It’s all about timing… especially when you’re dealing with a 30 second commercial. It’s a little easier for a short or a feature because you can make the shot (or the pieces of the shot) as long as you want. In a commercial each piece/section of the seemingly “one-shot” needs to be exactly the right length - as well as taking into consideration the length of the transition - or your commercial will be over length and you’re pretty screwed!
It’s also about being imaginative with the transitions. Use practical elements or parts of the location in order for the audience not to be distracted by what is aiding “the cut”. Moving past and object (left or right) is also best for these types of transitions because the eye doesn’t see the edit point coming and, therefore, it feels like one shot.
For those who haven’t seen it, you can watch the Edge Hill commercial here. I also used the same technique for an ad for Jet 2 a few years ago. They were both shot using the AR Revolution Steadicam by Chris Maguire who has gone on to be one of the main Steadicam ops on Harry Potter, Iron Man 2 etc.
I’m a sucker for the one-shot ad. I love the choreography, elegance and the challenge of creating something in this way. It all seems so effortless on the surface but is meticulously planned underneath.
