Movement is the quality of suggesting motion in a work of art. In motion or moving pictures, one more element is involved than in a painting, a moving frame. That's the camera. It blends visual conventions, such as animation, sound effects, music, and camera angles, all enclosed within a single frame.
Kinetics in physics is the study of forces acting on mechanisms. Kinetic energy is a result of motion. Kinesthetic learners are aware of the position and movement of the parts of body by means of sensory organs in the muscles and joints. Muscle memory falls under this category. In kinetic arts, such as, ballet, dance, or martial arts, we find a variety of movement, ranging from realistic (e.g., Bad Boys, with Sean Penn fighting in juvenile prison, and Gene Kelly dancing in choreographed scenes in Singing in the Rain', vs. abstract movements (The Matrix, with Keanu Reeves fighting in a virtual world).
The word “cinema” in English and other languages (cinematographe, kinema, kinemat) comes from the Greek word κινηση (kinesi), meaning “movement” and from kinein, meaning “to move.” That's how we get words like kinetic, kinesthetic, and choreography. In a sequence of choreographed cinematic movements, we remember the whole scene, not just one painted picture or photograph. This becomes a visceral kinetic experience when we go to the movies.
In the early days of film, Charlie Chaplin would waddle and twirl his cane for us in order to create movement within a frame. Also, in the early days of the musical genre, song and dance were done in stylized conventions that were accepted as symbols of feelings and emotions. (TV's “Dancing with the Stars” is bringing this back.)
Lateral movements are side to side. These movements emphasize speed, often used in action films (Run Lola Run).
Depth movements are placing, moving or changing characters towards or away from the camera. These movements emphasize slowness. These shots take longer than lateral scenes; using a telephoto lens, one can really explore the character, setting and situation, as in Jack Nicholson’s scenes in The Shining.
Movement Direction within a Frame
Top to bottom
We can watch a raindrop speed by from top of the screen to the bottom, thus giving the viewer simple movement. If we add more raindrops, this intensifies the effect. In P.T. Anderson's Magnolia, frogs slowly drop from the sky one by one. After a few seconds, hundreds come flooding down, splashing in a backyard pool, giving us more upward motion from the water splashing upwards.
Right to left
Since the eye tends to read words from left to right in English, physical movement in this direction seems psychologically natural. We can see a bullet go from one side of the screen to the other -- Superman, for example, faster than a speeding bullet. Or in Run Lola Run, we can see Lola run from one side of the screen to the other, thus showing us the character’s speed. In Office Space, a character waits in his car during morning rush hour traffic as we see a man in a walker slowly pass him by.
Back of screen to front of screen
It usually takes much more time to reach a close up of the character’s face, which gives the audience time to digest what's going on in that character’s mind. (Unless it's a shark attack.) If we see a shark in the distance, there's a sense of fear. As it swims closer (for example, the whale in Finding Nemo), the fear builds up. In contrast, the sight of a shark swimming from front of screen to back of screen conveys a feeling of relief.
The placement of movement within the screen
We can strategically arrange characters in the frame to create movement. Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo (1960) is filled with symbolic kinetic techniques. He places characters all around the one outnumbered samurai. Looking doomed and out numbered by thugs, Kurosawa creates a dramatic tension by juxtaposing static images with a dynamic whirlpool of motion. The “wind swells” behind the lone samurai are blowing in every direction, symbolizing his physical power and turbulence. Natural elements, such as air, fire and water, can create a stronger sense of force and dominance.
Great film example of movement in the film Run Lola Run
In Run Lola Run, the clock goes around and round, creating movement within the frame. Split screens with the two main characters and the clock make time another character to the film. The camera can circle around the character’s head, giving us perspective on her thought process. By placing the camera viewing from her perspective, we can now see what Lola is seeing.
As Lola runs through the house and down the streets, we view the world from her eyes. The director, Tom Tykwer, slows down these scenes by showing us flash, still photographs of other characters as she passes them by. Tykwer then flash-forwards each character’s fate with quick, rapid photo stills, racing us through a montage of the character’s future or past. A “freeze frame” suspends all movement on screen. He enhances this experience by adding the sound effects of a still photo camera, rapidly clicking.
While understanding movement in a film, our experience may often be of realistic, natural images and sounds, as well as fantasy images and sounds found in our dreams or imaginations. These images and sounds can be recreated and manipulated in film through animation, special effects, sound effects, music, and cinematography.
Daniel Kazel - Kazel produces Stress-Free Living TV shows for Discoverhelp, Inc. and cooking food recipes for NY Times website About.com. He lectures ...
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