Unit 4: Story Telling Essay Introduction

The History and Technique of Slow Motion and its Use in The Matrix

Introduction

   This essay explains the principle of slow motion used in film and the history of where it came from as well as its techniques used in the film; The Matrix. To understand what slow motion is and how it is achieved will be answered using the book; Cinematic Storytelling by Jennifer Van Sijll and an online article on AbsoluteAstronamy.com. To find out where the idea of slow motion as well as motion picture came from will be answered from the book; Time Stands Still: Muybridge and The Instantaneous Photography Movement by Phillip Prodger. The work of Eadweard Muybridge will be discussed using the book; The Human Figure in Motion by Eadweard Muybridge and Professor Robert Taft. The use of slow motion in the film; The Matrix will be explained using an online essay by Steven D. Greydanus on Decantfilms.com.What John Gaeta has to say about Bullet time in an online interview with Debra Kaufman on Norman-hollyn.com has also been useful. This essay will start by explaining what slow motion is in film. And then the history of where it came from will be explained, followed by its techniques used in the film; The Matrix will then be examined.