Aspect ratios explained | How do aspect ratios work? | Why do some movies and shows have black bars

This is by far the best explanation of aspect ratio by showing real examples and overlays. Great job, you have a new subscriber.

The difference in aspect ratio is not about just black lines and cropped edges. Aspect ratio totally changes the composition of how an audience sees fore-ground, middle-ground and background. What is the intention of the scene? Is it to illustrate Kane’s hand dropping the snow globe, the face of Deep Throat in the parking garage or the attacking helicopters in Apocalypse Now? You will have a whole different set of problems with composing these scenes depending on the aspect ratio.

i have a question:
imagine you would film something in the middle of a room in a wide ratio with two door barely visible left and right in the picture. now imagine filming from the same place with something like 4:3.

is it a) you can’t see the doors because there are not filmed in that situation?

or b) you can see the doors because the image is just squeezed into a smaller place?

@Movie Universe, as a side-Fact, as we have experienced these days, the 1.43 IMAX 70mm Theater-Geometry / Ratio has the most immersive Effect of the Formats, even more than big 1.9 Ratios like IMAX Leonberg, because the hight is so important for the effect. (The 1.43 Ratio has nothing to do with the old TV 4:3 Standard)

i hate the changing of aspect ratios in movies because some scenes are shot in IMAX.
thanks Christopher Nolan.

Lawrence of Arabia is a wide-screen cinematic masterpiece. Only film at a cinema can give us this movie, the way it should be shown.

Wide screen films such as Cinemascope, Todd-AO (70mm), Vistavision came about because of one film "This is Cinerama" Fred Waller who invented the Cinerama process spent years looking at how we see the world around us so he used a 120 degree curved screen and the wide screen revolution started. If you get over to the UK go to the Picturevill cinema in Bradford to see the only proper Cinerama in the world today and it will change your whole view of cinema.

Oppenheimer is the first fully IMAX film, and invented B&W 70mm film for that film

I wonder if this debate will be settled some time in the future when we will be able to afford wall-to-wall micro led screens. Directors will be able to pick any aspect ratio and we’ll still retain a massive image.

I would see widescreen movies on TV start or finish in widescreen, with black bars top and bottom. This didn't bother me much until a WTBS broadcast of "Mister Roberts" (1955). An interior scene that used the complete 2.55:1 ratio, where three actors talk to each other. I could see two actors but hear a third as they "talked to empty air" under "pan & scan." That was enough to make me a Letterbox fanatic. Laserdiscs were in "fullscreen" or "letterbox" ratios, while VHS was only "fullscreen." When DVD came along, movies marketed to kids were "fullscreen" for the longest time. (A number of cable TV companies like IFC and FX also do "fullscreen" today, noting that "this film has been altered to fill the screen.")

I was watching Transformers The Last Knight on TV the other day and it was annoying how much the aspect ratio would randomly change

Thanks for this video. I always understood why the black borders happened on my tv screen, but I never understood why it is not completely standardized today. I honestly assumed 4:3 was a limitation of old TVs and movie theaters wanted to fit more seats, which is why theater screens are wider.

It seems the answer is marketing and/or the “director’s vision.” I’m waiting for the 1,000,000:1 ratio and having artsy people proclaim it as groundbreaking vision and a bold artistic statement. Meanwhile, the majority of us will complain.

Actually, 1:1,000,000 would be even bolder. The movie would be called “Blind Cat in the Sun”

An interesting compilation. Thanks. My constant irritation is seeing Academy Ratio made to fit the 16:9 tv screen. Not only is top and bottom frame information lost, but Composition is destroyed and 16mm film transmission has too much loss of resolution. Far better is the retention of side bars, that the mind can ignore and the picture look crisp.

My favorite has always been1:85:1

Digital IMAX’s aspect ratio is 1.9:1.

This is also important for foreign movies with subtitles to be shot in all aspects ratio , because subtitles are partially hidden due to aspect ratio in theatre big screen...

It seems like anything with 🦇 or going against the establishment is jacked up 🤦

i call it filling black bars on tv, it means alredy tv serials alredy in imax ratio 😂

What if you put the UK first before mentioning US & Russia the next time in future edition of this video?

