How is this opening shot done? It starts from ceiling height, drops to skim just above the audience then does a complete 360 behind Ellen on stage in one continuous shot.

Is it a crane? I don't see one in the audience, nor do I see any contraptions rigged up to the ceiling.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C50k8vts2uU

Thanks for any pointers!

probably it is a steadicam with a guy on a crane or cable.

My best guess is elevated platform carrying a skilled steadicam operator, after which the operator is lowered to ground level and proceeds accordingly for the ground level/stage shots.

I'm almost sure it's a steadicam, but I think he is making use of the steep stairs between the seats. At the beginning, the op is up at the entrance and the cam is pointed at the ceiling. He then walks down the stairs between the bleachers while panning from the ceiling to the stage. The rest is obvious. One big clue: you can tell when the steadicam op gets to the bottom of the stairs and hits level floor at 00:24.

I agree with Michael. I think he starts out on a crane. Theres no way the stairs are that steep. People would fall off. :) The point where he hits the floor is where he gets off and walks forward. If he was walking the entire time the motion would have been more fluid at that point.

Thanks, guess I won't be duplicating it anytime soon…

If i recall there in the opening sequence of million dollar baby introducing the boxing training facility; employs the exact same technique as the video above.

crane shot lowering to ground level then the camera walks right into the building and proceeds inside all in one single shot.

amazing work if you ask me :)

When he spins around, you can't see any crane or platform. My best guess is that he came in on a cable (probably a part of the theater) and when he hit the ground a helper unhooked him to complete the shot. I bet he was pretty proud of himself! It made Ellen look amazing, and I don't even like her.

A crane could be off to the side, but there sure wouldn't be much room for one to hide. I'm betting this was a cable/steadicam setup.

See for example:

http://www.stradacranes.com/specsonsteadicam.htm

Regards,
Erwin

When he spins around, you can't see any crane or platform.

I would guess that the crane/cables could be easily raised after in the 30 seconds before the camera turns around to show the entire stadium from the host's pov.

I just hope the cable didn't whack anyone in the head on its way up!

Not sure if the bride let alone the vicar would be overly keen on you trying this one, (unless of course you don an angel costume maybe?)