Dutch Angles: Creative Examples of Camera Movements & Angles

dutch angle shots

Dutch angle basics

How do you enhance an unsettling moment in your script through cinematic techniques and visual language? One great way to do this is with a Dutch Angle. We'll start with a Dutch angle definition before moving onto canted angle examples and how you can identify and enhance moments in your work. So, what is a Dutch angle camera shot?

An oblique angle of the camera is just one of the many camera angles possible and can even be combined for additional effect. Here's a rundown of every camera angle, how they work, and whey they might work best in your next shot list.

As we explore the canted angle in detail, keep in mind that the Dutch angle shot does not live in a vacuum. Yes, Dutch angle shots look awesome and feel stirring. But it’s critical to introduce your canted angle in the right place, at the right time.

Consider the Dutch tilt within the context of your entire shot list. Every shot matters based on the relationship with the other shots in the scene. An oblique angle can skew the audience’s perspective, so they’re in the same mindset as the characters they’re watching on the screen.

Again, wrong doesn’t mean immoral or bad, it just means different from the orthodox way of perceiving information. You’re not judging the behavior, just exposing the abnormality.

The Dutch angle shot used to be called “The German Angle” because this camera angle came to prominence in early German Expressionism. It should really be called a "Deutsch" angle but somewhere along the line it became "Dutch."

As film evolved, and German directors and cinematographers came to Hollywood, they brought the Dutch angle with them. It soon became part of mainstream Hollywood, especially in Film Noir, which also came out of German Expressionism.

Directors have used the Dutch angle to create a feeling, and to give the viewer a sense that the world is figuratively warped…But what if your scene actually involves a warped world? 

Inception uses the Dutch angle much more literally than usual, and in many cases your POV shots will have a natural Dutch angle applied to give us the sense that we’re using the character's eyes.

You can use your Dutch angles in exciting scenes, like the one below from Harry Potter, to help raise the stakes of the action in progress. 

Now that we have some background and seem some examples of the Dutch angle, let's move onto how a master filmmaker like Brian De Palma uses them. We're going to look at a scene from Mission: Impossible when Ethan Hunt realizes he's become the target.

DUTCH TILT

How to use a Dutch angle

When you read through a good script, you will find a moment where everything changes. Where something big happens. These are the moments where your film literacy and knowledge of filmmaking techniques will come in handy.

De Palma finds the moment in Mission: Impossible at the climax of Act I. We brought the Mission: Impossible script into StudioBinder's screenwriting software so we can see how you how to identify the moment and share it with your collaborators. 

In this scene, Ethan Hunt arrives at a restaurant in Prague. His entire team has just been murdered, and he meets with his boss, Kittridge. Kittridge thinks Ethan murdered his own team on behalf of an arms dealer. Ethan doesn’t know this yet, and neither does the viewer.

Kittridge has also brought a second team of IMF agents to the meeting, which he has failed to mention to Ethan. They have a brief conversation until Ethan notices something is…wrong. Let's watch the scene and pay attention to the moment De Palma shifts the tone with a precisely-placed Dutch tilt.