One-shot film
Updated: 12/11/2025, 9:27:31 AM Wikipedia source
A one-shot film (also known as a one-take film, single-take film, or continuous shot feature film) is a full-length movie filmed in one long take by a single camera, or manufactured to give the impression it was.
Tables
· Notable examples › Actual "one shot"
1990
C'est Vrai (One Hour)
Role(s)
60 min.
Notes
Robert Frank
2002
Role(s)
Eight-episode limited series, 5–7 mins., each done in one take and partially edited with practical background effects
Notes
David Lynch
2007
Alternation
Role(s)
11 min
Notes
Mehdi Fard Ghaderi
2011
Reversing Circles
Role(s)
21 min.
Notes
Mehdi Fard Ghaderi
2013
Somebody Marry Me
Role(s)
98 min.
Notes
John Asher
2015
2016
Eight
Role(s)
81 min.
Notes
Peter Blackburn
2017
Fourplay
Role(s)
77 min.
Notes
Dean Ronalds
One Shot-Fear Without Cut
Role(s)
140 min.
Notes
Haroon Rashid
Watch The Sunset
Role(s)
83 min.
Notes
Tristan Barr & Michael Gosden
2018
The Silent Pasture of Sparrows
Role(s)
20 min.
Notes
Qmars Mootab
Jaalo
Role(s)
101 min
Notes
Araaj Keshav Giri
2019
El Amor No Puede Esperar (Love Can't Wait)
Role(s)
76 min.
Notes
Juan Carlos Carrasco
2020
2021
Causalidad
Role(s)
115 min.
Notes
Who (Marcelo Politano)
Rendez-Vous
Role(s)
105 min.
Notes
Pablo Olmos Arrayales
2022
2023
Tales from the Neighborhood Café
Role(s)
41 min.
Notes
Al Hallak
The Night Inside
Role(s)
23 min
Notes
Antonio Cuesta
2024
2025
Role(s)
Four-episode limited series, 51–65 mins., each done in one take
Notes
Philip Barantini
One Shot with Ed Sheeran
Role(s)
60 min.
Notes
Philip Barantini
| Year | Title | Length | Director | Nationality | mw- Ref. |
| 1982 | Macbeth | 57 min. (longest shot) | Béla Tarr | Hungary | |
| 1990 | C'est Vrai (One Hour) | 60 min. | Robert Frank | France | |
| 1998 | Big Monday | 74 min. | Michael Rehfield | United States | |
| 2000 | Timecode | 97 min. | Mike Figgis | United States | |
| 2002 | Rabbits | Eight-episode limited series, 5–7 mins., each done in one take and partially edited with practical background effects | David Lynch | United States | |
| Russian Ark | 96 min. | Alexander Sokurov | Russia | ||
| 2003 | Sábado [es] | 65 min. | Matías Bize | Chile | |
| 2007 | Alternation | 11 min | Mehdi Fard Ghaderi | Iran | |
| 2007 | PVC-1 | 85 min. | Spiros Stathoulopoulos | Colombia | |
| 2008 | Still Orangutans | 81 min. | Gustavo Spolidero | Brazil | |
| 2011 | Reversing Circles | 21 min. | Mehdi Fard Ghaderi | Iran | |
| short cut [ja] | 112 min. single shot in one take. | Koki Mitani | Japan | ||
| 2013 | Rati Chakravyuh | 102 min. | Ashish Avikunthak | India | |
| Fish & Cat | 134 min. | Shahram Mokri | Iran | ||
| El triste olor de la carne | 87 min. | Cristóbal Arteaga | Spain | ||
| Ana Arabia | 85 min. | Amos Gitai | Israel | ||
| Somebody Marry Me | 98 min. | John Asher | United States | ||
| Airport 2013 [ja] | 98 min. single shot in one take. | Koki Mitani | Japan | ||
| 2014 | Agadam | 123 min. | Mohamad Issack | India | |
| 2015 | Victoria | 140 min. | Sebastian Schipper | Germany | |
| Anino sa likod ng buwan | 120 min. | Jun Lana | Philippines | ||
| The Story Of A Rainy Night | 24 min | Mehdi Fard Ghaderi | Iran | ||
| Daksha | 142 min. | S. Narayan | India | ||
| 2016 | Paint Drying | 607 min. | Charlie Shackleton | United Kingdom | |