My dad explained this to me as a child and I think I'm one of the few who understood this over 50 years ago! Even with this fantastic presentation people still do not want to see black bars anywhere on their TV. The solution here would be a TV that is able to physically (or appear physically) to change it's aspect ratio on the fly. Remember that you heard it here first. LOL

How about an aspect ratio that combines the height of IMAX and the width of Polyvision (Napoleon's format)?

I really enjoyed when Nolan chose to use IMAX with Batman. But I did't feel that the IMAX was placed or became an actual character or part of the movie as well as BATMAN V SUPERMAN. And had the best continued multiple watch of how well it was used in THE GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY in 3D. I own these all in 3D except NOLAN's BATMAN. And project them on a huge home theatre screen. - Toronto, Canada.

PS: I would love to see a documentary on 3D and what happened. Really to 3D home bluray releases in NORTH AMERICA, About a week before FROZEN was released. It was pulled from being places on shelves, and for weeks all advertisements and package deals were for nothing. Since Disney owns Marvel, Star Wars, and now FOX. 3D Blurays have not be available in North America and I have had to get mine oversea's where they are still releases. I did major research to find out why this is. But have not found any solid proof or discussions about it. I wonder what you would come up with. Thanks.

So what's the solution to get rid of the black bars? Are we stuck with this nonsense just because a director or producer wants it to be that way?
Is there adjustments on modern TVs to eliminate this stupidity?

So this is ultimately a question of end-user watching experience. Do you want your audience to watch your movie in cinemas or at their homes via streaming services?

Going back and watching 1.33 is a revelation. As long as it isn't pan and scan, the old 'full-screen' was way better than widescreen snobs give it credit for.

So pretty much marketing to get us in theaters to spend more money. What a suprise.

Can u please explain iam seeing marvel movies by using 4 way zoom in my tv
Is this similar to imax enhanced?

Black bars on the top and bottom are annoying. Just do what the first Cars movie did and have a full screen version (with the extra detail) and a theater version.

Very good quality explanation of this. I'm forever sending my viewers here for a detailed explanation of aspect ratios.

2.40.1 is the best

I Hate That Im Watching MCU Now Im Not Frever Watching Have F*ck*ng Black Bars

Movie companies really need to start making movies that can be experienced the same at home and in a theater. Cinemas are already on a decline

4.3 aspect ratio is quite famous movie picture the way how the vhs tapes Home Videos were from out a long time ago making a great way on a DVD home video I changing it everything it's more Just Like VHS Home Video Entertainment for DVD picture. To be very honest I think 4.3 show is one of my favorite TV pictures of all time since when it was quite famous on VHS
The good way to put on a DVD

I hate those black bars on the top and bottom and especially on the sides. I know many people don't do it but I ZOOM them out. I use zoom from the picture settings because I just can't deal with those black bars at all.

I have a Sony 75XG9505 and its got Imax Enhanced mode. Your video is should be watched by anyone before they buy a tv as its so useful and informative. I watch tv on a 65 inch but for films I watch on the 75 inch tv as it has no black bars which is better than going to the cinema.

Thank God I have imax enhanced on my tv and no black bars

As a moviebuff I want always to see as much of the original frame as possible. I don't care about aspect ratio, if it's "boxy" then it is. As long you don't crop anything out or at least the smallest amount possible.

The last knight was horrendous to watch with the aspect ratio change

Thanks for this, recently I had noticed, Turner Classic Movie, has changed aspect ratio....and it is terrible. It looks like I'm looking at a classic film on Instagram. It seems they are trying to fill the screen with the film, but if you love classic movies, you are accustom to the black bars on top and bottom, the viewer was at least seeing the entire film without edges being cut off. Not sure why they have done this but it's a BAD idea.
I didn't know the technical terminology (have to watch this a few 100xs). This is a good lesson and you have presented some other info that I didn't know. Thanks

Why don't they just make the dimensions of the film cell identical to the desired aspect ratio? I also think it's ridiculous that IMAX is so boxy. It would work so much better as 1:85:1 (adjusted for scale, of course).

2.0:1 or 18:9 aspect ratio is perfect.

Watching Better Call Saul, I realized how beautiful 16:9 can be, these days I get pretty excited about 16:9 movies, especially considering that I watch most movies in my house

I thought the black bars were there just to make the movie look like a professional movie XDDD

hello, amazing video I hace a question, Is it worthy to see Dune in Imax?