Filming & Production
Lead room
Also called: nose room, looking room
Frame someone looking off to the left of camera and the space belongs on the left. Put it behind them and the shot reads as cramped, even to a viewer who could never say why. The same rule covers movement, since a person walking right needs somewhere to walk into. Lead room works alongside headroom, the gap above the hair, and together they usually put your subject off-centre. Vertical framing changes the sums. A 9:16 Short has almost no horizontal room to give, so the gap moves upward and the bottom stays clear of captions and interface.