Editing Establishing shot (section)

{{short description|Long shot that sets up the context for a scene in filmmaking and television production}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
[[File:LOC Brooklyn Bridge and East River 7.png|thumb|right|An opening shot of the [[Brooklyn Bridge]] establishes the setting and trajectory of the film ''[[Saturday Night Fever]]''.<ref>{{cite book|last=Boggs|first=Joseph M.|year=1996|title=The Art of Watching Films|pages=161, 454}}</ref>]]
An '''establishing shot''' in [[filmmaking]] and [[television production]] sets up, or establishes, the context for a scene by showing the relationship between its important figures and objects.<ref name="Brown_Page_18">{{cite book |last1=Brown |first1=Blain |title=Cinematography: Theory and Practice, Image Making for Cinematographers and Directors |date=2012 |publisher=Focal Press |location=Burlington, Massachusetts |isbn=9781136047381 |page=18 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uyMYMbjheqgC&pg=PA18 |access-date=11 August 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web| title=Film analysis. Part 4: Editing | publisher=[[Yale University]] | url=https://filmanalysis.yale.edu/editing/#establishing | access-date=2020-06-25}}</ref> It is generally a long or [[long shot|extreme-long shot]] at the beginning of a scene indicating where, and sometimes when, the remainder of the scene takes place.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Videography Glossary|publisher=[[Calgary board of education]]|url=http://schools.cbe.ab.ca/b690/Curriculum/computerop/comp9plus/CTS901-03/CTS9Plus-VideoGlossary.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171205093002/http://schools.cbe.ab.ca/b690/Curriculum/computerop/comp9plus/CTS901-03/CTS9Plus-VideoGlossary.html|archive-date=2017-12-05|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://static.atomiclearning.com/files/atomic_storytelling_guide.pdf|title=Video Storytelling Guide|publisher=Atomic Learning, Inc.|date=2007}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Shot types|website=MediaCollege.com|url=https://www.mediacollege.com/video/shots/|access-date=2020-06-25}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Terms Used by Narratology and Film Theory|publisher=[[Purdue University]]|url=https://cla.purdue.edu/academic/english/theory/narratology/terms/|access-date=2020-06-25}}</ref>

Establishing shots were more common during the [[classical Hollywood cinema|classical era]] of filmmaking than they are now. Today's filmmakers tend to skip the establishing shot in order to move the scene along more quickly, or merely mention the setting in on-screen text (as is done in the [[Law & Order (franchise)|''Law & Order'' franchise]]). In addition, the expositional nature of the shot may be unsuitable to scenes in mysteries, where details are intentionally obscured or left out.