Sometimes less really is more. Haiku is a form normally associated with Japanese poetry, but this minimalist style can inspire powerfully succinct storytelling when applied to filmmaking. Haiku film is also a format that allows newcomers to explore the rich audio-visual possibilities that video brings, with its parameters acting as a guide.
Content creator Alexandra Andreeva, who is based in Vienna, has long been interested in trying motion, but always found the transition from stills to video "a bit scary", not least because her older Canon APS-C DSLR doesn't have video capabilities. Here, she shares her experience of shooting a cine haiku about fashion designer Benjamin Benmoyal with the full-frame mirrorless Canon EOS R8, and offers some tips on how to go about making your own haiku films.
Identify your cine haiku story
A haiku film – also known as a video or cine haiku – is a short, poetic film made up of brief sequences that combine to tell a short story or capture a moment in time. Alexandra's shoot took place in Benjamin's light-filled studio in Paris, where he creates his garments from fabric woven out of recycled tape from old audio and video cassettes, such as VHS.