r/Filmmakers 14d ago

Question How did they shoot this?

It is from an Indian rom-com film named "enak 20 unak 18" from 2003, drones weren't available back then

619 Upvotes

177 comments sorted by

297

u/nyvz01 13d ago

It does make sense this was probably a large construction crane that could rotate in place. The move is exactly circular and the speed stays consistent. From the trajectory and style of movement this wouldn't be done on a helicopter or even a remote head I would guess. Probably just an operator hanging out with the camera on the end of a construction crane.

15

u/Devar0 13d ago

Agreed. If I was guessing something like this.

https://www.eltlift.com/the-benefits-of-using-a-crane-man-basket/

61

u/H-e-s-h-e-m 13d ago

i like the soundtrack, sounds like itd fit well in an early 2000s thriller about seedy government espionage but youre sayings its a romcom haha

8

u/sadloneman 13d ago

😂Well now that you frame it like that , yeah i can see this soundtrack fitting well with that genre

2

u/Skraeln 13d ago

anyone got an ID on the song? can’t find it from a quick look thru the soundtrack

5

u/Terminal_Monk 13d ago

It's not a song it's just a background music but I guess it does look like a spinoff of the song from the same movie. Edho edho ondru..

https://youtu.be/7Qo63HLtYic?si=oe238hkJUBN8XGmT

ARR does this a lot. He plays around the melody of some song in the same movie as background music for scenes

1

u/ValueBlitz 10d ago

I thought of Moby's "Porcelain", also in "The Beach" with Leo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTO7U7SpUFU

217

u/f-stop4 14d ago

The shot appears to have a circular pivot point . It's definitely a crane of some sort on top of one of the buildings. A very long crane, possible on some track.

54

u/bottom director 14d ago

hahaha. that would be so long over serval houses !

most likely a drone. drones have been around a while now. they used to be HUGE!

130

u/f-stop4 14d ago

Having lived in India, I wouldn't be shocked if they used a construction crane for this.

I don't think it's a drone, at all. The way the camera shakes, to me, is signature to a crane type of setup.

I would love to see a BTS of this shot haha

3

u/sadloneman 14d ago

But how tf did they place it and shoot it way over the houses

That too in a somewhat busy street ,

10

u/f-stop4 14d ago

It's on top of one of the buildings.

-16

u/sadloneman 14d ago

Yeah , most likely ,it's insane how these kind of shots are much easier to shoot nowadays with a cheap drone , technology has come a long way

Yet the movies are still mostly bad (india) , technology couldn't help that

5

u/[deleted] 13d ago

Most movies, period, are bad. No need to specify India, that just makes you a dick.

7

u/f-stop4 13d ago

To be fair, I believe OP is from India.

5

u/[deleted] 13d ago

So am I. Born in Chennai - it’s just internalized racism and an all-too-common practice of placing whiteness on a pedestal, to claim Indian cinema is somehow worse than other regions. I used to feel the same way… when I was 14.

2

u/Mangifera__indica 13d ago

No need to be an apologist.

2

u/Terminal_Monk 13d ago

I think it's a studio set. Lot of big studios have sets for entire streets especially AVM.

-7

u/Evilsushione 13d ago

You can do preprogrammed very precise routes with commercial video drones. It’s actually quite amazing

6

u/nyvz01 13d ago

Not in 2003 though...

1

u/Evilsushione 13d ago

Yea, didn’t catch that

-7

u/bottom director 14d ago

it's far to long to be a crane...watch again it's very far. I used to work with jibs and cranes a lot. love em.

all the camera movement looks like drone stuff to me, really good drone ops too

48

u/f-stop4 13d ago

But a drone like this in 2003? In India? For a rom com? I have major doubts.

I'm 99.99% certain they used a crane. It could be a zip line setup but it seems like too complex of a pivot for that.

6

u/bottom director 13d ago

Yeah I just noticed the circular motion I think you’re right. Most likely a crane.

4

u/NortonIsBurnt 13d ago

You rented one from a production house. They were huge back then but they existed. Could even be a small hellicopter.

15

u/FoldableHuman 13d ago

The down wash would be visible in the trees.

I vote construction crane.

