ABSTRACT
There are several techniques that can suggest a special connection between characters before it is explicitly revealed through action or dialogue; one of them involves changing the appearance of relative distances between subjects in adjacent, otherwise similar-looking shots. The technique requires an abrupt shift in camera placement and focal length to produce an effect not unlike that of a jump cut, combined with framing, focusing, and other choices designed to make the visual discrepancy conspicuous and even jarring. Stephen Frears’ biopic on the rise and fall of world-class cyclist Lance Armstrong, The drastic shift in spatial relationships between these characters and overall look of the scene as Armstrong delivers this comment makes it clear the men behind Walsh are the journalists he just referenced, a connection that is confirmed in the very next scene when they inform him he was expelled from the press team covering the Tour de France under pressure from Armstrong’s team.
