwk)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 10:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/2 "2002-12-15T10:36:54Z")
I believe Hitchcock also tried to pull this off in a movie called **Rope**. ---
**Author:** ![Erroneous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/71c47a/32.png) [@Erroneous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erroneous)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/3 "2002-12-15T11:38:55Z")
**Timecode** was a full-length movie shot in _four_ continuous, simultaneous shots. Apart from that, it was utterly boring. Still, I’d tentatively recommend it just because it’s so technically unique. Judging from the [reviews on Rotten Tomatoes](http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/RussianArk-1117146/), Russian Ark looks to be substantially better, in a “if you like this sort of thing” kind of way. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Elvis\_Rojo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@El\_Elvis\_Rojo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Elvis_Rojo)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/4 "2002-12-15T12:43:47Z")
**Running Time** starring Bruce Campbell was one “continuous shot”. I put the quotes there because, well, when it comes to film, you can’t get more than about 30 to 45 minutes of continuous usage from it, so there were points where they had to make cuts, but they did it in ways that made it hard to notice, so it all flowed together as though it was one continuous product. Decent film, but probably only really appreciated by Bruce fans. One of the most realistic, and hence awkward sex scenes I’ve seen in a movie to date. Not how you’d like to picture one of your heros. ---
**Author:** ![Jervoise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d2c977/32.png) [@Jervoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jervoise)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/5 "2002-12-15T13:02:23Z")
On a similar note, there was a December 1997 episode of “Mad About You” that was shot in a single take. Obviously this was a less ambitious project than a continuous shot movie, but it still makes a very impressive 22 minutes. ---
**Author:** ![jovan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/0ea827/32.png) [@jovan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jovan)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/6 "2002-12-15T14:10:37Z")
Regarding Hitchcock’s _Rope_, there are actually eight cuts or so in the movie. Neither cameras nor projectors could have accomodated enough film at the time for a single continuous shot. For something a little different, how about _Empire_, one single 8 hour-long shot of the Empire State Building, by Warhol. There was also the 35 min _Blowjob_ and the 45 min _Eat_. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/7 "2002-12-15T15:24:26Z")
> [@](#): > > Regarding Hitchcock’s _Rope_, there are actually eight cuts or so in the movie. Neither cameras nor projectors could have accomodated enough film at the time for a single continuous shot. Correct. Film cameras only hold about 10 minutes of film. ---
**Author:** ![epraz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/82dd89/32.png) [@epraz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epraz)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/8 "2002-12-15T15:47:34Z")
The Spice Girls’ “If you wanna be my lover” was filmed in one continuous shot. But not really, they did three separate shots, cut them together at inconspicuous times. Rope did that too, as did the russian movie, I would guess. ---
**Author:** ![TridCloudwalker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@TridCloudwalker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TridCloudwalker)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/9 "2002-12-15T16:58:04Z")
Though not all one continuous take it’s pretty damn close. My Dinner With Andre. I believe they had three or four cameras filming at once. I am unsure how many takes they did themovie in, but with the exception of bookending streetshots, the entire movie takes place at one table in a resteraunt. ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/10 "2002-12-15T17:24:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Erroneous \* > **Timecode was a full-length movie shot in _four_ continuous, simultaneous shots. Apart from that, it was utterly boring. Still, I’d tentatively recommend it just because it’s so technically unique.** I agree – neat experiement, not a good film. However, if you concentrate on Jeanne Tripplehorn’s character while she’s sitting in the limo, I think you’ll see some edits. –Cliffy ---
**Author:** ![TheeGrumpy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@TheeGrumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheeGrumpy)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/11 "2002-12-15T17:52:24Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by **Cliffy** > …if you concentrate on Jeanne Tripplehorn’s character while she’s sitting in the limo, I think you’ll see some edits. Battery problems, IIRC. I’ll have to watch the _Timecode_ DVD again to make sure. The disc includes a previous take, as well, before they ironed out many of the kinks. ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/12 "2002-12-15T18:01:10Z")
Okay, for clarity: There is a difference between one continuous, uninterrupted _take_ and one continuous _shot_. As **Johnny L.A.** pointed out, most film cameras can only hold about 10 minutes or so of film. With digital and video, you can go much longer with a continous shot. Hitchcock’s film _Rope_ did some sneaky stuff, like the camera passed behind somone’s back for a few seconds, the screen was black for that brief moment… Voila! Reel change! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/13 "2002-12-15T18:16:51Z")
Re: 10 minutes of film. I’ve been salivating over the Aaton A-Minima, a super-16 camera that is incredibly quiet and about the size of a Sony VX-1000 digicam. The only thing I don’t like about it is that it can only accept 200-foot magazines which limits it to about five minutes. Now, five minutes is a helluva long take. But even with 30-second takes you still have to change magazines twice as often. Besides, it’s cheaper (per foot) to buy film stock in 400-foot loads than in 200-foot loads. (FWIW, a 400-foot roll of 16mm Fuji 125 is over a hundred simoleons – plus processing, duplicating, video transfer, &c.) ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/14 "2002-12-15T18:16:58Z")
This interview with Alexander Sokurov, director of ‘Russian Ark’, confirms that digital cameras allowed him to make the film one-shot. [http://sokurov.spb.ru/island\_en/feature\_films/russkyi\_kovcheg/mnp\_ark.html](http://sokurov.spb.ru/island_en/feature_films/russkyi_kovcheg/mnp_ark.html) ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/15 "2002-12-15T18:42:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jovan \* > **There was also the 35 min _Blowjob_** ``` :eek: ``` > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jovan \* > **The Spice Girls’ “If you wanna be my lover” was filmed in one continuous shot.** I think Lucas’ “Lucas With The Lid Off” music video was a continuous shot also. Anyone else remember this? ---
**Author:** ![Dread\_Pirate\_Jimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dread_pirate_jimbo/32/3897_2.png) [@Dread\_Pirate\_Jimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dread_Pirate_Jimbo)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/16 "2002-12-15T19:20:01Z")
There are lots of one shot music videos out there these days. Lisa Loeb’s “Stay” is also a single shot. In my experience, _Rope_ is the best execution of the one shot style of filmmaking. ---
**Author:** ![Wearia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/13edae/32.png) [@Wearia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wearia)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2002, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/17 "2002-12-15T19:21:06Z")
There was a music video called Jealous of your Cigarette (can’t remember the artist) and it looked like it was done in one shot. It was basically him walking down a street dancing, being joined by others, riding a bike etc. To realize it was in one shot you have to watch things going on around the guy (smoke rising etc.) to see that it never seems to cut. ---
**Author:** ![TVGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/82dd89/32.png) [@TVGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2002, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/18 "2002-12-16T02:34:40Z")
From the trailer link that **Muad’Dib** posted, this also appears to be the longest film ever made in one shot and one take with not a single word of dialogue 😃 ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2002, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/19 "2002-12-16T04:43:09Z")
In **Rope** , Hitchcock planned for the end of one reel and the beginning of the next to be a static shot. He panned over to a wall with no one there [change film], he zoomed in on a table top [change film], he panned up to the cieling [change film]. The result was that it _appeared_ to be one continuous shot. _The 5 C’s of Cinematography_ called it a breakthrough of applied film genius (not an exact quote). ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2002, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874/20 "2002-12-16T04:51:16Z")
Ah… I’m sorry I missed **Eats Crayons** earlier post. Same basic idea. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-full-length-movie-that-was-shot-in-one-continuous-shot/142874.md?page=2)