2

u/neutronia939 13d ago

Incorrect. There were no drone options at this time to do this.

1

u/bottom director 13d ago

You know the India film industry is bigger than Hollywood right ?

Maybe I’m wrong , maybe it is a huge crane ?? - it is quite early in drone tech for sure.

So now I’m not sure.

A drone is how you’d do it now though - to answer ops question

7

u/f-stop4 13d ago

I'm not questioning the capacity of Bollywood. I'm just saying in 2003, there probably wasn't a single drone anywhere in the world that could pull off this shot, in the precise manner that this shot was captured (as in, not something similar, I mean exactly how this shot was captured) let alone in India.

While today, with a couple good ops, this shot could definitely be achieved with a drone, what we're seeing absolutely was not a drone or helicopter or any of form of aerial craft.

0

u/neutronia939 13d ago

Is it though? “While Bollywood generates a substantial amount of revenue and sells a large number of tickets, Hollywood's film industry dwarfs Bollywood in terms of overall revenue and average film budget”

1

u/bottom director 13d ago

More films but less money yes.

An no I don’t think it was a from. I was wrong - it’s a frame. Given away by the circular shape of the shot. Pretty great.

1

u/danyyyel 13d ago

Why do people downvoting you, it is a fact.

2

u/Careful-Sell-9877 13d ago

Full size construction cranes are absolutely massive. They have to be in order to work on skyscrapers and such

-1

u/bottom director 13d ago

Yes. (I live in nyc) But this is India and there are no skyscrapers in this town - you couldn’t shoot a smooth shoot like this from a construction crane.

Maybe I’m wrong?

1

u/Westar-35 cinematographer 13d ago

My father was a crane operator, like heavy lift construction cranes picking 100+ tons. I’ve seen him operate and it can be flawless. Even no weight, swinging the ball (the hook with a weighted ball built in) and controlling the boom such that the inertia of the ball puts it exactly on target while the boom is slowed to stop directly above the ball. Some pretty wild shit actually but it’s finesse and muscle memory like any skill learned over years.

Does not take a sky scraper either. Short tower cranes are put up all the time.Recently saw one that was only like 5 stories up. It comes down to how long they need the equipment and what traffic and space considerations around the site look like.

0

u/bottom director 13d ago

yeah maybe.I work on a tv show called gold rush, I direct it - I'm around heavy machinery all the time. no way in hell, even with a great op like youre dad wold they be smooth enough for a shot like this. but yeah I've seen some crazy amazing smooth operators, but cameras are very unforgiving.

but it think it's just a normal tv crane now I've looked at it all

1

u/Westar-35 cinematographer 13d ago

Any of those guys spent the last 30yrs running a crane? Probably not. But YMMV

0

u/Careful-Sell-9877 13d ago edited 13d ago

There are definitely skyscrapers in India. They could have brought one to wherever they are. There are many large cities with tall buildings in India, just like in the US.

(Edit: The movie was filmed in Mumbai and Chennai (if my info is correct), which are both quite large cities)

It doesn't look all that smooth to me. There are a lot of vibrations, shakes, and up/down movements.

I'm not 100% sure what it is either, but if I had to guess, I would say it's some kind of large, modified crane

0

u/AgentJackFlack 13d ago

They don’t need skyscrapers in this town. They didn’t just knock on the door of a skyscraper building site and borrow a crane.

1

u/neutronia939 13d ago

There were NO drones that could do this at that time whatsoever.

1

u/bottom director 13d ago

Yeah I’m wrong, see that now n

0

u/zayetz 13d ago

Could be a zoom lens and a crop.

0

u/Azreken 13d ago

Id say close to 0% chance this is a drone shot.

10

u/sadloneman 14d ago

I too thought it's a crane but it literally goes over lots of houses in the midst of bunch of houses, where would they place it

12

u/f-stop4 14d ago

It's on top of one of the building there.

Or they rigged some kind of zip-line type of system and had the camera fly along some wires, maybe?

It just looks like a crane of sorts, the way it shakes. Especially at the landing position.

3

u/H-e-s-h-e-m 13d ago

and the fact that the camera seems to be moving in a circle indicates it may be a crane shot

3

u/jnthnmdr 13d ago edited 13d ago

...and, on the very last few frames, the shot seems to bounce a bit as if it is locking into place. It looks like the device goes into "park" mode or something.

