E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) — bicycle across the moon
See our character’s iconic-scene parody →A boy's bicycle, riding along a forest path, rises into the sky with his alien friend in the basket and crosses in front of a huge full moon as a black silhouette. Borrow it for a scene where an ordinary kid has a magical moment, or when you want to make a single shot that will be remembered for a long time like a logo.
In front of the bright moon, the boy, the bicycle, and the friend in the basket are all seen only as black shapes.
To recreate it: Erase the face and clothing color entirely with 'pure black silhouette against a bright full moon'.
The moon looks much bigger than in reality, so the bicycle seems to pass right up against the moon's surface.
To recreate it: Fix the moon's size first by including 'telephoto compression, enormous moon filling half the frame'.
The round moon becomes a frame that wraps around the silhouette.
To recreate it: First make a start frame image of the moment the silhouette is completely inside the circle of the moon.
The actor rode a bicycle on a crane arm in front of a blue screen, and the background was combined separately.
To recreate it: Make the character silhouette and the moon background separately and composite them, so you can choose the size of the moon and the height of the pass at will.
They filmed with the bicycle mounted on a crane arm and held in the air.
To recreate it: For AI, include 'wheels spinning in mid-air, never touching the ground' to prevent the mistake of wheels touching the ground.
Show the face of the boy flying through the sky before and after the moon shot.
To recreate it: Direct a slightly open-mouthed smile so that rapture rather than surprise shows.
Cinematic multi-shot sequence, 12 seconds total. Shot 1 (3s): a boy in a red hooded jacket pedals a bike down a misty pine forest trail at night, a small creature wrapped in a white blanket in the front basket, camera tracking alongside. Shot 2 (2s): static low angle as the wheels leave the ground and the bike lifts above the treetops. Shot 3 (2s): static close-up of the boy looking down in wonder. Shot 4 (5s): static telephoto extreme wide shot of an enormous full moon above a pine ridge, the bike's tiny black silhouette flying across it left to right. Consistent cool blue moonlight, 1980s film grain.
If you leave the character and bicycle as only a black outline in front of a bright moon, face and color information disappears and only the shape remains, making a picture anyone can read at a glance and remember for a long time. The actor who played the boy said they shot this scene on a stage in front of a blue screen, riding a bicycle mounted on a crane arm, and this silhouette became the logo of the director's production company Amblin Entertainment.
A boy in a red hooded jacket pedals a bike fast down a misty pine forest trail at night, a small creature wrapped in a white blanket sitting in the front basket; camera tracking alongside, tall dark pines, cool blue moonlight, 1980s film grain.
Low-angle static shot from the forest floor as the bicycle's wheels leave the ground and it lifts into the night sky above the treetops, wheels still spinning in mid-air, mist glowing in the moonlight; soft haze, 1980s film grain.
Close-up of the boy on the flying bicycle looking down in wonder with a small open-mouthed smile, wind in his hair, treetops far below behind him; static camera, cool moonlight rim on his face, shallow depth of field, 1980s film grain.
Extreme wide static telephoto shot of an enormous glowing full moon above a dark pine ridge; a tiny pure black silhouette of a boy on a bicycle with a creature in the basket flies across the moon from left to right; deep blue night, fine film grain.
Join Shot 1 to Shot 2 with a cut on action at the moment the wheels leave the ground, show the boy's expression briefly in Shot 3, then leave Shot 4 long, for 5 seconds. Have the music start swelling gradually in Shot 2 and make it biggest as the silhouette passes the middle of the moon.
If you make the moon background and the flying silhouette in one go, the size of the moon changes from shot to shot. So first make a start frame image with just the moon and ridgeline, and direct the silhouette to pass over it. Describe the friend in the basket only as 'a small creature wrapped in a blanket' so it doesn't resemble the movie character, and keep the direction of travel (left to right) the same in all shots.
Far Out — How did Steven Spielberg make Elliot's bike fly in 'E.T.'? · Wikipedia — Amblin Entertainment · Wikipedia — E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial