History Main / StopMotionLighting

!!Examples

[[folder:Comics]]

[[folder:Film]]
* In ''Clownhouse'', one of the antagonists is shown passing by one of the protagonists while a lightbulb flickers.
* ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'' features Batman jumping a {{Mook}} as gunshots illuminate his approach.
* ''Film/{{Equilibrium}}''. First fight scene is illuminated entirely by muzzle flashes from the protagonist's pistols.

* Father Malius' awakening from two decades of non-action in ''Film/HappyHellNight'' is show via continues flashes from a polaroid camera.
* ''Film/RevengeOfThePinkPanther'' has an attempted murder in a night club while the strobe light is on.

* In ''Coils'' by Creator/RogerZelazny and Creator/FredSaberhagen in one scene an assassin is approaching a telepath while Donald, the protagonist, ends up observing the scene through the telepath's eyes. Donald tries to delay the assassin [[ItsALongStory by making the household electronics run amok and flickering the lights]], the telepath gives the assassin a heartache, but the flashes still show him staggering toward his victim.

[[folder:Tabletop RPG]]
* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' module I10 ''Ravenloft II The House on Gryphon Hill''. At the conclusion of the adventure the {{PC}}s are desperately trying to stop the Creature from achieving his goal. They are forced to follow it through a thunderstorm, where the only illumination is from strokes of lightning. Each flash reveals a specific scene.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:{{Theater}}/Dance]]
* ''Caught'', by David Parson's Dance Company. This one counts as a crowning moment of awesome for this trope.
[[/folder]]

* At least one scene in the ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode "Blink" - we never see the Weeping angels actually move.
** The ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode "Flesh and Stone", again featuring the Weeping Angels, had the gunshots-in-a-dark-room version.
* ''Series/DueSouth'' featured a gunfight in a dark hallway during the series finale. The only time the characters could be seen was when they were illuminated by one of the ([[ATeamFiring many]]) gunshots.

* In ''Rise From the Ashes'', the fifth case in ''PhoenixWrightAceAttorney'', [[spoiler:Ema Skye witnesses a fight scene between Prosecutor Neil Marshall and serial killer Joe Darke during the SL-9 Incident]]. With the power out and the room pitch black, [[spoiler:a particular flash of lightning illuminates a scene that is burned into Ema's mind. After the fight (and the prosecutor's subsequent murder), she draws a picture of the scene, which turns out to be instrumental in finding the true culprit two years later.]]

* In the ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' eposode "Ready, Willing And Disabled": while fighting during the night over the money, Meg, Chris and Stewie are occasionally seen only while there's lightning. And while most of the flashes show them fighting one reveals them dressed and posing for an "old timey" photo

* ''Anime/SuperDimensionFortressMacross'': One of the more famous scenes in ''[[TheMovie Do You Remember Love?]]'' is the duel between Max and Miria, which eventually takes them inside the airlock of a Meltrandi warship. They shoot out all the interior lights through stray bullets, and the rest of the battle is only illuminated by brief flashes from BulletSparks or sparks caused by the two Mecha crashing into each other.

* [[DoubleSubversion Double-subverted]] in the NES version of NinjaGaiden 2 in stage 3-1; [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7I4_XNaYv_4#t=29s you can see the characters, and some of the background, continuously, but the level itself and the enemies are only visible during lightning strikes.]]

* ''Film/RevengeOfThePinkPanther'' has an attempted murder in a night club while the strobe light is on.

* ''Film/{{Equilibrium}}''. First fight scene is illuminated entirely by muzzle flashes from the protagonist's pistols.
* ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'' features Batman jumping a {{Mook}} as gunshots illuminate his approach.

[[folder:Television]]

* In the ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' eposode ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ready,_Willing,_and_Disabled "Ready, Willing And Disabled"]]'': while fighting during the night over the money, Meg, Chris and Stewie are occasionally seen only while there's lightning.
** And while most of the flashes show them fighting one reveals them dressed and posing for an "old timey" photo

* Done beautifully in book three of ''{{Bone}}'' when Fone Bone, Thorn and Gran'ma Ben are on the run from the rat creatures in the middle of a storm. Lighting flashes light up the otherwise pitch black backgrounds, giving brief glimpses of the rat creature horde closing in, as well as [[spoiler: when the Red Dragon appears and chases them away.]]

* ''The Revenge Of ThePinkPanther'' has an attempted murder in a night club while the strobe light is on.
* In ''AnExtremelyGoofyMovie'', Silvia has a dance solo in front of a strobe light.
* ''{{Equilibrium}}''. First fight scene is illuminated entirely by muzzle flashes from the protagonist's pistols.

* Several episodes of ''TheSimpsons'', including one where (in a flashback) we see teenagers installing a strobe into the back of their car. They turn it on and dance to music - the rest of the scene is shown as a series of stills as the light comes on and off.
* One episode of ''TheTick'' had The Deadly Bulb attack in darkness, where we only saw several freeze-framed images when his lightbulb-head flashed in the darkness.

* In ''{{Smallville}}'', ''Checkmate'', there is an epic one when Clark breaks down the doors of a chamber where Chloe is BoundAndGagged, beat up the agents and catch a bullet in front of Chloe's face while the scene flashes due to a power breach.
* In the ''FamilyGuy'' eposode ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ready,_Willing,_and_Disabled "Ready, Willing And Disabled"]]'': while fighting during the night over the money, Meg, Chris and Stewie are occasionally seen only while there's lightning.

