The Eurovision Song Contest has long been a platform where artists showcase not only their musical talents but also their creativity and innovation. In an unprecedented move, Greek media have announced that Marina Satti and her team will film her Eurovision performance in a single continuous shot. That decision has sparked intrigue and excitement among fans and the media alike.
Marina Satti, known for her eclectic blend of traditional Greek music with modern pop elements, has always pushed boundaries with her performances. However, her decision to eschew the conventional multi-camera setup in favor of a one-shot performance is a bold and daring choice that has captured the attention of Eurovision enthusiasts worldwide. In a show known for frenetic changes, she’s saying “No, thank you.”
The news first emerged through various media reports, setting off a wave of speculation and anticipation. While details regarding the specifics of the performance remain scant, the concept of capturing an entire Eurovision act in one uninterrupted take presents both technical challenges and artistic opportunities.
For Marina Satti, whose music is deeply rooted in her Greek heritage yet embraces contemporary influences, a one-shot performance could serve as a powerful means of storytelling. It has the potential to create a sense of intimacy and connection with the audience, allowing her to convey the essence of her music in its purest form.
Marina Satti’s previous single-shot masterpiece
Marina Satti’s decision to film her Eurovision performance in a single shot is not entirely out of character for the daring artist. In fact, she has already demonstrated her penchant for this approach in the past. One notable example is her music video for the song “Mantissa,” where she ventured into the bustling streets of Athens to film a captivating one-shot sequence. Against the backdrop of the city’s urban landscape, Marina Satti and her team orchestrated a mesmerizing display of choreography and music, seamlessly weaving through traffic and pedestrians in a single continuous take.
That means no pauses or breaks — the artist must know their moves and be ready for it to all hang out.
Previous similar shot technique
There hasn’t been a Eurovision act that utilized the exact same camera technique of filming the entire performance in one continuous shot. However, various Eurovision performances have incorporated elements of long takes or single-shot sequences within their acts.
For instance, in the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest, the Ukrainian entry by Zlata Ognevich featured a performance that utilized a continuous camera movement around a rotating stage, giving the illusion of a single shot for a significant portion of the performance. Similarly, in the 2017 contest, the Italian entry by Francesco Gabbani included a segment where the camera followed a continuous path around the stage, providing a dynamic and visually striking effect.
While these examples demonstrate a partial use of long takes or continuous shots within Eurovision performances, Marina Satti’s decision to film her entire Eurovision act in one uninterrupted shot appears to be a novel and unprecedented approach within the contest’s history.
Tell us your thoughts in the comments? Do you like the idea of continues shots?
Well, Greece’s performance is gonna be an absolute mess, so knowing they won’t mess around with the cameras too much might not make this look an absolute trainwreck than I originally expected. It’s probably still gonna look laughable though
Distant shots should be reduced in general, not just in this occasion. I still see long shots on my nightmares because of 2019…
Wrong. Trijntje Oosterhuis from the Netherlands in 2015 filmed her act in one single shot, after the Common Linnets did almost the same the previous year. Trijntje remained in semifinals.
The article claims that: “There hasn’t been a Eurovision act that utilized the exact same camera technique of filming the entire performance in one continuous shot.”
What about The Netherlands 2015?
In this house we believe Marina Satti
We say Grace to your house!!
Filmed in one shot…………………
Greetings from Netherlands XXX
have a good ESC24
FINALLY! I think the UK is also trying a similar approach with an equally crazy & innovative concept of literally changing the staging multiple times in 3 minutes to fit the theme of their song, am I right?
”Novel and unprecedented” my *ss, Fud Leclerc’s rolling over in his grave rn.
Now the question is which angle.. how dynamic or static will this camera be. I hope this Idea will work better than I think.
You mean like Slimane’s video? How original, indeed.
..? Slimane didn’t invent one shots music videos lmao. Actually Marina had a music video shot in one take way before Slimane, it’s even included in this article that you can read 🙂
Marina is gonna move a lot and the camera is gonna follow her all around for 3 minutes, Slimane is steady, there is no comparison.
