Dolly
dolly shotdoorway dollyFisher dollyChapman dolly
A dolly shot places the camera on a wheeled platform so the body translates through space: doorway dolly, Fisher, Chapman. Because the nodal point moves, foreground, mid-ground, and background change in parallax, which a zoom cannot do.
Narrative function
Walk the camera. Change geography.
In, out, or beside: the point is that the support rolls, so space is proven by relative motion. A face can grow because you approached, not because the glass got longer.
A zoom is the wrong cousin when you need the room to be real. If you only need a tighter crop from sticks, zoom.
If the floor cannot take track, say so and use a vest or a crane instead of faking wheels.
How it works
Lay level track or dance the wheels on a floor. Height is set by the column (often eye or chest).
In and out ride the lens axis; a lateral truck is still a dolly. Keep the horizon honest.
Prompt: Dolly toward or beside [Subject], camera body traveling on a smooth path, true parallax, not a zoom.
When to use it
Use it when the camera must walk: approach a face, leave a room, slide a corridor. Do not call a zoom a dolly.
Compared with similar shots
Dolly In and Dolly Out name the axis along the lens. Tracking Shot follows a moving subject.
A Zoom changes focal length with the body still, so there is no parallax. A Push In is often a vest or a looser approach; a dolly is wheels and a path.
In film
The Shining rolls the camera through hotel geometry until space feels like a trap. Goodfellas uses wheeled and vest travel as continuous geography.
Grammar: the body moves, the room shears.
Prompt it
Say the body travels. Still: Dolly toward or beside [Subject], camera body traveling on a smooth path, true parallax, not a zoom.
Video: The camera dollies, physically traveling, parallax shifting around [Subject]. Name in, out, or beside.
Ban the word zoom unless you mean a compound.
What usually goes wrong
The usual wrong cousin is a zoom. The tell: near and far enlarge together, no shear of a lamp or a door frame.
The fix: write physical travel and true parallax, and name the path.
Questions
What is Dolly in film?
A dolly shot is a camera on a wheeled platform that translates through space, producing parallax. It is a physical path, not a zoom.
Dolly vs Zoom
A zoom changes focal length from a locked body, so space flattens or opens without parallax. A dolly moves the camera, so near objects shear against far ones.
When should I use Dolly?
Use it when geography must change by walking the camera. Do not use the word dolly for a zoom from sticks.
How do I prompt Dolly for AI image or video?
Write a traveling camera body and true parallax. Example: Dolly toward or beside [Subject], camera body traveling on a smooth path, true parallax, not a zoom.
Melies can generate this Dolly
Melies is the AI filmmaking workspace. This Dolly opens with the camera path and prompt already loaded, so you generate the move instead of describing it from scratch.