* ''DungeonsAndDragons'' module I10 ''Ravenloft II The House on Gryphon Hill''. At the conclusion of the adventure the {{PC}}s are desperately trying to stop the Creature from achieving his goal. They are forced to follow it through a thunderstorm, where the only illumination is from strokes of lightning. Each flash reveals a specific scene.

Lightning flashes and a scene is illuminated, it flashes again, and again, each moment a new frame in a story played out in silhouette. It may be a gristly murder, it may be a fight scene, but whatever it is we only see it in stills as a light flicks on and off.

Related to LightningReveal, DramaticThunder, and possibly ThunderShock.

* ''TheRevengeOfThePinkPanther'' has an attempted murder in a night club while the strobe light is on.

* Similar to the above example, ''TheDarkKnightRises'' features Batman jumping a {{Mook}} as gunshots illuminate his approach.

* ''DueSouth'' featured a gunfight in a dark hallway during the series finale. The only time the characters could be seen was when they were illuminated by one of the ([[ATeamFiring many]]) gunshots.

Lightning flashes and a scene is illuminated, it flashes again, and again, each moment a new frame in a story played out in silhouette. It may be a gristly murder, it may be a fight scene, but whatever it is we only see it in stills as a light flicks on and off.

----
!!Examples

[[folder:Comics]]
* Done beautifully in book three of ''{{Bone}}'' when Fone Bone, Thorn and Gran'ma Ben are on the run from the rat creatures in the middle of a storm. Lighting flashes light up the otherwise pitch black backgrounds, giving brief glimpses of the rat creature horde closing in, as well as [[spoiler: when the Red Dragon appears and chases them away.]]

[[folder:Film]]
* ''TheRevengeOfThePinkPanther'' has an attempted murder in a night club while the strobe light is on.
* In ''AnExtremelyGoofyMovie'', Silvia has a dance solo in front of a strobe light.
* ''{{Equilibrium}}''. First fight scene is illuminated entirely by muzzle flashes from the protagonist's pistols.

[[folder:TabletopRPG]]
* ''DungeonsAndDragons'' module I10 ''Ravenloft II The House on Gryphon Hill''. At the conclusion of the adventure the {{PC}}s are desperately trying to stop the Creature from achieving his goal. They are forced to follow it through a thunderstorm, where the only illumination is from strokes of lightning. Each flash reveals a specific scene.

[[folder:{{Theater}}/Dance]]
* ''Caught'', by David Parson's Dance Company. This one counts as a crowning moment of awesome for this trope.

[[folder:Television]]
* In the ''FamilyGuy'' eposode ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ready,_Willing,_and_Disabled "Ready, Willing And Disabled"]]'': while fighting during the night over the money, Meg, Chris and Stewie are occasionally seen only while there's lightning.

* At least one scene in the ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode "Blink" - we never see the Weeping angels actually move.
** The ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode "Flesh and Stone", again featuring the Weeping Angels, had the gunshots-in-a-dark-room version.
* ''DueSouth'' featured a gunfight in a dark hallway during the series finale. The only time the characters could be seen was when they were illuminated by one of the ([[ATeamFiring many]]) gunshots.

[[folder:VideoGames]]

* [[DoubleSubversion Double-subverted]] in the NES version of NinjaGaiden 2 in stage 3-1; [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7I4_XNaYv_4#t=29s you can see the characters, and some of the background, continuously, but the level itself and the enemies are only visible during lightning strikes.]]

[[folder:WesternAnimation]]
* On one ''LooneyTunes'' short, Sylvester makes a formula for making a PersonalRaincloud to use on the dog guarding Tweety. But then he spills it and the room is darkened by the resulting cloud. Outside, the windows are dark, but the flashes of lightning occasionally show a fleeing Sylvester.
* Several episodes of ''TheSimpsons'', including one where (in a flashback) we see teenagers installing a strobe into the back of their car. They turn it on and dance to music - the rest of the scene is shown as a series of stills as the light comes on and off.
* One episode of ''TheTick'' had The Deadly Bulb attack in darkness, where we only saw several freeze-framed images when his lightbulb-head flashed in the darkness.

[[folder:RealLife]]

** And while most of the flashes show them fighting one reveals them dressed and posing for and "old timey photo"

* ''Caught'', by David Parson's Dance Company. Probably available on youtube somewhere, I can't check on my work computer. This one counts as a crowning moment of awesome for this trope.

* In ''Rise From the Ashes'', the fifth case in ''Phoenix Wright: {{Ace Attorney}}'', [[spoiler:Ema Skye witnesses a fight scene between Prosecutor Neil Marshall and serial killer Joe Darke during the SL-9 Incident]]. With the power out and the room pitch black, [[spoiler:a particular flash of lightning illuminates a scene that is burned into Ema's mind. After the fight (and the prosecutor's subsequent murder), she draws a picture of the scene, which turns out to be instrumental in finding the true culprit two years later.]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Computer Games]]
* [[DoubleSubversion Double-subverted]] in the NES version of NinjaGaiden 2 in stage 3-1; [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7I4_XNaYv_4#t=29s you can see the characters, and some of the background, continuously, but the level itself and the enemies are only visible during lightning strikes.]]
[[/folder]]