Follow TV Tropes

Following

Overcrank

Go To

To "overcrank" means that the frame rate at which the film is being shot is higher than normal, so that when played back at a normal speed the action is in slow motion. Normal frame rate is 24 frames per second, so if you overcranked to 120 frames per second the action would be shown at 1/5 its actual speed. This shift can be intentionally obvious, to emphasize the dramaticnote  details of a scene; it can also be used as a background effect — for example, in movies featuring Godzilla and similar monsters, overcranking adds a sense of ponderous weight to the monsters' motion. If someone's running, expect to hear the main theme from Chariots of Fire or The Six Million Dollar Man, at least in your head. This trope is also present in almost any shampoo commercial. Bullet Time is another form of overcranking, except in three dimensions. If working with scale models, overcranking can be used to make them seem to behave normally with gravity, like in Ghostbusters (1984).

Modern slow motion footage is shot with digital cameras that have a very high framerate, rather than film, but the principle is the same, the footage is slowed down to 23-30 frames per second where it plays in slow motion.

Note that overcranking does not include video recorded at double speed and played back at the higher speed. Normal digital video cameras shoot at 30FPS (25 in some countries), but one can get inexpensive 2.7K or 4K cameras that will record at 60 (or 50) FPS. If the video is then played back at the higher speed, that is not overcranking. If it was recorded at 60 (50) FPS, then played back at 30 (25), it is.

Two prominent examples where overcranking is the main focus are TV series Time Warp and web series The Slow Mo Guys.

It's extremely easy to do this badly, or to use it as a parody.

Undercranking is an inversion. Adrenaline Time is a combination of overcranking and undercranking. Sub-Trope of In-Camera Effects.


Subtypes/subtropes include:


 
Feedback

Video Example(s):

Alternative Title(s): Slow Motion, Slo Mo

Top

Slow-Mo Team Walk

Gordon sees Terra, Volcana, and Tefé doing a cool, slow-motion group walk towards the screen, not realizing they're in slow-mo because he accidentally activated the slow-mo machine.

How well does it match the trope?

5 (4 votes)

Example of:

Main / TeamPowerWalk

Media sources:

Report