ABSTRACT
Inverted shots violate an unwritten rule of visual storytelling that says images should always be shown right side up; perhaps because of this, their narrative function usually reflects their overt transgression of this cinematic convention. When an inverted shot appears on-screen, it tends to signal that the rules of the normal world of the story are being or about to be subverted, that a previously established order is going to be violated, or that the principles and values that held together a given society or culture up to that point will soon be revoked, among other similar notions. Inverted shots that incorporate camera movement, where the shot begins with the camera right-side up and then gradually rolls until it is upside down, do require special equipment that varies depending on the complexity of the shot and weight of the camera rig.