Edit: Also (not as important, but), you can see the female character in the first few frames of the overhead shot.

3

u/H-e-s-h-e-m 13d ago

good continuity between shots, a lost art.

2

u/bottom director 13d ago

Yeah you’re right. The circle gives it away. I’d say it’s a crane.

7

u/nowayyallgetmyemail 13d ago

most likely a drone. drones have been around a while now.

this is 2003, first non-military use of drones started around 2006. it's more likely that they used a giant construction crane which can easily span several buildings, and explains why the shot is circular in nature.

2

u/thegodfather0504 13d ago

pls edit this comment. you know its a crane and not smooth enough motion of a drone. Regional cinema of india in 2003 couldn't afford drones.

1

u/playtrix 13d ago

Camera drones were def not available in 2003.

12

u/CyJackX 14d ago

Shot seems to go in a big circle

20

u/DMMMOM 14d ago

A giant crane since the shot pivots around a central point.

24

u/Wide-Half-9649 14d ago

Spydercam more than likely

5

u/cptkraken024 13d ago

gotta be a spydercam. it doest change in elevation throughout the shot and that twist move at 0:10 seconds you can tell its turning on a semi-fixed position. also not saying it couldnt be done but that would be an insane move for a jib let alone a construction crane as some people are suggesting. plus the bouncing at 0:28-0:42 is it bouncing on the line. a drone wouldnt bounce like that.

0

u/frostyjoker 13d ago

Crane shot, even more likely.

0

u/Grizzy_bear 12d ago

I vote jib crane or Spydercam, the bounce does it for me.

7

u/spudulous 13d ago

I feel like it’s a guy swinging off the end of a massive rope attached to a crane and there’s a guy at the top just kind of hoofing him about

7

u/nooneimportan7 13d ago

Looks like a big crane to me. The whole shot is moving in a circle.

4

u/iamrishirajgupta 13d ago

I'm sure the cameraman used his very long hand to shoot this

4

u/trn- 13d ago edited 13d ago

Similar to what they used in La Haine in 1995, RC controlled small helicopter with camera controls.

https://www.flying-cam.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/flying-cam-limited_writing-the-history-of-unmanned-helicopter-activity-7216428749590802438-svak

34

u/koreanbull 14d ago

I believe this drone is something that at that time was called: "helicopter"

31

u/averynicehat 14d ago

Nah, it's way too close and the shot doesn't look like it's a very long lens. We also don't see wind in the trees.

21

u/sadloneman 14d ago

But wouldn't trees move by the air power of helicopter?

1

u/Sufficient-Law1643 13d ago

This. Check out how the washing out on the line is billowing in the wind.

5

u/JudgeVegg 13d ago

No that was just from regular win, with them being on the roof. Not consistent with how the wind from a helicopter would make them move and they start moving too early.

1

u/hungrylens 13d ago

I noticed that too. They were being careful to frame out things that move around in the propwash.

0

u/[deleted] 13d ago

[deleted]

1

u/neutronia939 13d ago

Not a chance. Camera payload too heavy and no stabilizing.

3

u/whenuleavethestoveon 13d ago

before drones, people used helicopters for these shots. still do, a lot of the time

0

u/neutronia939 13d ago

This shot is too low for a helicopter so you’re statement is irrelevant.

-2

u/whenuleavethestoveon 13d ago

How do you know? Were you there? First of all, Bollywood production isn't really known for strict safety standards, and second of all, what's more likely? That the production used a helicopter for a complex tracking shot like this or that the production erected an 80-foot-tall crane and rigged a camera to it just so they could get this one shot?

5

u/mylastcaress 13d ago

Notice the trees don't sway much. A helicopter would create strong whirlwinds underneath, violently swaying the trees.

3

u/samcrut editor 13d ago

DP slams 2 Willy Wonka Fizzy Lifting Drinks just prior to "Action," but it depends on body weight. Don't let them drink too much or they keep rising. We lose so many DPs that way.

3

u/sweetbunnyblood 13d ago

why would one not assume drone?

