Editing

3 stages of filmmaking

  • pre-production

    • preparation

  • production

    • shooting

  • post production

    • editing

Early cinema

  • early films were only one shot

  • later on, films were made that told stories through a combination of chronologically progressing shots

  • then films were made that experimented with time and space

  • then came experimentations with the power of editing in creating emotions and new meanings

from analogue to digital

  • post production process used to include various stages of lab processing, cutting, color correction, sound design, etc, which took place in various location and by many professionals

  • nowadays most of these stages take place on computers. in many cases, one person takes care of the entire process

dimensions of film editing

  • editing offers the filmmaker 4 basic areas of choice and control:

    • graphic relations between shot A and shot B

      • the 4 aspects of mise-en-scene (lighting, setting costume, and the movement of the figures) and most cinematographic qualities (photography, framing, and camera mobility) all furnish graphic elements

    • rhythmic relations between shot A and shot B

      • related to the length of each shot

      • counting frames isn’t something we normally do when watching a film but as the film flows along, we do feel a shift in temp that is created by the changing shot durations. in general, by controlling editing rhythm, the filmmaker controls the amount of time we have to grasp and reflect on what we see

    • spatial relations between shot A and shot B

      • editing constructs film space

      • editing permits the filmmaker to juxtapose any 2 points in space and suggest some kind of relationship between them

    • temporal relations between shot A and shot B

      • in a narrative film, editing usually contributes to the plot’s manipulation of the story

      • editing condences or expands duration

      • editing can repeat story actions and expand duration

continuity editing

  • continuity editing is a style of film editing that creates a seamless, believable flow of time, space, and action so the audience can follow the story without noticing cuts

an ideal cut should satisfy the following criteria

  • emotion

    • it should be true to the emotion of the moment

  • story

    • should advance the story

  • rhythm

    • it occurs at a moment that is rhythmically interesting and right

  • eye trace

    • it acknowldges what you might call “eye-trace”: the concern with the location and movement of the audience’s focus of interest within the frame

  • 2-D plain of screen

    • it respects the 2D continuity of what we see on the screen

  • 3D space of action

    • it respects the 3D continuity of the actual space

editing stages

  • logging

    • the dailies or rushes are stored and labelled in “bins”

  • first assembly

    • the editor considers all the visual and audio material collected on the shoot for each scene and then re-orders it in the way to tell the story best

  • rough cut

    • in the rough cut, the scenes are placed in order and checked for continuity

  • first cut

    • the first cut is the rough cut that is accepted by the editor, the director and the producer

  • fine cut

    • the fine cut no longer focuses on the entire film, but on the details of each and every cut

    • the fine cut emphasis and strengthens the rhythms and structures identified in the first cut

  • final cut

    • sound design is done and after everyone agrees with the result, the final export is made

editing terms

  • cut

    • basic transition from one shot to another

  • continuity

    • creates an ongoing stream of action

  • discontinuity

    • inconsistent actions or visual elements

  • cross-cutting or parallel-cutting

    • follows 2 or more storylines simultaneously

  • cutaway

    • when a shot from another scene or from the same scene being cut into the middle of an ongoing action scene

  • jump cut

    • a cut that excludes parts of the action, disrupting continuity

  • transitions

    • dissolve

      • the end of one shot gradually overlaps with the beginning of another

    • fade in/out

      • visual and audio elements gradually appear or disappear

    • wipe

      • when a shot transitions into another gradually from one side of the frame to another

    • shot reverse shot

      • cutting between 2 forward facing characters usually as they talk to each other

    • eyeline match

      • reveals what the character sees

useful tips for editing and filming

  • shoot for editing

  • select the important action

  • select just what the story needs

  • show something new with each cut

  • vary the shot size and angle

  • use cutaways to hide jumpy edits

  • step between shot sizes

  • use a master shot for an overview

  • get the pace right

  • use the right transitions

  • edit on the action

  • pay attention to the sound

  • build your soundtrack carefully

  • use sound that carries across the edit

  • keep track of the bigger picture

  • cutting to music

  • follow the mood of the scene