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Changing the point of focus from one character or object in frame, to another character or object that is closer to or more distant from the camera, typically with little or no movement from the camera itself. Used to subtly direct the viewers' attention to a specific part of the screen.

Alternatively called "Roll Focus" or, in film, "Pull Focus". Requires deft manipulation of the Depth Of Field.

In motion picture and film-based television production, this is often done by a separate person (the "focus puller" or "first camera assistant") rather than by the primary camera operator. In video production, the cameras usually aren't large enough for this to be necessary.

Sometimes used in two-dimensional animation, which involves filming the foreground and background separately and then combining them.

Not to be confused with a camera shot designed to focus on a woman's rack. That's Male Gaze.
Examples:

  • A rather famous animated example comes from the opening song of The Lion King, when the focus shifts from a line of leaf-cutter ants on a branch in the foreground to a herd of zebra thundering by below.
  • In the film of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, as Harry walks past a Quidditch store, the view, from inside the store, shifts from his face to a closeup of the Nimbus 2000 lettering on the broom in the window.