The Shows And Films Made Without A Regular Camera

Next week sees the arrival of Searching on Sky Cinema Premiere (Virgin TV 320) – a film that’s got people talking for all sorts of reasons. A magnetic mystery, the story of a father’s efforts to track his missing daughter is absorbing and arresting stuff; you’ll be glued to the screen!

 

 

What might be most remarkable, though, is the way in which the film is shot; utilising technology to tell a story of digital intrigue, it’s a fabulously fresh way to deliver a taut and thrilling tale.

 

It’s not the only recent hit to change things up; the traditional camera has been exchewed on a number of occasions, and we’ve loved the results. We’ve selected a few of the films and shows that have impressed us by leaving the old reliable ways behind…

 

 

HANG UPS

Season One available now on All4

 

As original as the idea might seem, it’s actually a remake – but this British take on the American original might just be an improvement on the first go! Starring Stephen Mangan as a therapist whose patients connect through video call, it’s joyously irreverent and fantastically funny; the star-studded cast, including Richard E. Grant, Charles Dance, Katherine Parkinson and Jessica Hynes definitely doesn’t hurt either!

 

 

 

 

HIGH FLYING BIRD

Available now on Netflix, Virgin TV 999

 

Steven Soderbergh has always been an independent spirit, and his recent obsession with shooting on a phone camera is entirely on-brand; the fact that it’s quite so successful is the real shock! This sharp and insightful sports drama is a cracking story in itself, but its hyper-real look and clever use of tight angles and narrow frames shouldn’t go unnoticed, either…

 

 

 

 

PEEP SHOW

All seasons available now on Netflix, Virgin TV 999

 

It feels strange, nine seasons later, to look back on the early days of the British sitcom and realise what a novel concept it really was. Using helmet-mounted cameras, we saw what Mark and Jeremy did – and what a success it was! The razor-sharp writing might have been the trump card, but there’s no downplaying how the clever concept played its own part – if it feels old hat by now, that’s just a testament to the influence it’s had in the years since!

 

 

 

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