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SteadiCam

 SteadiCam
type
FeatureClass
 SteadiCam
label
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam
page
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam
comment
The SteadiCam is a camera stabilization device that isolates a hand-held camera from the movement of the operator, allowing the operator to move freely without jiggling the camera. The SteadiCam allows for stable shots in places where dollies and tracks cannot be used, such as along stairs, over obstacles, and during Walk and Talk scenes. It combines the stabilization ability of a fixed tripod mount with the fluid motion of a dolly shot and the flexibility of hand-held camera work.
The SteadiCam was first used by its inventor, Garrett Brown, in the 1976 film Bound For Glory, for which its cinematographer Haskell Wexler won an Oscar. Brown himself eventually won both an Oscar and an Emmy for his invention. It is frequently used to shoot The Oner, a long continuous shot with no edits.
A SteadiCam rig for a motion picture camera consists of a harness worn by the operator, which is attached to a mechanism containing the camera and a counterweight. Tiffen also manufactures smaller versions of the SteadiCam such as the SteadiCam JR and the SteadiCam Merlin. These devices may be used with DSLRs and camcorders and omit the harness due to their light weight.
SteadiCam is the trade name for the product manufactured by Tiffen. Panavision produces an equivalent called PanaGlide, and GlideCam Industries has a variation known as GlideCam. One can also find instructions to build their own stabilizer if they have the necessary tools and supplies.
Click here for the details about how the SteadiCam works.
 SteadiCam
fetched
2023-11-07T02:17:43Z
 SteadiCam
parsed
2023-11-07T02:17:43Z
 SteadiCam
processingComment
Dropped link to ExactEavesDropping: Not an Item - FEATURE
 SteadiCam
processingComment
Dropped link to StarTrekShake: Not an Item - FEATURE
 SteadiCam
processingComment
Dropped link to TheOner: Not an Item - FEATURE
 SteadiCam
processingComment
Dropped link to WordOfGod: Not an Item - FEATURE
 SteadiCam
processingComment
Dropped link to walkandtalk: Not an Item - FEATURE
 SteadiCam
isPartOf
DBTropes
 SteadiCam / int_26cdaf0c
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_26cdaf0c
comment
In Bound for Glory, it's used for a scene where Woody Guthrie walks through a work camp. This shot made a big impression on the film industry in 1976.
 SteadiCam / int_26cdaf0c
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_26cdaf0c
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bound for Glory
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_26cdaf0c
 SteadiCam / int_37a5b015
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_37a5b015
comment
Diary of the Dead is notably one of the few "guys carrying a camera during a disaster" films to make use of one, as the guy in question is actually a professional cameraman with proper gear rather than a camcorder, though it does have one JitterCam scene when the main camera's batteries die.
 SteadiCam / int_37a5b015
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_37a5b015
featureConfidence
1.0
 Diary of the Dead
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_37a5b015
 SteadiCam / int_49729b9c
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_49729b9c
comment
Halloween (1978) used Panavision's PanaGlide. The whole opening (Michael's PoV) is told through the use of a SteadiCam.
 SteadiCam / int_49729b9c
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_49729b9c
featureConfidence
1.0
 Halloween (1978)
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_49729b9c
 SteadiCam / int_4da11f30
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_4da11f30
comment
It was combined with a camera shooting at 1 frame per second to produce the backgrounds for the speeder chase in Return of the Jedi.
 SteadiCam / int_4da11f30
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_4da11f30
featureConfidence
1.0
 Return of the Jedi
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_4da11f30
 SteadiCam / int_54aab83e
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_54aab83e
comment
It was used extensively in Murder on the Orient Express (2017) for tracking shots through the train.
 SteadiCam / int_54aab83e
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_54aab83e
featureConfidence
1.0
 Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_54aab83e
 SteadiCam / int_55f41ce9
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_55f41ce9
comment
Used extensively in Curb Your Enthusiasm.
 SteadiCam / int_55f41ce9
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_55f41ce9
featureConfidence
1.0
 Curb Your Enthusiasm
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_55f41ce9
 SteadiCam / int_61339eee
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_61339eee
comment
Used to great effect in Das Boot, where it enabled camera operators to work within the confines of a real-size replica U-Boat and produce tracking shots following crew members through bulkheads and around pipes. The director of photography for the film actually designed a more compact stabilization rig to fit through the U-boat set's hatches; the rig's exposed and noisy gyros, combined with the hydraulics for the set, necessitated that most of the at-sea dialogue be dubbed in post-production.
