In 2001: A Space Odyssey, how did Kubrick film the stewardess walking upside down?

[NFS4]

I posted about 2001 last year here, and I finally just got around to watching it again. But I wonder how, did Kubrick shoot the scene on the space station where the woman starts horizontally then walks up the wall and then upside down in the opposite direction?

I know that he likely had to rotate the camera to match her movements, but it looks SO precise without a hint of fakeness...especially for the late 60's. How do you get a perfectly matches shot like that?

I could understand a camera that moves in sync with a rotating room, but how do you sync with the movements of the body?

 

[Sphexi]

Probably spun the room.

 

[NFS4]

Originally posted by: Sphexi
Probably spun the room.

Yeah, I understand that. But even if you spin the room, don't you also have to match the person's walking pace as well? It just looked so perfect.

 

[Eeezee]

High-precision mad camera skills most likely

 

[spidey07]

I think it's called a tumbler.

The entire set can rotate in any direction.

 

[SampSon]

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: Sphexi
Probably spun the room.

Yeah, I understand that. But even if you spin the room, don't you also have to match the person's walking pace as well? It just looked so perfect.

The person matches the speed of the rotation, not the other way around.

 

[NFS4]

Originally posted by: SampSon

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: Sphexi
Probably spun the room.

Yeah, I understand that. But even if you spin the room, don't you also have to match the person's walking pace as well? It just looked so perfect.

The person matches the speed of the rotation, not the other way around.

But there lies the human factor. You're still matching human movement with mechanical precision.

I'm just trying to grasp how the human + mechanical factor was able to meld into a perfect shot without a HINT of error

 

[SampSon]

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: SampSon

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: Sphexi
Probably spun the room.

Yeah, I understand that. But even if you spin the room, don't you also have to match the person's walking pace as well? It just looked so perfect.

The person matches the speed of the rotation, not the other way around.

But there lies the human factor. You're still matching human movement with mechanical precision.

I'm just trying to grasp how the human + mechanical factor was able to meld into a perfect shot without a HINT of error

You do it over and over and over and over and over and over and over.

 

[ruffilb]

Lots and lots of velcro.

 

[bersl2]

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: SampSon

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: Sphexi
Probably spun the room.

Yeah, I understand that. But even if you spin the room, don't you also have to match the person's walking pace as well? It just looked so perfect.

The person matches the speed of the rotation, not the other way around.

But there lies the human factor. You're still matching human movement with mechanical precision.

I'm just trying to grasp how the human + mechanical factor was able to meld into a perfect shot without a HINT of error

A lot of takes?

 

[NFS4]

Originally posted by: ruffilb
Lots and lots of velcro.

LOL

 

[DaiShan]

Originally posted by: SampSon

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: SampSon

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: Sphexi
Probably spun the room.

Yeah, I understand that. But even if you spin the room, don't you also have to match the person's walking pace as well? It just looked so perfect.

The person matches the speed of the rotation, not the other way around.

But there lies the human factor. You're still matching human movement with mechanical precision.

I'm just trying to grasp how the human + mechanical factor was able to meld into a perfect shot without a HINT of error

You do it over and over and over and over and over and over and over.

I think that's the key. He obviously didn't get it right on the first take.

 

[RichardE]

Originally posted by: SampSon

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: SampSon

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: Sphexi
Probably spun the room.

Yeah, I understand that. But even if you spin the room, don't you also have to match the person's walking pace as well? It just looked so perfect.

The person matches the speed of the rotation, not the other way around.

But there lies the human factor. You're still matching human movement with mechanical precision.

I'm just trying to grasp how the human + mechanical factor was able to meld into a perfect shot without a HINT of error

You do it over and over and over and over and over and over and over.

break...

than


over and over and over and over and over

 

[WW]

Aboard the Aries spacecraft on its trip to the moon, in the passenger compartment a stewardess is watching another TV screen, and again the action was directed and edited by Stanley Kubrick. The galley scene of this spacecraft where the stewardess comes in, picks up a tray, and then walks up the wall to exit upside down, was filmed using a rotating set with all lights and the camera secured to the rotating structure. The stewardess merely remained upright as the set and camera rotated around her.

http://www.visual-memory.co.uk/sk/2001a/page3.html


http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_361.html

 

[NFS4]

Originally posted by: WW
Aboard the Aries spacecraft on its trip to the moon, in the passenger compartment a stewardess is watching another TV screen, and again the action was directed and edited by Stanley Kubrick. The galley scene of this spacecraft where the stewardess comes in, picks up a tray, and then walks up the wall to exit upside down, was filmed using a rotating set with all lights and the camera secured to the rotating structure. The stewardess merely remained upright as the set and camera rotated around her.

http://www.visual-memory.co.uk/sk/2001a/page3.html


http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_361.html

Sweetness!! Thanks

 

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: NFS4
Sweetness!! Thanks

No wonder why it is still studied to this day in college film classes.

It really is THAT brilliant.

 

[Sphexi]

Told you they spun the room. Wanna know how I knew?


N*Sync did the same thing in one of their videos. I watched the MTV Making Of special on it. It was awesome. Lance Bass is awesome. I don't know who's cooler, Lance Bass or Clay Aiken.

 

[ShotgunSteven]

You could tell by watching her feet.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: SampSon

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: Sphexi
Probably spun the room.

Yeah, I understand that. But even if you spin the room, don't you also have to match the person's walking pace as well? It just looked so perfect.

The person matches the speed of the rotation, not the other way around.

But there lies the human factor. You're still matching human movement with mechanical precision.

I'm just trying to grasp how the human + mechanical factor was able to meld into a perfect shot without a HINT of error

They aren't moving very fast and the human being is capable of great feats of balance.

 

[HomeAppraiser]

<--- Having Lionel Ritchie flaashbacks. I :heart: the 80's