Movie Editing Techniques - With Pretty Pictures!

5/29/2015 MovieeditingtechniquesWithprettypictures!

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MovieeditingtechniquesWithprettypictures!

Honeyourunderstandingoffilmeditinguntilyouaredazzlinglybrilliantatit.

Theverybestdirectorshaveacomprehensiveunderstandingoffilmediting.Theyplananddirectshotsinsuchawaythattheycanbecuttogethersmoothlyandcoherently.Ambitiousfilmmakerswouldthereforebewelladvisedtolearnfilmediting.

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Youshouldgenerallycutonaction,especiallyifyouarecuttingfromawideshotofasubjecttoatightershotofthesamesubjectonthesamevisualaxis.Cuttingonactionmeansthatyoucutfromoneshottoanotherjustasanactionisperformed,suchasanactortakinghishatoff.Whenyoujointheshots,youusethefirstpartofthemotioninthewideshotandthesecondpartofthemotioninthetightershot(youhavetoexperimenttofindoutexactlywheretocutforthesmoothestresultsitdependsontheshots).

Thereareanumberofwaystocutfromawideshottoatightershotsmoothly:

PleaseallowtheanimatedGIFimagessometimetoloadproperly

1.Cuttingonaction

ThefollowingexampleistakenfromafilmIdirectedandedited:

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2a.Cuttingoncrossframemovement:therevealshot

ThefollowingexampleistakenfromamusicvideoIdirectedandedited:

2b.Cuttingoncrossframemovement:therevealshotAsecondexample




3.Cuttingtoemptyframeandlettingsubjectcomein


4.Cuttingtosecondaryactionfollowedbytilting/panningtomainsubject




5.Cuttingonanemphaticpartofdialogue


IwasabletomakethecutsshownabovebecauseIknewIwasgoingtomakethosecutslongbeforeIshottheprojects,anddirectedthescenesaccordingly.Noneofitwasaluckyaccident.

PleasenotethatGIFanimationsarenotassmoothaspropervideo.MyhopehereisthattheGIFanimationsabovegiveyouaclearideaofsomefilmeditingtechniquesmuchmoreeffectivethanexplainingwithwords!

Avoidingjumpcuts

Ifyoudonotcutonactionandthetwoshotsarealongthesamevisualaxis,theresultisajumpcut.Jumpcutsarejarringanddisconcerting,



andprettymuchunacceptable,unlessthatistheeffectyouwantfornarrativereasons.StevenSpielbergsometimesusesjumpcutstopunctuatethedramaofascene,andhealwaysusesthetechniquemasterfully.AnexampleisthesceneinwhichCarlHanrattyseesFrankAbagnalesphotointheschoolyearbookinCatchMeIfYouCan.AnotherexampleisthegasstationsceneinDuel.

Jumpcutscanalsobeusedtocompresstime(SpielbergusedthistechniqueinSchindlersList,inthesceneinwhichSchindlerischoosinghisfuturesecretarywhilehisnewofficeisbeingpainted),butagain,itisaveryspecificlookandthedirectormustplanthesceneverydeliberatelytomakeitwork.

Therewillnotbeajumpcutifyou:

a)cutonaction,asinexamples1and4above,or

b)cuttoanemptyframeandletthesubjectcomein,asinexample3above,or

c)cutfromoneshottothetightershotwhilesomethingismovingacrosstheframe,asinexamples2aand2babove,or

d)cutfromoneangletoanotheranglethatisrotationallyatleast20degreesawayfromthefirstone,or

e)cuttoanothershotandthenbacktothefirstshot,orashotofsomethingelse.

Themiddleshotin(e)isknownasacutaway.Youshouldshootplentyofcutaways,especiallyforinterviewsanddocumentaries,whereyouarenotabletodirectthingspreciselyandneedmoreinsuranceshotsforpostproduction.Cutawayscanbeashotoftheinterviewernodding,orashotofaglassofwateranythingthatyoucancutto.CutawaysarealsoknownasBrollshots.



Moreonjumpcuts:bearinmindthattheydontonlyhappenwhencuttingalongavisualaxiswithoutactionifyoucutfromoneshottoanothershotthatisperpendiculartoitandinwhichthesubjectisframedinexactlythesameway,thatsajumpcutperhapsanevenmoreirritatingonethanwhenyoucutfromawideshottoacloseupwithnoaction.Forexample,ifyoucutfromafrontalmediumshottoamediumshotthatisframedfromtheactorsside,thatsajumpcut,eventhoughthereisanangulardifferenceofmorethan20degreesbetweenthetwoshots(see[b]above).Avoiditliketheplagueunlessyouareseekingaspecificeffectandaresureofhowtheaudiencewillperceiveit,whichisnotalwayseasytopredict.