| Eight | 81 min. | Peter Blackburn | Australia | ||
| Immortality | 145 min. | Mehdi Fard Ghaderi | Iran | ||
| King Dave | 99 min. | Podz | Canada | ||
| 2017 | Ice Cream and the Sound of Raindrops | 74 min. | Daigo Matsui | Japan | |
| Fourplay | 77 min. | Dean Ronalds | United States | ||
| The Wedding Party | 119 min. | Thane Economou | United States | ||
| One Shot-Fear Without Cut | 140 min. | Haroon Rashid | India | ||
| Watch The Sunset | 83 min. | Tristan Barr & Michael Gosden | Australia | ||
| One Cut of the Dead | 37 min. one-take sequence | Shin'ichiro Ueda | Japan | ||
| Lost in London | 103 min. | Woody Harrelson | United Kingdom | ||
| 2018 | Heegondhu Dina | min | Vikram Yoganand | India | |
| The Silent Pasture of Sparrows | 20 min. | Qmars Mootab | United States | ||
| Utøya: July 22 | 90 min. | Erik Poppe | Norway | ||
| Blind Spot | 98 min. | Tuva Novotny | Norway | ||
| Jaalo | 101 min | Araaj Keshav Giri | Nepal | ||
| Tatort: Die Musik stirbt zuletzt [de] | 88 min. | Dani Levy | Switzerland | ||
| A Boy. A Girl. A Dream: Love on Election Night | 89 min. | Qasim Basir | United States | ||
| 2019 | El Amor No Puede Esperar (Love Can't Wait) | 76 min. | Juan Carlos Carrasco | Mexico | |
| Last Call | 77 min. | Gavin Michael Booth | Canada | ||
| Shonibar Bikel | 83 min | Mostofa Sarwar Farooki | Bangladesh | ||
| 2020 | Limbo [de] | 89 min. | Tim Dünschede | Germany | |
| City Lights | 102 min. | Malte Wirtz | Germany | ||
| Let's Scare Julie | 83 min. | Jud Cremata | United States | ||
| 2021 | Boiling Point | 94 min. | Philip Barantini | United Kingdom | |
| Causalidad | 115 min. | Who (Marcelo Politano) | Argentina |
· Notable examples › Edited to appear as "one shot"
1917
118 min.
Role(s)
Sam Mendes
Notes
United Kingdom
2019
Role(s)
105 min.
Notes
Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers and Kathleen Hepburn
2022
| Year | Title | Length | Director | Nationality | Notes | Ref. |
| 1964 | Empire | 485 min. | Andy Warhol | United States | ||
| 2010 | The Silent House | 86 min. | Gustavo Hernández | Uruguay | ||
| 2011 | Silent House | 87 min. | Chris Kentis, Laura Lau | United States | An American remake of the 2010 Uruguayan film The Silent House. | |
| 2014 | Birdman | 119 min. | Alejandro González Iñárritu | United States | ||
| 2019 | The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open | 105 min. | Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers and Kathleen Hepburn | Canada | Edited to appear as two shots, actually 12 hidden cuts. Shot on 16mm film, used "Real-Time Transitioning" camera techiniques to account for film size limits. | |
| 1917 | 118 min. | Sam Mendes | United Kingdom | Actually edited to appear as two shots, with the camera cutting to black as the protagonist gets knocked out half-way. | ||
| 2020 | Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes | 70 min. | Junta Yamaguchi | Japan | ||
| 2021 | One Shot | 97 min. | James Nunn | United Kingdom | ||
| 2022 | Soft and Quiet | 92 min. | Beth de Araujo | United States | ||
| Medusa Deluxe | 100 min. | Thomas Hardiman | United Kingdom | |||
| 2023 | Shttl | 114 min. | Ady Walter | Ukraine | ||
| 2024 | One More Shot | 102 min. | James Nunn | United Kingdom |
References
- One five-minute shot and the film's opening credits precede the film's 57 minute main shot.