 SteadiCam / int_61339eee
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_61339eee
featureConfidence
1.0
 Das Boot
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_61339eee
 SteadiCam / int_7a7a1a86
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_7a7a1a86
comment
Steadicam harnesses were repurposed for the Smart Guns in Aliens. note The moment where Drake, out of ammunition for the Smart Gun, rips off the harness in one move? That's a genuine safety feature, put in place so the operator can ditch the entire rig quickly in an emergency.
 SteadiCam / int_7a7a1a86
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_7a7a1a86
featureConfidence
1.0
 Aliens
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_7a7a1a86
 SteadiCam / int_8f4fc508
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_8f4fc508
comment
In GoodFellas director Martin Scorsese uses a SteadiCam for a three minute shot that follows Henry Hill and his girlfriend as they enter though the back door of the Copacapana restaurant, through the kitchen and up to the bar, stopping to meet patrons all the way.
 SteadiCam / int_8f4fc508
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_8f4fc508
featureConfidence
1.0
 GoodFellas
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_8f4fc508
 SteadiCam / int_9153ccb1
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_9153ccb1
comment
Used extensively in The Shining, for an example Danny riding his bike through the corridors.note During breaks, Garret Brown would strap Danny Lloyd (who weighed about the same as a film camera at the time) onto the camera mount and give the kid rides through the set for fun while demonstrating his invention's stability
Rumour has it that Kubrick, due to his legendary perfectionism, kept screwing up shots by reaching in to adjust the camera. The operator, Garrett Brown, allegedly got him to stop by conducting a conversation — staged where he knew Kubrick would overhear it — in which he claimed to have punched out Sylvester Stallone for doing the same thing on Rocky.
 SteadiCam / int_9153ccb1
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_9153ccb1
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Shining
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_9153ccb1
 SteadiCam / int_9994a14f
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_9994a14f
comment
WALL•E was meticulously animated to contrast SteadiCam-like shots aboard the Axiom with JitterCam-esque shots on Earth to add another layer of Technology vs. Nature to the film.
 SteadiCam / int_9994a14f
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_9994a14f
featureConfidence
1.0
 WALL•E
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_9994a14f
 SteadiCam / int_aa7d9eae
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_aa7d9eae
comment
Scream (1996) has a scene which starts with a establishing crane shot, which then descends down to ground level and proceeds to follow the walking cast without a cut. This was done by having the SteadiCam operator simply standing on a platform and stepping off when the crane reached the ground.
 SteadiCam / int_aa7d9eae
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_aa7d9eae
featureConfidence
1.0
 Scream (1996)
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_aa7d9eae
 SteadiCam / int_ba91ae7a
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_ba91ae7a
comment
Rocky was one of the first films to use a SteadiCam, specifically Rocky running up the steps.
 SteadiCam / int_ba91ae7a
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_ba91ae7a
featureConfidence
1.0
 Rocky
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_ba91ae7a
 SteadiCam / int_d461f757
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_d461f757
comment
While we're at it, Battlestar Galactica, too.
 SteadiCam / int_d461f757
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_d461f757
featureConfidence
1.0
 Battlestar Galactica (2003)
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_d461f757
 SteadiCam / int_e7e37776
type
SteadiCam
 SteadiCam / int_e7e37776
comment
Also, Firefly, and even in effects shots.
According to the DVD commentary, in a lot of scenes the camera operator was operating without a SteadiCam harness, but was so good at operating handheld that it looked like he was using one.
Supposedly, the reason the shaking effect looks so real is that they could actually rock the Serenity sets back and forth. SteadiCam cares not.
 SteadiCam / int_e7e37776
featureApplicability
1.0
 SteadiCam / int_e7e37776
featureConfidence
1.0
 Firefly
hasFeature
SteadiCam / int_e7e37776

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 SteadiCam
processingCategory2
Camera Tricks
 Das Boot / int_cef91828
type
SteadiCam
 Dogtooth / int_cef91828
type
SteadiCam
 RaimiVision
seeAlso
SteadiCam
 Steadicam
sameAs
SteadiCam
 ER / int_cef91828
type
SteadiCam
 El gran juego de la oca / int_cef91828
type
SteadiCam
 Finders Keepers / int_cef91828
type
SteadiCam