Rememberthatjumpcutsareperfectlyacceptableinmusicvideos.Thehumanbrainseemsnottofindjumpcutsdisconcertinginmusicvideos,whichisprettyinteresting.

Youshouldalsobearinmindthatittakesapproximately2filmframes(1/12 ofasecond)forthehumangazetoswitchfromonesideofthescreentotheother.Youshouldallowforthiswhencuttingyourproject.

Wheneditingsoundandpicture,youshouldstaggerthecuts.ThismeansNOTaligningthevideoandaudiocutstheyshouldbeseparatedbyatleastasecond.Ifthecutsarealigned,thechangeinbackgroundnoisewhenyoucutfromonesoundcliptotheotherwillbesimultaneouswiththevisualcutthisbreakstheillusionofcontinuityandwillmakeyourprojectlookamateurish.

Thefollowingdiagramillustratesthistechnique:

Shootingavarietyofanglesandeditingthemtogethersmoothlyenhancesthecinematicillusion,aneffectknownassuperiorcontinuity.

Thebigimplicationhereisthatyoumusttakealloftheseeditingissuesintoaccountwhenyouproduceyourshotlist.Adirectorsweaknessesbecomepainfullyobviouswhenthetimecomestocutthemovietogether

th



smoothly.

Preparingfortheeditbystudyingandanalyzingeverytakeyoushot

Theeditingprocessalwaysbeginsinthesamewayforme:IsitdownwithanotepadandpenandIwatcheverysingletakefilmedduringprincipalphotography.

AsIwatchthetakes,Imakenotesforeachtake,makingbriefnotesonthecamerawork,performanceandotherrelevantdetails,suchasextraneousnoises.

Forexample,onetakeofagivenshotmighthaveaperfectcameramovebutweakperformances,orviceversa.

Ofcourseinprincipleyouwanttofindthetakethatisthebestineveryrespect,butthisisnotalwayspossible.

Particularlyforverylongshots,theperformancemightvaryinquality,ortheremightbeacameraworkweaknessatsomepointinthetake.

Usuallynoneofthisasaproblem,andforthepurposeofassemblingthebestpossiblesequence,Itypicallyusedifferentpartsofdifferenttakesforanygivenshot.Itworksverywell.

Thisonlybecomesimpossiblewhenashotissupposedtobeleftuncut:inthatcaseyoureallyhavetoensurethatitisperfectfrombeginningtoendduringprincipalphotography.

Inanycase,ensuringthatyouhaveatleastonetakeinwhichboththeperformancesandthecameraworkaregoodisoneoftheessentialdirectingskillsthatyoushouldmaster.

Bytheendofthisprocessofreviewingthefootage,IhaveasetofveryhelpfulnotesthatIuseintheactualediting.

Forexample,whenIgettoaparticularshotinasequence,byreferringtomynotes,Iknowwhichtakehasthebestcameramove,whichtakehasthebestperformance,andideallywhichtakehasagoodcompromiseofboth.Thismakestheeditingprocessmoreefficient,becauseIthoroughlyinvestigatedandanalyzedalltakesbeforehand.



Iftheprojectyouareeditingwasdirectedbysomeoneelse,studyingallthetakesandfamiliarizingwiththemthoroughlyisevenmoreimportant.Youwonthaveaclueofwhatthedirectordidorwhattheprojectisaboutuntilyouwatchalltherawfootageatleastonce.

Inprinciplethesenotescouldbemadeduringtheshoot,butinpracticethereisntenoughtimeorperspectivetodothisinthepressurecookerthatisprincipalphotography.Thisanalysisofthefootagecanonlybedonewithpeaceandquiet,andtheperfecttimetodoitisbeforeyouactuallystartassemblingtheprojectonthetimeline.

Howtolearnmovieeditingandbecomeahighlycompetenteditor:aquestionfromareader

Whatdoesittaketobeagoodeditor,bearinginmindthateditingshouldnotbetakenforgranted?

Myanswer:

Ah,oneofmyfavoritetopics!

Iagreewiththevitalimportanceofeditingitistheveryheartofmoviemaking.Thisiswhyeveryseriousdirectormustalsobecomeamasterfilmeditor.Iamadirectorwhoalwayseditshisownwork,andIlearnedtheartoffilmeditingconcomitantlywithlearninghowtodirect.Irecommendthispathtoeveryfilmmaker,becauseunderstandingeditingmakesyouamuchbetterdirector,andeditingthestuffyoudirectdoesproducesignificantlybetterresultsinthecompletedproject.Itsimplygivesyouamuchmorecomprehensiveandcoherentvision.

