We now live in an era where anyone can create videos with AI. Even people with no video-making experience can produce scenes that look cinematic and share them proudly on social media.
But at some point, many begin to feel: “Something is missing.”
The videos may look good but lack depth and meaning. Just like a book or drama with weak story and emotions fails to hold interest, videos need more than just visual appeal.
Especially in commercials, which must deliver a strong message quickly, a logical structure beyond sensation is essential. AI-generated videos are no different. They need to be based on logical principles and aesthetics from film studies to truly connect with viewers.
This article will explore two key principles crucial for commercial videos: Angle of View and Cutaway. These help create videos that are not only visually striking but also meaningful and engaging, driving better resonance with the audience.
1. Angle of View: Completing AI Commercials with Logic, Not Just Sensation
The Angle of View is more than what the camera captures. It influences cultural meaning, psychological distance, and how consumers perceive a product.
In both traditional filming and AI-generated videos, the angle shapes emotions and attitudes towards the subject. For example, a telephoto angle creates a sense of exclusivity and aspiration by isolating the subject, while a wide angle makes the scene feel familiar and intimate. Thoughtful use of the Angle of View is essential in AI commercials to create the right emotional impact and connect with viewers on a deeper level.
What is Angle of View?
The focal length of a lens (in mm) changes not only what is captured in the frame but also how it feels:
- Wide Angle (14–24mm): Expansive backgrounds, exaggerated perspective, potential distortion of subjects.
- Standard (50mm): Similar to human vision, offering stable and comfortable perception.
- Telephoto (100mm+): Blurred backgrounds (separation), strong subject focus, a sense of luxury.
This guide illustrates focal lengths with their corresponding angles of view. For example, a 14mm lens provides an extremely wide view, while a 400mm lens offers a very narrow view. The 50mm lens is known as "standard" because its perspective closely resembles human vision.
When producing AI videos, it’s common to overlook the angle of view and just combine generated scenes. However, in commercials, angle of view is more than framing—it communicates meaning, evokes emotion, and shapes the persuasive structure of the video.
Perceptual Differences by Lens
This demonstrates how focal lengths affect perception:
- 16/24mm (Wide): Expansive backgrounds, possible subject distortion. Great for energy, space, and presence.
- 50mm (Standard): Feels natural to the human eye; stable, comfortable, ideal for conveying universal appeal.
- 100mm (Telephoto): Strong subject isolation, blurred backgrounds, a sense of drama and luxury.
The Evolution of Visual Style Before and After Smartphones
The rise of smartphone photography has revolutionized how we capture, share, and perceive images. Smartphones put a powerful camera in everyone’s pocket, making photography more accessible and widespread than ever before.
This shift has influenced not just personal expression but also the way brands and advertisers create visual content to connect with audiences in a more authentic, immediate way.
- Before Smartphones:
- People used compact cameras for daily snapshots and DSLRs/film cameras for artistic, high-quality shots.
- Shallow depth of field was a sign of professionalism and sophistication.
- TV ads in the 2000s preferred cinematic, “portrait-style” shots with blurred backgrounds to highlight subjects.
- After Smartphones:
- The rise of smartphone cameras led to an explosion of everyday images and videos.
- Wide-angle lenses (24–27mm) became the default, and audiences grew accustomed to clear, expansive frames.
- Shallow depth-of-field aesthetics started to feel outdated, especially among younger generations.
- Online and social media advertising adopted wider angles, often using lenses under 35mm, to create open and authentic visuals.
Practical Lens Tips for Videos
- For younger audiences on mobile and social media, use wide-angle lenses to emphasize space, immediacy, and energetic scenes that feel open and dynamic. This helps capture attention quickly and creates a sense of connection and authenticity.
- For older audiences in sectors like finance, health, and premium goods, use standard or telephoto lenses to convey trust, dignity, and stability. Narrower angles focus attention and create a polished, professional tone that reinforces authority and reliability.
- When running campaigns across different platforms (TV, out-of-home, social media), tailor the angle of view to fit the medium and audience expectations. For example, use cinematic tighter shots for TV and wider, more immersive angles for social media to match viewing habits and context.
Psychological Distance
Angle of view also encodes psychological distance:
- Telephoto: Large, isolated subject, blurred background → focus, exclusivity, aspiration.
- Wide: Smaller subject in broad context → intimacy, everyday familiarity, openness.
Even if the subject size is equalized, the impression differs because of the physical position of the camera:
- Shooting from afar (telephoto): conveys aspiration, rarity, goals.
- Shooting up close (wide): conveys intimacy, accessibility, familiarity.
In short, angle of view design directly shapes consumer psychology and purchasing decisions.
AI commercials are no different: to resonate, creators must intentionally design psychological distance based on target, product category, and core message.
2. Cutaway: The Editing Technique That Brings AI Commercials to Life
While AI-based video production has advanced rapidly, it still faces challenges: distorted movements, awkward compositing, or unnatural motion under complex camera shifts. A powerful way to address these limitations is through the Cutaway technique.
What is a Cutaway?
A cutaway is an editing device where one scene transitions to another in order to emphasize meaning or provide context. In films, this may take the form of a flashback to a character’s past during a key moment, or in dramas, a quick insertion of societal imagery to heighten the stakes of a conversation.
In essence, a cutaway complements the present scene, delivering emotion and message intuitively.
Cutaway in Hyundai Sedan Commercials
The images below are from a Hyundai sedan commercial.
- The first shot shows a sleek sedan gliding smoothly through the city.
- The next cut switches to an overhead shot of countless people crossing at a crosswalk.
This transition does more than highlight the sedan’s driving performance. By showing the rhythm of pedestrians’ lives, the car becomes more than just a vehicle — it becomes part of the pulse of everyday life.
A Sedan That Lives Your Life With You
Through cutaways, the meaning of the sedan expands beyond specifications or design to embody its role in human life.
The crosswalk scene symbolizes:
- The diverse routines of countless individuals,
- The rhythm of the city shaped by those daily steps,
- And the sedan quietly moving alongside it all.
If paired with a line like “A sedan that carries your life, a sedan that reflects you,” the commercial transforms the car from a mere transport tool into a life partner.
Why Cutaways Matter in AI Commercials
Because AI videos often expose subtle visual imperfections, cutaways provide a natural remedy while enhancing the overall storytelling.
Cutaways are valuable because they:
- Mask AI’s technical limitations,
- Reinforce human-centered emotions,
- Evoke unconscious empathy in viewers.
Thus, they are not just an editing choice but a strategic tool to deliver resonance.
Connecting to AI Studios
With AI Studios’ AI Video Generator, advanced techniques like angles and cutaways are accessible to everyone, not just film experts. Users can easily create different perspectives and add narrative depth without needing a camera. AI simulates various views, while cutaways add emotional and storytelling layers to ads. From style and logic to creative impact, AI Studios leads the new era of AI commercial video production.
