Exploring the Cutting-Edge Cinematography In Jaws

Jaws came out in 1975, but it remains so iconic that it’s still one of the most widely known films around. That’s quite a feat when you consider how it was originally meant to be a small feature with a $4-million budget and a 55-day shooting schedule. The film massively went over budget, costing a grand total of $9 million, and extended the original filming schedule to 159 days. Nevertheless, it also became a hit phenomenon. It grossed a record-breaking $124 million dollars, dethroning the cult classic, The Godfather. Its success isn’t just because it’s the first major film shot on the ocean, nor is it because of its chilling theme. It’s also one of the most visually well-crafted films to ever grace the big screens.

Water Level Shots

Jaws was one of the first films to give audiences a water-level perspective. In fact, this would become the film’s defining shot. Cinematographer Bill Butler achieved this by creating a pontoon camera raft with a waterproof housing. This would be the blueprint for succeeding summer blockbuster films that needed to film underwater and water level shots. Today's filmmakers have the luxury of using high-quality video equipment, such as the Ikelite 200DL 200' Underwater Housing which comes with a port mount, making it easier to attach cameras to rigs and cranes in the water. Even indie filmmakers have a wide range of GoPros available for these water shots. Back then they didn't have this technology. Yet Butler was able to pull off stunning water level shots, which would be the hallmark of all shark attack films— optical glass spins notwithstanding.

The “Spielberg Oner”

Released just a year after Steven Spielberg’s debut feature film, The Sugarland Express, Jaws was under the helm of a then-inexperienced director. But this film would cement the iconic “Spielberg Oner,” an incredibly intricate one-shot scene. These long takes would characterize every Spielberg film hereafter—and heavily influence several directors like David Fincher (Gone Girl, The Social Network, and Fight Club). Jaws, in particular, has a number of these “Spielberg Oners.” One of these incredible scenes features the car being loaded onto a ferry, with the characters constantly adjusting their positions within the frame as more and more people enter the shot —all within an uninterrupted take.

Omission And Suggestion

For a movie about a shark, Jaws doesn’t show the shark very often. The great white clocks in a total of four minutes of screen time in the entire movie. But this is possibly one of the contributing factors that makes the film so tense and eerie. This technique is in full display in the pier scene where we see the shark attacking a wooden pier. We never see the shark itself, insteadx we see a wooden pallet float in an unnaturally steady line towards Charlie, desperately trying to make it back to safety after falling in the water. Without explicitly being shown what’s lying in wait, we already know what fate would befall Charlie if he doesn’t swim away fast enough.

Jaws is a masterclass in bold, pioneering visual storytelling. Bill Butler and Steven Spielberg have created a lasting legacy in cinematography that continues to awe audiences and filmmakers across generations.