- FEENTAhttps://feenta.com/best-one-shot-one-take-movies/
- 1917https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/25/movies/1917-single-take.html
- Poetics of Cinema
- TheWraphttps://www.thewrap.com/1917-movies-accomplished-in-one-shot-from-timecode-to-birdman-photos/
- walkerart.orghttps://walkerart.org/magazine/http:://walkerart.org/magazine/ten-rules-animating-the-wolf-house-cristobal-leon-and-joaquin-cocina
- Film Inquiryhttps://www.filminquiry.com/the-wolf-house-2018-review/
- The New York Timeshttps://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/14/movies/the-wolf-house-review.html
- Can't Stop the Movieshttps://web.archive.org/web/20181215223920/http://www.cantstopthemovies.com/2010/08/bela-tarr-macbeth-1982/
- MOMAhttps://www.moma.org/calendar/events/10069
- The Austin Chroniclehttps://www.austinchronicle.com/screens/1999-03-19/521609/
- The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2000/aug/11/culture.features
- www.onderhond.comhttps://www.onderhond.com/blog/rabbits-review-david-lynch
- The Beathttps://www.premiumbeat.com/blog/behind-the-scenes-of-the-96-minute-shot-the-russian-ark/
- cinechilehttps://cinechile.cl/pelicula/sabado/
- Alternation ( تناوب ) by Mehdi Fard Ghaderi - Iran Drama Short Film | Viddseehttps://www.viddsee.com/video/alternation/ko9w7
- NY Daily Newshttp://www.nydailynews.com/latino/movie-shot-real-time-recalls-colombian-nightmare-article-1.351752
- The Hollywood Reporterhttps://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/still-orangutans-125777
- defcapp.irhttp://defcapp.ir/
- "Mitani Koki "short cut""https://www.wowow.co.jp/detail/060493
- ArtSlanthttps://www.artslant.com/ind/articles/show/40024
- Varietyhttps://variety.com/2013/film/global/venice-film-review-fish-cat-1200615586/
- The Hollywood Reporterhttps://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/sad-smell-flesh-el-triste-583118
- IndieWirehttps://web.archive.org/web/20210224224221/https://www.indiewire.com/2013/09/venice-review-amos-gitais-shot-in-one-take-ana-arabia-93938/
- The Malibu Timeshttp://www.malibutimes.com/malibu_life/article_70b2fada-d88b-11e2-bfb7-001a4bcf887a.html
- Tokyo Hivehttps://www.tokyohive.com/article/2013/04/mitani-koki-to-film-another-single-cut-drama-starring-takeuchi-yuko
- The Hinduhttp://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/a-record-start/article5530220.ece
- IndieWirehttp://www.indiewire.com/2015/02/adopt-films-picks-up-one-shot-heist-thriller-victoria-65040/
- Five Flavours Film Festivalhttps://www.piecsmakow.pl/film.do?lang=en&id=158
- en.irna.irhttps://en.irna.ir/news/81914357/Story-of-a-Rainy-Night-wins-San-Pedro-Filmfest
- Sify Movieshttps://web.archive.org/web/20170205111344/http://www.sify.com/movies/duniya-vijay-s-daksha-with-s-narayan-news-kannada-oehjBmhigibsi.html
- The Independenthttps://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/bbfc-declares-paint-drying-film-a-u-after-sitting-through-all-607-minutes-a6834671.html
- Eighthttps://web.archive.org/web/20210225221524/https://www.thecreativeissue.com.au/one-shot-wonders-how-feature-film-eight-was-made/
- Immortalityhttps://variety.com/2016/film/festivals/rome-film-festival-director-antonio-monda-screenings-drivein-prison-spanish-steps-1201876133/
- Montreal Gazettehttps://montrealgazette.com/entertainment/movies/podzs-king-dave-one-shot-film-premieres-at-fantasia
- Ice Cream and the Sound of Raindropshttps://2017.tiff-jp.net/news/en/?p=14133
- The Hollywood Reporterhttps://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/fourplay-1098835
- Colliderhttps://collider.com/the-wedding-party-trailer/
- The Times of Indiahttp://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bengali/movies/news/Haroon-Rashids-film-in-Guinness-World-Records/articleshow/13863663.cms
- Australian Cinematographer Magazinehttps://acmag.com.au/2017/03/01/watch-the-sunset/
- The Indian Expresshttps://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/entertainment-others/a-cut-above-the-rest-japanese-movie-one-cut-from-the-dead-5540397/
- Entertainment Weeklyhttps://ew.com/article/2016/12/15/woody-harrelson-lost-in-london-interview/
- "'Heegondhu Dina' review: This ambitious Kannada film deserves a watch for sheer audacity"https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/heegondhu-dina-review-ambitious-kannada-film-deserves-watch-sheer-audacity-78774
- No Film Schoolhttps://nofilmschool.com/2018/12/boy-girl-dream-90-minute-single-take
- The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/feb/19/film-reenacting-norway-utoya-massacre-premieres-in-berlin
- Varietyhttps://variety.com/2018/film/reviews/blind-spot-review-1202962397/
- "Nepali Movie – Jaalo (Guinness world record holder one-shot film) – Nepal & Nepali"https://xnepali.net/nepali-movie-jaalo-guinness-world-record-holder-one-shot-film/
- Faz.nethttps://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/medien/tatort/der-schweizer-tatort-von-dani-levy-15721657.html
