The Filmmaker's Eye ─ Learning and Breaking the Rules of Cinematic Composition

Gustavo Mercado's beautiful book reveals the inner workings of the basic shots that create the cinematic experience. He reveals how visuals communicate to an audience. If you're a novice filmmaker or a seasoned professional, this book will broaden your visual horizons.-Bruce Block, film producer, author of the Visual Story, and visual consultant whose credits include The holiday, Something's Gotta Give, Stuart Little, and Pretty in Pink

Telling stories with moving images is one of the most exalted art forms of our era. The Filmmaker's Eye helps you harness the power of this genre by explaining how images work to tell a story. You will gain a deeper understanding of the role each shot plays in the larger narrative scheme of your film, and the technical requirements necessary to achieve powerful and memorable images.

Loaded with hundreds of full-color examples, this focused, easy-to-reference guide shows you how to become an eloquent visual storyteller through effective and expressive choices for each and every shot in your film.

Gustavo Mercado is an independent filmmaker with over a decade of experience producing, writing, editing, directing, and shooting motion pictures on film and high-definition video. His films have been featured in national and international film festivals, and one of his short films, Sensitive (2002), won the grand prize in the Showtime Latino Filmmaker Showcase. As a Professor in Hunter College's Film & Media Studies Department in New York City, Mercado teaches editing, screenwriting, film production, and cinematography.

acknowledgments xiintrodution xiiifinding the frame 1principles of composition and technique concepts 6image system 21extreme close up 29close up 35medium close up 41medium shot 47medium long shot 53long shot 59extreme long shot 65over the shoulder shot 71establshing shot 77subjective shot 83two shot 89group shot 95canted shot 101emblematic shot 107abstract shot 113macro shot 119zoom shot 125pan shot 131tilt shot 137dolly shot 143dolly zoom shot 149tracking shot 155Steadicam shot 161crane shot 167sequence shot 173filmography 179index 183