Transformation of audiovisual language in the vertical format: the spatial and compositional aspect
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.34142/27091805.2026.7.02.26Keywords:
vertical image, vertical frame, vertical frame geometry, vertical screen format, vertical axis, vertical spatial organization, vertical compositionAbstract
The purpose of the study: to identify how the principles of organizing audiovisual space are transformed in the vertical format and how they interact with directorial means of expression, using vertical short films as the research material.
Methods: structural-functional, comparative, and interpretive analysis of frames from six short films shot in the vertical format (2015–2021); construction of an analysis matrix covering the character’s position, empty space, camera angle, vectors of movement and gaze, graphic vectors, perspective, and the dramatic function of space.
Scientific novelty: rather than individual elements of vertical video, the study examines comprehensively the relationship between directorial means of screen expression and the transformation of the principles of their organization in vertical screen space.
Results: the features of the interplay of mise-en-scène, composition, camera angle, vectors, and perspective in the vertical frame are determined. The following patterns are identified: the vertical axis becomes a structural principle of composition, and the upper and lower zones of the frame gain significance; empty space in the vertical frame can perform not only a compositional but also a dramatic function; horizontal vectors of movement and gaze are retained and interact with vertical space, which indicates a continuation of the tradition of horizontal interaction within the vertical geometry of the frame. The role of camera angle, perspective, and depth staging in creating spatial expressiveness is outlined.
Conclusions: the vertical format redistributes compositional possibilities between the vertical and horizontal axes, giving the director additional means of staging: the empty space above or below a character can convey dramatic information, the dominant vertical establishes vertical interaction between characters, and the camera angle creates a hierarchy within that interaction.
=== Назви (реченнєвий регістр) === Трансформація аудіовізуальної мови у вертикальному форматі: просторово-композиційний аспект Transformation of Audiovisual Language in the Vertical Format: The Spatial and Compositional AspectDownloads
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