Please view in landscape mode or expand your window for the best experience.
Overview
A real-time thriller filmed in a single take. A raw story of tragedy and redemption keeping the viewer on the edge of their seat.
This action-thriller, filmed in a single take, made the viewer feel like an active participant in the action due to their proximity to it. This required removing shadows from the technical crew and adding gunshots, impacts, and blood spltters, as is typical in action films. TV and cell phone screens had to be created and replaced as well.
Credits
Director
Cristian Marchiori Tapia
VFX Shots
60
Supervisor
Alejo Varisto
Producer
Cesar Moran Mazo
Comp
Daniel Villamonte | Martin Villareal
Comp
Sergio Pickenly | Juan Rainieri
Matchmove
Toni Agoglitta
Matte Paint
Virginia Palomeque
In a film shot as if it were a single continuous take, long takes were frequent.
Crafted gunshots
Some shots could be executed practically serving as a precise reference for creating the shots in VFX; often, both the shot and its interaction with the environment had to be replicated using a highly handcrafted approach.
Dealing with shadows
Shot in a continuous single take—utilizing real locations, a large cast, and an agile camera that brought the viewer closer to the action—this technique had a profound impact on the narrative and dramatic elements; however, the camera's shadow often became visible in the scene—casting itself not only onto objects but, more notably, onto the actors—which posed an additional challenge when it came to eliminating or concealing it.
+ INFO
Local Critical Reception and Abroad
Critics praised the film for subverting expectations of standard Latin American narco-thrillers.
Adrenaline and Realism: International reviewers highlighted the film's relentless pacing, noting that the single-take gimmick quickly evolved into an effective tool for amplifying claustrophobia and tracking Galgo’s frantic desperation.
Beyond the Action: Critics lauded the film for balancing relentless gunplay with grounded social commentary. Rather than focusing solely on cartel politics, Gunman shifts its lens toward ordinary neighborhood residents in Isla Maciel who decide to take a final stand against criminal exploitation, giving the grit an emotional anchor.
Physicality of Performance: Lead actor Sergio Podeley earned widespread international praise for sustaining a grueling physical performance that anchors the eighty-minute real-time narrative from start to finish.