Farrell Sutanto

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1B: FILM AND SEQUENCE

‘A single Steadicam sequence shot.’

Film: The Russian Ark, By Alexander Sokurov

The film, ‘The Russian Ark’, directed by Alexander Sokurov demonstrates a single 96-minute Steadicam sequence shot. This was accomplished through the use of a single camera and was filmed entirely in the Winter Palace of the Russian State Hermitage Museum. The film contains 2000 actors and 3 live orchestras. The film has a few shots where it follows people walking as shown through the screenshots captured. The single Steadicam sequence shot allows the film to have a constant pace that is not disturbed by unusual cuts.

The concept of a single Steadicam shot is hard to replicate. It requires complete control over everyone and everything in the shot. Even if there was a single mistake in the shot, it would spoil the rest of the film. What makes this film extraordinary is that it is 96-minutes long. Resultantly, I was not able to replicate this in the 1-minute limitation this project has. Instead, I formulated an idea that could allow me to create something similar in style to the film.

If I were to create a single Steadicam shot only for 1-minute, it would seem lacklustre compared to Sokurov’s ‘The Russian Ark’. Instead, I captured a singular person who remains a constant throughout different shots and scenes taken from various locations. This allowed me to have my own personal “touch” on the film, but still have associations to ‘The Russian Ark’ as it was the origin of my inspiration.

The film is a sequence of shots following the protagonist from behind. The shots are taken from different distances to emphasise the different shots. Throughout the different shots however, the protagonist’s footsteps transition smoothly from each clip, as if he were walking continuously for the entirety of the film. The audio used in the film is the audio captured with the video. This was purposefully done to add a certain raw unedited feel to the film, similar to ‘The Russian Ark’.

I decided to record most of the film in places with a lot of people, as it helped to capture the essence of Sokurov’s film. I also recorded some shots in deserted locations further emphasising the similarities between our films. Throughout my film, the protagonist’s face is never shown. I did this in order to replicate the feeling of anonymity one may feel when walking in a large suburban area such as the Sydney CBD. The framing and perspective I used in my film helps to define how we view the city.

REFERENCE:

The Russian Ark 2002, motion picture, Wellspring Media, New York.