Itisnotenoughtounderstandfilmediting:youmustalsopractice,justasyoucannotbecomeagoodviolinplayerjustbyreadingaboutit.

HereishowIlearnedfilmediting:

1.IreadGrammaroftheFilmLanguage multipletimesthemostusefulfilmmakingbookIhaveeverread!

2.IwatchedmyfavoritefilmsandspottedthetechniquesIreadaboutinGrammarofthefilmlanguage.Watchingafilmwiththesound



turnedoffisexceptionallyinstructive,becauseyouwillnoticealotmoreabouttheeditingwhenyouarenotdistractedbythedialogue.Istronglyrecommendthis!

3.IwentbacktoGrammarofthefilmlanguageand,havingstudiedtheeditingofmyfavoritefilms,Ilearnedevenmorefromthebook.

4.Ithenwatchedmyfavoritefilmsagain,andspottededitingtechniquesthatIhadnotspottedthefirsttime.Irepeatedthisprocessseveraltimes.

5.Ishotroughpracticesequenceswithmycamcorderandtheneditedthem.

6.Idirected,shotANDeditedmyfirstproject,whichwasa30minutefilm.Directingandeditingyourownprojectswillteachyousomuchaboutfilmmakingthatyouwillabsolutelyvaporizeotherfilmmakerswhodontunderstandeditingguaranteed!BythetimeIcompletedmyfirstproject,Iknew90%ofthefilmeditingIknownow,becauseIpreparedalotandtookitVERYseriously.Onceitclicks,youresortedforlife(butdontstopgrowing!).

ThatshowIdiditthereisnomagictoit,justlotsofthought,studyandpractice.Thepracticalexperiencereallyisessentialstudyingthetheoryisnotenough.

Ihopethishelps,anddokeepmepostedonyourprogress!

Movieeditingresources

AmericanCinemaEditors

CanadianCinemaEditors

AustralianScreenEditorsGuild

GuildofBritishFilmandTelevisionEditors



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July26,2010at1:57pm

July31,2010at12:41pm

March18,2011at4:30pm

Taggedwith direct ing ed it ing

27thoughtsonMovieeditingtechniquesWithprettypictures!

LaykouThisisgreat,thankyou..Ivegotjustonequestion:Yousaid,soundandpicturemustbeseparatedbyatleastasecondWhichonehastocomefirst?Pictureandthansound?

GreetingsfromSlovakia.

videofilmmakerThereisnohardandfastrule:youneedtoexperimentanduseyourjudgement.

Bestwishes!

ShadiBestYourpointersaresogood.Imaprostillphotog,andIknowstills&lightingbackandforth.Iappreciatethewayyoutaketechnical

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March19,2011at10:40am

May28,2012at6:49pm

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July21,2012at12:00am

July21,2012at7:31am

August14,2012at12:37pm



aspectsthatareonlysubconsciouslynotedandexplainthereasoningbehindit.

Icouldnevertechnicallyunderstandwhyvideolookedlikevideo,butnowIknow!

videofilmmakerManythanksforthekindwords,ShadiImdelightedtohearthatmyworkhasbeenofassistancetoyou!

stankillertips.

videofilmmakerThankyou,Stan!

PopescuVerygoodfilmeditingtips!ThankYouverymuchforthepreciousadvice!

videofilmmakerYouareverywelcome!Imgladyoufoundituseful

PrasenjitsinghIamavideoeditor.IstudiedafewbooksoneditingincludingINTHEBLINKOFANEYE,THEARTandSCIENCEOFFILMEDITING.ButIoftenrealizedthatIhavestillnotgottheanswerforwhichIkeptpurchasingthesegoodbooks.NowwhenIfinishedyournotesIhaverealizedthatthesearethethingsIreallywantedtoknow.Thankyouverymuch.Yournotesarereallyworthy.

PrasenjitsinghPleaseelaborateonthisifpossible:Ittakesapproximately2filmframes(1/12thofasecond)forthehumangazetoswitchfromonesideofthescreentotheother.

Thankyou.

videofilmmakerHiPrasenjit,



August21,2012at5:43am

August21,2012at7:43am

February17,2013at11:17pm

Imgladyoufoundthispostsouseful!

Withregardtoyourquestion,whatImeantisthis:ifyouarelookingattheleftofthescreeninoneshotanditcutstoanothershotinwhichthemainsubjectisontherightoftheframe,ittakesthehumaneyeapproximatelytwoframesworthoftimetoswitchthegazefromthelefttotheright.

