Watch: 'The Art of Steadicam' Celebrates Technique & Long Takes In 10 Minute Video

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by Kevin Jagernauth
March 5, 2013 11:38 AM
5 Comments

First introduced in the 1970s by Garrett Brown, directors and filmmakers have used the steadicam to find increasingly inventive ways to approach an ordinary scene and take it to unprecedented places. Think of the still-talked-about and influential Copacabana entrance sequence in Martin Scorsese's "Goodfellas," or Joe Wright's breathtaking, unblinking look at Dunkirk in "Atonement." These are just two more recent examples of decades of work in both the movies and television that have taken the steadicam and made it part of the everyday trade of storytelling.

And for those who want to deep dive further, there's the website Steadishots, a site devoted to entirely to the compositions and cameramen (and women) who created them, complete with rankings of the best shots. Well, Refocused Media has taken the top 50 ranked sequences and cut them together in a 10-minute celebration of the technique and long takes the format has allowed. You'll see expected entries and some surprises as well, so it's well worth taking a spin. The video is below followed by the list of the featured shots. [via Reddit]

List of clips, in order of appearance:
Kill Bill Vol. 1
Atonement
Eyes Wide Shut
Artificial Intelligence: AI
ER: Season 4, Ep. 20
The X-Files: Season 6, Ep. 03
Raising Cain
Pride & Prejudice
Boogie Nights
Doom
Point Break
Pulp Fiction
Werckmeister Harmonies
Outpost 11
After Hours
Much Ado About Nothing
Marathon Man
Carlito’s Way
Goodfellas
Rocky
Michael Clayton
The Peacemaker
The West Wing: Season 1, Ep. 04
The Birdcage
Flightplan
Donnie Darko
Good Night and Good Luck
The Doors
Before Sunset
The Shining
Thank You For Smoking
The West Wing: Season 1, Ep. 10
The Protector
Two Days in the Valley
Pride & Prejudice
The Mighty Quinn
Serenity
Eyes Wide Shut
Fight Club
Full Metal Jacket
Full Metal Jacket
Malcolm X
The Shining
The Shining

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5 Comments

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wes | March 6, 2013 2:31 AMReply

Tarkovsky?
totaldeadbeat | March 5, 2013 2:47 PMReply

No PTA? Shame
Bonus points for including Tarantino's ER ep, but that show had better steadicam shots than that one.
@cinejordan | March 5, 2013 8:17 PM

Look again-- 'Boogie Nights.'
Jaw knee | March 5, 2013 2:09 PMReply

Bound for Glory
Arch | March 5, 2013 12:34 PMReply

No Street Trash ? Aw.
At least Muro is present via Point Break.