"Jitter" film playback effect

[Mylo]

I saw a movie on TV few days ago, unfortunately I can't find out the name of it...

But I noticed that action scenes in the movie have some kind of deliberate "jitter-ish" effect.

Movement doesn't look 100% fluid and natural, but then again it doesn't look too choppy. I'm thinking this is some kind of movie making effect or something to accent the scenes.

If anyone has the idea what am I trying to describe, tell me how to achieve it...thanks 8)

[M Bruner]

I know in After Effects there is a behavior called wiggle, and it's used that way.

[guns1inger]

Private Ryan and Band of Brothers used a technique for action scenes that basically uses a very short shutter speed to reduce the motion blur on each frame to almost nothing. This gives incredible clarity to things like explosions, where every little piece of debris is crystal clear, but it also gives a slightly un-natural look to the movement because we are so used to seeing the blur on the frame. This might be the effect you are talking about.

It is pretty much impossible to do in post because it is all about the shutter speed when shooting (note : shutter speed, not framerate - the framerate remains normal). Shooting with a standard video camera will give you motion blur, and this cannot be taken out afterwards.

[Mylo]

Thanks for the explanation mr Bruner!

How about applying a black strobo effect overlaying the video composition?

That could do the trick, what do you think?

[M Bruner]

No problem. To make the strobe-light effect, I would use an effect called Levels. I would set the light level down to zero in one frame, then set it to normal level the next frame(s) or so. It would keep the jitter effect, but the motion wouldn't look to choppy either.

[Seeker47]

Thanks for the explanation mr Bruner!

How about applying a black strobo effect overlaying the video composition?

That could do the trick, what do you think?

I was just wondering if by "jitter" you were referring to the kind of thing that I think they had for the production company logo, at the end of "X-Files" episodes: a sort of film-stock slipping its sprocket registration in the projector gate effect ? (That might not have been the right example, but I've seen this effect used elsewhere.)