The SandpitI found this utterly fascinating. It’s a five minute study of “a day in the life of New York, in miniature” and it’s just that. The director, Sam O’Hare has combined time-lapse photography and a tilt-shift lens (whatever that is!) to produce an effect akin to toy models scurrying around a miniature city. Look out for the helicopters and the diggers. There’s a bit more information on how he did it here.
The soundtrack complements the film as well – it’s by Human – and was commissioned for the project.
Beyond the tricks, I loved the short film for the picture of urban life – the pair doing tai chi beneath the underpass, the baseball games by the freeway, the pigeon avoiding the pedestrians, the slop bucket thrown on the road. Brilliant.
Tilt-shift lens is an effect that makes a seen look miniature because of the dramatic change of focus along the horizontal.