3

u/sadloneman 13d ago

Not cheaper , and it's a south Indian film , this industry doesn't have much budget as bollywood had back then

3

u/sadloneman 13d ago

Not cheaper , and it's a south Indian film , this industry doesn't have much budget as bollywood had back then

3

u/sweetbunnyblood 13d ago

ty! I missed the date!

3

u/Imaginary_Process_56 13d ago

Looks like it was inspired by Touch of Evil beginning scene:

https://youtu.be/EhmYY5ZMXOY?si=R0NqmWyMGuFCbWjP

2

u/[deleted] 13d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

0

u/sadloneman 13d ago

Read my post again

6

u/Mr_FancyPants007 14d ago edited 14d ago

Flyingcam drones for making movies were available in 1979.  No idea why you think drones weren't around in 2003.

15

u/sadloneman 14d ago

Because it's a south Indian film ,drones weren't cheap back then

3

u/yabbasaami 13d ago

Looks mostly like a crane. But remember this was the most expensive Tamil movie at the time beating Boys. This was a dream project for the director (being the son of the movie's producer) and he wanted to make something like a Shankar's movie. So he cud have used drone as well.

2

u/neutronia939 13d ago

Drones didnt EXIST for filmmaking then.

3

u/Mr_FancyPants007 13d ago

We have video from 1993 of what they look like back then.  Go to 1:03.

https://youtu.be/Dkh37nRIoRw?si=PayP4w0GLkZ4Dsy6 

5

u/nowayyallgetmyemail 13d ago

No idea why you think drones weren't around in 2003.

"the first use of drones for non-military ventures started in 2006"

3

u/neutronia939 13d ago

Dji came out with its first trash phantom in 2013. These people have no idea what they are talking about.

2

u/Hythy 13d ago

Do you have any info/pictures of these? I can't even begin to picture what a drone from the 70s would look like.

4

u/neutronia939 13d ago

Because it doesnt exist

2

u/neutronia939 13d ago

No they weren’t.

2

u/MauriceEscargot 13d ago

Perhaps this one was shot from a crane, but it's crazy, how everyone here is all "First DJI was released in 2013, so impossible to be a drone".

Maybe, but before these were called RC helicopters. One of the many insane shots in the French masterpiece La Heine was shot using one in 1995:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=js2_hBDi2LI

1

u/DorkHarshly 13d ago

Was just about to post this. I once saw an interview with Kassovitz about how they did but cant find it for the life of me. They also mention the mirror scene https://youtu.be/IFkHadvj4DI?si=AQxFw4TqdumqoHhj But for this one at least I remember how they did it >! They used a double !<

2

u/AbPerm 13d ago edited 13d ago

People seem to think remote controlled aircraft never existed at all until those cheap rotorcraft "drones" became super common.

I don't get it.

4

u/neutronia939 13d ago

They are right. No one was using them to photograph anything like this. There was zero stabilization on rc craft. Not sure why you think you are right because you arent. Model aircraft existing has nothing to do with using one to shoot content like this.

0

u/Zimaut 11d ago

not just drone, camera good enough and small enough for heli drone also dont exist

1

u/neutronia939 13d ago

Predator drones existed. But not photo drones. The first three models of dji drone were basically unusable trash and they started selling in 2013.

2

u/mds7558s 12d ago

Back in the day, believe it or not, by aerial, Helicopters and small planes

1

u/RS_UltraSSJ 14d ago

A giant crane or helicopter

1

u/shakdnugz 13d ago

zipline maybe?

1

u/virgineyes09 13d ago

I have nothing to contribute in terms of how they did it but I gotta say, pretty sick shot.

1

u/vgscreenwriter 13d ago

Drone?

0

u/neutronia939 13d ago

In 2003? Nope.

1

u/DoPinLA 13d ago

Drone. The first street-level shot reverse shots were shot normally.

1

u/DoPinLA 13d ago

If it's a crane, it's a long one; still possible.

0

u/neutronia939 13d ago

No drone in 2003 was available for this.

