Insta360 credited for buzzy door transition in hit film 'Pegasus 3'

China’s Spring Festival box-office leader “Pegasus 3” topped 3 billion yuan this holiday season, and one of the film’s most buzzed-about moments is neither a stunt nor a VFX sequence but a slick “door transition” that has exploded across social media. Behind the viral cut are Insta360 cameras — notably the Titan VR and X5 panoramic rigs.

Behind-the-scenes clips revealed the two Insta360 systems on set, and viewers quickly identified how these devices made the rapid, jaw-dropping car-door edit possible. The single shot of the character Zhang Chi stepping into a race car, using the closing door as the transition device, became an instant meme; audiences flooded social feeds with praise and surprise at seeing the trick play out in theaters.

The transition’s simple elegance inspired a wave of recreations. Fans replicated the cut using Insta360 gear — Ace Pro 2 clips of the door opening and closing circulated widely — while others imitated the effect with suitcases, wardrobe doors, bathroom doors or luggage snaps. Tutorial videos teaching the technique turned comment sections into mass “homework” threads, with creators quipping that their Ace Pro 2 remakes were good enough to audition for “Pegasus 4.”

Director Han Han deliberately favored practical, real-world shooting for the film’s high-speed chase sequences rather than relying on heavy VFX, placing extreme demands on camera hardware. Insta360’s Titan VR, described by the Bao’an-based company as a “performance beast,” packs eight Micro Four Thirds sensors and can record up to 11K, delivering high-resolution, stable footage even on gravel roads and at high speeds. The X5 360 camera’s “shoot-first, frame-later” workflow captures a full spherical image in one pass and lets editors reframe in post, preserving every bump, roll and micro-motion of the car for editorial flexibility.

Insta360’s broader product line also contributed to the film’s coverage: the compact GO series thumb cams can be chest-mounted or magnetically attached inside vehicles to capture intimate driver POVs, while wearable and action cameras are tuned for high-velocity scenarios. The brand’s prior field tests — from a Porsche Gobi Desert experience to a co-branded X5 for BMW Motorrad — helped validate performance under extreme conditions and informed refinements used on set.

Founded in 2015, Insta360 has been a leader in the global 360-camera market for years, and its gear has appeared in TV variety and reality shows since at least 2018. Credits at the end of “Pegasus 3” list Insta360 alongside DJI, signaling that Chinese consumer imaging brands are increasingly viewed as professional-grade tools by major productions.