In film and television, a close-up tightly frames a person or object. The most common close-ups are ones of actors' faces.
Close-ups are often used as cutaways from a more distant shot to show detail, such as characters' emotions, or some intricate activity by their hands. Close cuts to characters' faces are used far more often in television than in movies; they are especially common in soap operas. Television shows that do not use close-ups are often described as creating an immediate feeling of emotional distance from the characters.
Close-ups are also used for distinguishing main characters. Major characters are often given a close-up when they are introduced as a way of indicating their importance. Leading characters will have multiple close-ups. There is a long-standing stereotype of insecure actors desiring a close-up at every opportunity and counting the number of close-ups they received. An example of this stereotype occurs when the character Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard, announces "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up" as she is taken into police custody in the film's finale.
One disadvantage of close-ups is that they do not show the relative positions of people and things; overuse of close-ups can quickly confuse an audience.
Close Up is a half-hour long New Zealand current affairs programme produced by Television New Zealand. It is shown at 7 p.m. weeknights (straight after One News) and is presented by Mark Sainsbury with Paul Henry as the supporting host.
The new Close Up began broadcasting on November 2, 2004 as a replacement for the Holmes show immediately after Paul Holmes announced his resignation from TVNZ and that he would be presenting a similar show on Prime in 2005. The show was originally branded as Close Up at 7 using the existing Holmes studio but when the show relaunched in 2005 it was just branded as Close Up with a new-look studio.
Close Up was hosted by Susan Wood from its first show in 2004 until December 4, 2006 when she resigned from TVNZ, citing health problems .
Close Up competes with the TV3 current affairs show Campbell Live, and shares the same time slot with TV2 drama Shortland Street.
