History of the ‘Dutch Angle’ and Why Movies Tilt the Camera

[editor]

So I learnt about this today!

In this five minute video from the creative team at Vox, dive into the origins of the tilted horizon, otherwise known as a “Dutch Angle,” and why this camera technique can be so useful for storytelling.

Typically when telling a story, to emphasize that something is “a little off” or confusing, the filmmakers will shift the camera off its axis to make the viewer feel as perplexed or uneasy as the character in the frame. The technique known as the Dutch Angle is not actually Dutch, but in fact Deutsch (German), and the style’s origins stem from fine art painters, not film and photography despite its much more widespread use there in pop culture.

History of the 'Dutch Angle' and Why Movies Tilt the Camera

It's not actually Dutch.

petapixel.com

 

[weltweit]

I like to tilt my camera, it has to be a tilt that is such that it couldn't be seen as a mistake rather it has to be a conscious choice to tilt the camera. Especially for people, candids and portraits.

I don't do it for landscapes, they don't benefit, it spoils them.

 

[weltweit]

When shooting a friend's wedding, at the reception I found myself in front of an ornate doorway through which all the guests would have to pass but would be framed by it. For a good half an hour I shot them as the went in and out, all with my camera tilted toward them or away. The set of images were some of the best of that wedding.