Isabella Clark: Jesc ,2016 : Speak UP
Didnt like at first, but love it right now. It’s my winner for 2024 and Athens 2025, why not? Fresh and original song!
apparently this a clip of the staging.. but just for reference thus might not happen
https://twitter.com/tryugvi/status/1769064962637304239?t=9ScApARLMWXuWPTyKuuV3Q&s=19&fbclid=IwAR0H542_2-kV529T9-PyU505yqh0Qjfz4U-ctBJI6JQuUDpPsgQTsfaeFEk
i cant wait to see it…love Marina Satti and i am sure that she dont gonna make something that she cant make it
OMG – You’re telling me finally – FINALLY – there will be one 3 minute performance that I don’t have to see 67 wide shots of an audience and cuts to a small contingent of ‘fans’ that are singing along? Whether this works or not Im just happy someone is doing something different.
I wonder if there will be other individuals dropping in and out of shot during parts of the song? Reminds me of a Missy Elliott type video staging. Get ur freak on.
Fokas Evangelinos likes to take a risk but it is not giving always a successful result. The green screen he wanted to create 3 years ago with Stefania and told everywhere it would be the most innovative thing anyone would have seen in the Eurovision stage, proved to be a very amateur approach that made a catchy song such as Last Dance and Stephania herself, look trashy. I don’t trust him, I wish he wasn’t part of our delegation this year.
yet she still managed to get into the top 10 (by a hair, but whatever) for the first time in 8 years for Greece
Very jolly ?
The whole artistry around our entry attracts me more than the music itself, which in my opinion is deliberately messy and heterogeneous. I love the satirical undertones and hidden critique in the music video and I am very intrigued to see what her staging plans are.
The Common Linnets in 2014 are the most obvious and successful instance of the single shot technique. Although the whole performance wasn’t technically a single shot since it started from the ceiling and there were a few cuts here and there, the concept was clear, and it lifted their song from somewhere in the bottom of the odds to become the eventual runner-up. You always have to wonder if it really suits your song and your message though. Marina Satti’s video has lots of fast cuts, and it really works. I don’t know if doing the single shot won’t just… Read more »
Yeah that’s what I’m scared of. Single shot suited Calm After the Storm really well. I’m not sure it will be the case here :/
Interesting.
She has a great voice and song too hope she makes it
While interesting, the song still feels too messy for me
The greek team definetely loves to tease their esc stagings don’t they?
Sometimes it works 2021, 2022, sometimes not 2018, 2019, so it’s a double-edged sword.
Now seeing Marina’s creativity and her artistic vision, it will be good and cool I think, so good luck to her!
Yes, I actually think 2018 and 2019 songs were better than 2021 and 2022, they were just executed very poorly on stage
I dare Marina to go one step further. Just a close-up of her face for the whole song, 1965-style.
I would be very curious to see a dancing song staged like this, stripped back only the song and only one shot on the singer face, it would be for sure original for a song that normally requires crazy lightings, choregraphy and dynamism.
I just hope they’re doing this because they have an idea that will look good in this style, and aren’t coming up with a concept to fit this ‘gimmick’
It could be absolutely brilliant but I am a bit worried about this in all honesty. Hopefully it looks good.
Very refreshing to see Greece back to their ambition that we hadn’t seen in over a decade. I hope Marina brings them back to their sky-high ratings from the 00s!
that cameraman is gonna be sweating
I have the feeling they want to simulate the music video, with Marina moving throughout the stage and dancing/showing different things like the music video. I don’t know how to feel about this, but call me intrigued.
Knowing Marina’s girlboss strategy to make the song successful, I have a feeling the camera will stay in one place throughout the entire performance. After all, Zari’s choreography in one shot wouldn’t be far off from giving a Just Dance like feeling to it on-screen. I think that would be a genius idea to grab a lot of televote points.