- comparison between the Swiss and Standard German versions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRcsqnJeQZwhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRcsqnJeQZw
- No Film Schoolhttps://nofilmschool.com/2018/12/boy-girl-dream-90-minute-single-take
- Love Can't Waithttps://www.imdb.com/title/tt5960008/
- Varietyhttps://variety.com/2020/film/reviews/last-call-review-1234774806/
- Dhaka Tribunehttps://www.dhakatribune.com/showtime/2019/05/10/farooki-s-shonibar-bikel-selected-for-sydney-film-festival-2019
- Bayerischer Rundfunkhttps://www.br.de/nachrichten/kultur/limbo-one-take-thriller-kinostart-tim-duenschede-florian-halbig,Rr2CeQU
- Kino-Zeit.dehttps://www.kino-zeit.de/film-kritiken-trailer-streaming/lichter-der-stadt-2020
- Spielfilm.dehttps://www.spielfilm.de/filme/3009298/lichter-der-stadt
- Screen Internationalhttps://www.screendaily.com/features/how-jud-cremata-pulled-off-a-one-shot-thriller-with-lets-scare-julie/5149655.article
- Film Seekershttp://www.film-seekers.com/movie/lets-scare-julie/37
- 55th Karlovy Vary IFFhttps://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/57/34875-boiling-point
- Market Research Telecasthttps://marketresearchtelecast.com/amazon-prime-video-premieres-causalidad-a-film-made-entirely-in-sequence-shot/228232/
- Cinema Expresshttps://www.cinemaexpress.com/stories/news/2020/oct/19/don-palatharas-next-is-santhoshathinte-onnam-rahasyam-20875.html
- MediaPlayNewshttps://www.mediaplaynews.com/thriller-shot-in-one-take-rendez-vous-due-on-vod-feb-12-from-level-33/
- Varietyhttps://variety.com/2021/film/global/tribeca-competition-roaring-20-films-boutique-sales-1234956816/
- YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqov7iTjQBsPhruvw3-UoX74tCRoqpNVp
- NDTV reviewhttps://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/iravin-nizhal-review-a-single-shot-film-of-phenomenal-power-and-ambition-3163243
- industryhit reviewhttps://industryhit.com/t/indias-first-single-shot-action-movie-yuddha-kaandam-will-be-an-internationally-recognised-and-awards-winning-movie-which-will-create-a-lot-of-sensations/
- "Matías Bize: Los mil y un desafíos del rodaje de «El castigo»"https://entrance.cl/matias-bize-los-mil-y-un-desafios-del-rodaje-de-el-castigo/
- The Zebrahttps://thezebra.org/2023/06/20/st-elmos-movie/
- LINE UP Film Agencyhttps://www.lineupshorts.com/la-noche-dentro
- "Ted Raimi Thriller 'Failure!' Snapped Up for North American Distribution at Cannes Market by Red Water Entertainment (EXCLUSIVE)"https://variety.com/2024/film/global/ted-raimi-failure-cannes-red-water-entertainment-1236006105/
- Polygonhttps://www.polygon.com/horror/467217/mads-shudder-one-shot-director-explains-interview
- "Assemblage longest one shot feature film in the history of french cinema"https://www.premiere.fr/film/Assemblage/critiques
- "WORLD'S FIRST SINGLE SHOT WITH SINGLE CHARACTER FEATURE FILM"https://internationalbookofrecords.com/records/longest-single-shot-feature-film-with-single-characte
- Radio Timeshttps://www.radiotimes.com/tv/drama/stephen-graham-ashley-walters-adolescence-newsupdate/
- Varietyhttps://variety.com/2025/artisans/news/the-studio-one-take-episode-1236347408/
- Slimak, Sean ‘Outstanding Achievement in Short Script at Indie Short Fest 2024’ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt34710754/?rhttps://www.imdb.com/title/tt34710754/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk
- "Mitani Koki Oi,Dazai"https://www.wowow.co.jp/film/oidazai/
- The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/nov/16/one-shot-with-ed-sheeran-review-philip-barantini
- Architectural Recordhttps://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/3206-andy-warhol-s-empire-turns-50
- The Silent Househttps://www.fangoria.com/original/the-silent-house-with-director-gustavo-hern%C3%A1ndez/
- National Posthttps://nationalpost.com/entertainment/elizabeth-olsen-on-silent-house-and-why-shell-never-co-star-with-mary-kate-and-ashley
- Li, Norm (October 2019). "Long Take: Norm Li, csc (Q&A)" (PDF). Canadian Cinematographer. 11(5): 23http://www1.csc.ca/publications/2019/201910/IssueWeb201910.pdf
- The Hollywood Reporterhttps://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/making-1917-how-sam-mendes-filmed-a-ticking-clock-thriller-1263469/
- The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/dec/03/time-travel-beyond-the-infinite-two-minutes-junta-yamaguchi
- Varietyhttps://variety.com/2021/film/reviews/one-shot-review-1235105614/
- IndieWirehttps://www.indiewire.com/features/general/soft-and-quiet-trailer-one-take-film-1234773938/
- Varietyhttps://variety.com/2022/film/reviews/medusa-deluxe-review-1235335450/
- Deadlinehttps://deadline.com/2021/09/shttl-film-shoah-saul-rubinek-museum-ukraine-1234824978/
- "One More Shot (2024) Review"https://theactionelite.com/one-more-shot-2024-review/