Hanging miniature

Hanging miniatureis anin-cameraspecial effectsimilar to amatte shotwhere a model, rather than a painting, is placed in the foreground and the action takes place in thebackground.It is thus a specific form offorced perspective.

Description

There are hundreds of instances where a hanging miniature has been used. This is a very old device and when produced correctly it is almost completely undetectable. The chariot race in the1925 version ofBen-Huris a good example. Only a very careful examination will reveal that above the wall surrounding the stadium and the first rows of bleachers, there hangs a miniature with moving 'puppet' people that can rise and fall with the human extras. Another cost saving effect was that of 'flopping' the negative so that only one side of the stadium miniature was built. The main reason for using a miniature in this way is that, unlike a painting, the light on the built set will always be the same as that on the miniature, making it possible to shoot in a variety of different 'lights' during the day.

See also

• Shot (filmmaking)
• Filmmaking