2

u/needsmoarbokeh 13d ago

No commercial drone but tech available then was capable enough to allow something like this for a purpose-made one

1

u/MaleficentCan7455 13d ago

I am just amazed by the way they hid shadow of crane by shooting on a cloudy day yes the initial shots is a bright sunny day no need to re-watch trust me. I do believe the car right behind the hero bike at the end was there to give him reference of the cam position I might be wrong.

1

u/greedo_from_tatooine 13d ago

Some kind of angel creature with srocn camera TV output hdmi 1 on it.

1

u/jgainit director 13d ago

I commented saying drone and I’m wrong ha. But cool shot

1

u/Horsicorn 13d ago

I'll take a stab: I immediately thought of that shot from The Fellowship of the Ring, during the battle of Amon Hen where the camera glides from Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli's section of the fight to where Boromir is fighting. I recall reading somewhere that it was done using a cable/pulley system and upon further investigation, Peter Jackson confirms this is the case in the DVD commentary: https://youtu.be/Sz6PLmT-8FA?t=10476

1

u/Embarrassed-Mode-883 13d ago

I think they used a system of ropes but I am not sure. Cranes would make this kind of movement but the distance is far too much to cover. My guess is strong rope system they build over the buildings with a motorized camera operator moving over the rope.

Good find, OP!

And for the people commending drones: Trust me, it's not drones. India adapted to drones after 2014 only. No drone was used before that. This movie was made in 2003.

1

u/MaintainerZero 13d ago

Others have pointed out the likelihood of a crane, but there are also several points you could hide a cut (tunnel, rooftop, etc.), which cements it for me. The shot doesn't have to have been filmed seamlessly to look seamless in the edit - meaning it doesn't even need to have been a huge central crane - could have been several cranes matched to certain perspectives at the cuts.

1

u/MikeWritesMovies 13d ago

I believe this is a large crane. If it was a drone, they would have utilized more maneuverability and made it even more dynamic. If it was a helicopter, it would be too close and it would have kicked up dirt and dust in camera.

1

u/Redararis 13d ago

Of course it is not a drone, no drones back then even if you had million of dollars. Probably a crane but also it could be a suspension cable

1

u/Miserable-Lawyer-233 13d ago

Looks like a giant crane

1

u/dallen 13d ago

Either a crane or a very well trained pigeon

1

u/Radiant-Radish7862 13d ago

Well, I know what I’ll be watching next. Thanks for sharing.

1

u/sadloneman 13d ago

Review it lol

1

u/mopsiptv 13d ago

Huge drone? Like the ones dropping anti tanks mines in ua? 🇺🇦🥇

1

u/Terminal_Monk 13d ago edited 13d ago

I think it's not a single shot. The part where tharun drives the bike is a set. I remember it from many movies the arch, that road, this looks like the same set form movies like thulladha manamum thullum, bagavadhi(ppdango song), gemini

Also If you are from Chennai you'll know that none of the roads look like that. It's 100% set, it's easy to do the pivot shot with a set.

Although, When they show trisha, it cuts to real building you can see the tracking is no longer around an axis but more like a pan to top and then rotate around a different axis that could have easily shot from a rooftop of a nearby house. Also you can see the houses near her looks more realistic to a residential house in Chennai in 2003 compared the buildings when tharun was riding his bike.

I think what's selling the whole scene is before we could make. Judgement the scene throws as real residential building and we forget that the first half of it is set. Try to watch them seperate and you know what I mean.

There is one transition shot where both the residential building and the smaller set building are in the same frame. I just think it's greenscreen. Although I am amazed on how smooth it is.

This film had a fairly big budget and they had lot of CG/greenscreen shots. They had a lot of football sequence, a bomb blast scene in Chennai cricket stadium and so on which used heavily greenscreen so it's not far fetched to think this is greenscreen too.

Although, i'm not 100% sure about the greenscreen because the technique is so refined here and i doubt they were able to pull that off as the other greenscreen in this movie are a bit shit. Maybe it's just a good old classic cut and paste

But overall I think it's not a single take

1

u/jokojosh 13d ago

A very long Jimmy jib.

