Have you ever watched a movie that leaves you in awe of the beautiful, yet surreal, visuals and story? That’s the feeling you get when you watch Jamin Winans’ The Frame. The movie’s stunning cinematography complements the profound and philosophical story, creating an experience that’s hard to forget. In this blog post, we take a deep dive into the cinematography of The Frame by listing some of our favorite shots and scenes.
The Story of The Frame
Before we delve into the cinematography of The Frame, let’s briefly discuss the story. The movie follows two characters, Alex, a cargo thief, and Sam, a determined paramedic, whose lives collide impossibly. They are trapped inside a mysterious world where reality and fiction are blurred. Jamin Winans isn’t a stranger to using dreamlike visuals to tell a story. His previous film, Ink, has a similar visual style, but The Frame takes it to the next level.
The Cinematography of The Frame
Now let’s move on to the cinematography of “The Frame.” The movie’s visual style is an essential element of the story, and it’s expertly crafted to create a thought-provoking atmosphere.
1. An Introduction To Alex
Alex, played by David Caranza, is from Guatemala and works for a dangerous cartel as a methodic cargo thief. He is also the main character of the hit TV show, “Thieves and Saints”. Alex’s story takes inspiration from crime shows that have thrilling action and lots of moral dilemmas.
2. An Introduction To Sam
Sam, played by Tiffany Mualem, is a determined paramedic trying to save the world. She’s ashamed of her past because she had a rough childhood and continues to run from it. She is also the star of the compelling drama series, Urban Hope. Sam’s story is a reference to the gripping medical dramas that have dominated primetime TV for decades.
3. Creating The Menacing Psychiatrist
Jamin Winans artfully crafts the figure of Sam’s psychiatrist to be a menacing presence, with shots that keep his face in the shadows or blurred out when on screen. This keeps viewers feeling uneasy and uncertain when he is present, enhancing their experience further as they watch the events unfold.
4. An Impossible Connection
Alex and Sam live in alternate universes, yet fate brings them together. Jamin Winans’ use of visuals through a television helps illustrate this impossible concept. It also reinforces the larger theme of the film.
5. A Loop
One of the most mind-bending tools utilized in cinematography is a paradoxical loop. In The Frame, Sam walks into and out of the same room in an endless loop.
6. Getting Alex’s Backstory
As Alex is falling out of a window, we get flashes of his past in a creative sequence of shots. It revealed how Alex’s parents died and how he lost hearing in one of his ears.
7. The Frame
In one of the most creative and visually arresting sequences of the film, the on-screen frame becomes tangible and the characters in the film are aware of it. The frame is also used as a symbolic and literal prison for the main characters.
8. The Violin
One of the last shots in the film depicts Alex playing the violin in front of a TV. The shot starts off normal, but then transforms into an entirely new setting.
