In the book 'understanding comics', author Scott Mccloud identifies a trend that draws a distinction between the conventions of comics in the West versus how predominantly Eastern approach their storytelling. He specified that while much of Western comic panels can be identified as following the formula of action-to-action with each successive panel, Eastern comics, particularly Japanese Manga, are more interested in what he called 'Aspect to aspect' storytelling. Aspect to Aspect storytelling has more interest in exploring every nook and cranny of a space as opposed to depicting a consecutive sequence of events. This philosophy applies to a lot of sequential imagery coming out of eastern countries and can be a valuable technique in visual storytelling as it forgo's any sense of time and space allowing the viewer/reader time to absorb and immerse themselves in the fiction. This can be particularly effective in film and animation as a way of setting the scene or flavouring a world before introducing characters and dialogue.
One of the best examples of this technique being put to use is in the 1995 Japanese Animated film 'Ghost in the Shell' which has a 3-4 minute intermission consisting of a series of connected establishing shots simply depicting the architecture and everyday life of the futuristic dystopian city, which was based off Hong Kong. This short interlude communicates information to the viewer about the world through a series of establishing shots, but they do not focus in on one element or another, instead focusing on details in the world and exploring the narrow lanes and canals of the city, with it's conflicting sense of time and place.
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