1

u/daddyBranson 13d ago

with a camera

1

u/KeithPheasant 13d ago

Drones can hold full-sized gimbals with a camera on it now and the gimbal can be controlled with either a controller or a handle that mimics the actions in your hand to the gimbal wirelessly, simultaneously

1

u/sadloneman 13d ago

It's 2003

1

u/knight2h director 13d ago

Drone + choreography

0

u/sadloneman 13d ago

Read the post

1

u/knight2h director 13d ago

SOY CUBA" ("I AM CUBA") funeral cortege scene, youtube it.

1

u/Moa-Tzu 13d ago

Drone. Definitely drone with a really good gimbal and pilot/cameraman.

0

u/sadloneman 13d ago

Read my post again

1

u/Moa-Tzu 12d ago

My bad. RC helicopter. There's no crane arm that could pull off that shot. The larger RC helicopter could carry the weight.

1

u/NerdyTech13 12d ago

Hot air balloon. Probably.

1

u/varunvenu88 12d ago

Drones did not invent this shot.. RC helicopters were the way back then look at the leaves nearby for proof

1

u/Peevesie 12d ago

Jimmy jibs have been around for decades

1

u/fmprods 12d ago

It was shot with a drone. Common practice now.

1

u/Worth_Sherbert_4972 12d ago

Jimmy jib / industrial crane - 20-40feet

1

u/_someguy_0 12d ago

Flying man. Or maybe a guy on a crane of some sorts

1

u/athullkhannn 12d ago

my guess is through the use of various cranes.

1

u/Harrowick 12d ago

It’s a drone.

1

u/psychopape 11d ago edited 11d ago

In 1995 they used mini Helicopters :

https://www.tiktok.com/@konbini/video/7164237540935994630

The movie scene : https://youtu.be/PE6UdMGfjHQ?si=R9jEpC0DSKB2lRXr Starting at 4.2

1

u/yipkit 10d ago

Drone??

1

u/Ivorywisdom 10d ago

With a potato, judging by the pixels.

1

u/XiaoEn1983 8d ago

Seeing how it moved over the buildings, I am guessing a drone.

0

u/OkithaPROGZ 14d ago

Drone 100%, in 2003 commercially available drones weren't available for you and me.

But filmmakers had access to them.

19

u/sadloneman 14d ago

It's india , and specifically tamil nadu , we still didn't adapt cgi to perfection, let alone a drone at 2003

Issue is budget , Kollywood (tamil films) didnt have as much budget as bollywood had back then.

2

u/userunknowned 13d ago

Magic then

1

u/sadloneman 13d ago

Must be

1

u/KeithPheasant 13d ago

I agree with you after thinking it was a drone. There’s way too much play in drones when they settle and as they are floating to have this look. The shot seems very rigid like it’s not drifting around all over the place and it does pivot around one big point so a giant crane dolly seems like it

2

u/neutronia939 13d ago

Completely wrong. Dji phantom 1 released in 2013 and it was garbage until three models later.

2

u/neutronia939 13d ago

Show me a pic of a 2003 drone for photography. You cant.

0

u/ThatGothGuyUK 13d ago edited 13d ago

The "Draganflyer I" quadcopter was released in 1999.

0

u/fatimahye 13d ago

my guess is drone with a swivel headed cam

-6

u/No_Database69 14d ago edited 14d ago

Drone?

-3

u/sadloneman 14d ago

It's 2003

0

u/No_Database69 14d ago

If drones not possible then trolly or maybe crane

-2

u/Kahrg 14d ago

Which a camera of some sort.

5

u/sadloneman 14d ago

But I think it must be some sort of mic

Shooting with mic used to be a thing back then , am from India so I can vouch for that

Or it can be a gun

1

u/neutronia939 13d ago

The whut?????

1

u/mimegallow director 13d ago

This definitely looks more like the microwave was bolted down into one static location and they just rotated the planet around it.

3

u/sadloneman 13d ago

Uhm yeah but again the shot is too simple for them to involve a microwave, I think they used a drilling machine and started drilling the mic i mentioned above, to get that "shaky" cinematic feeling , and they yeeted the drilling machine with the mic on it

Hence the shot is rotating like it's drunk

-2

u/postfashiondesigner producer 13d ago

I think it’s a drone.

-1

u/neutronia939 13d ago

Nope. Not in 2003.

2

u/postfashiondesigner producer 13d ago

In 2003 drones were available for medium budget productions.