Whydoesthismatter?Well,itmeansthatwhenwearelookingatonesideoftheframewhichofcoursehappensallthetimeinwellframedshotsanditthencutstoashotinwhichtheactionishappeningontheotherside,theeditormustbearinmindthatwehavea2frameblindtimewindowinwhichwedonotseewhatishappeningontheothersideoftheframe.

Thismayormaynotrequirea2frameadjustmenttothecut,butitisworthbearinginmind.Foranygivencut,theonlywaytofindoutifitworksistotestit.Ifitsnotsmoothenough,adjustbyoneortwoframesandseeifitsbetter.Thisisthejoyofediting!

Obviouslythe2framedelaydescribedabovetendstobemorecriticalwhentheprojectwasshotinthe2.35:1aspectratio(Cinemascope).

Ihopethisclarifiestheissue!

srikanthrajubitlingYouaremyfilmschool.Iamverygratefultoyou.Ilearnalotofthingsdailyfromyouremails.IusedtofeellowthatIamnotabletoleavemyjobtostartworkingasanassistantdirectororgotoafilmschool.ButnowIlearnmanythingsandpracticewithshortfilms.

Thanksalot.

videofilmmakerThanksforthekindwords,Srikanth.

Donotbesorrythatyouareunabletoattendfilmschool:itisanappallingwasteoftime.

Keepdevelopingyourskillsandbuildingyourreelthatshowitsdone!

Innocent



February18,2013at5:08am

June24,2013at3:48pm

July1,2013at2:41am

October7,2013at11:27pm



Yourpointsaresogood.Sotellme,doIhavetohavemorethanonecameraonsettomakeforexampleCuttingonactionstylepossible?

LAvideoFilmmakerNo,youcandoitwithasinglecamera,makingthesmoothcutwithtwodifferentshotsfilmedatdifferenttimes.ThepointhereisthatitisthedirectorsresponsibilitytoensurethattheactioninthedifferentshotsmatcheswellthisiswhyIkeepsayingthatifyouwanttobeatopnotchdirector,youmustmastertheartoffilmediting.

Obviouslyshootingwithmultiplecamerasmakesiteasier,butdirectorsmustlearntheskillsrequiredtoachievethesameresultwithasinglecamera.Youwillnotregretdevelopingtheseskills.

rahulAmazingtipsthanku..aquestion..Canweusesomesortofwipesorflashestoshortenadialoguethatmighthavesomeboringlineswedontwanttokeepifsokindlyexplainhow..AlsocanyouguidewhereIcanreadmoreonthesame.

Rajkamalpatilcanigettipshowtoworkinfrontofcameraorhowtoactinfrontofcamera..iwanttoimprovemyactingskillssoineedurhelp..bro

hadishafieheyijustgotinterestedinfilmmakingfirstiwantedtodoarmybutichangedmymindandiloveeditingfilmsandcanuhelpmeout.meandmyfriendswemadeadocoandgotintothisfestivalandcamefirstsoiwannadomorefilmmakingineedalotofhelp.

ShankarWonderfulinformation.Havejuststartedwithfilmmaking.Thankyouverymuchforpostingthis.Itreallymeansalottomanylikeme.Thegifimagesareveryusefulinbetterunderstanding.Keepgivingusmore.Bestwishes.

LAvideoFilmmakerThanks!



October23,2013at6:14am

November1,2013at8:13pm

November2,2013at6:10am

HarshSaraiyaheyreallylovedyourblog.ihaveworkedasanassistanteditorforamovieandiwanttobecomeaFilmeditor.Canyousuggestsometipsoncuttingatraileroranyintensescene?

SimonWilliamsWhatagreatresourceyouhaveprovidedhereforbuddingfilmmakers.Iteachabasicintroductiontofilmmakingcourseatmiddleschoollevel(1013yearolds),andIfoundyourhintsonTVcommercialfilmingparticularlyinterestingasIamthinkingofintroducingaunitonthisnextyear(sofarwehavebeenfocussedonfilmingnarratives).

WeuseiMovietoteachthekidsediting,andiMovie,ofcourse,hasafewlimitations.LcutsandJcutsofthesortyoureferredtoinyoureditingpagearequitetrickyforkidstomanageforexample.Wealsodonthavealotoftimetodomultipletakes,sowetendtofilminsteadwith3or4camerasfocussedondifferentactionorcharacters(TVstyle).Thisgivesthekidssufficienteditingmaterialformanyofthenormaleditingtechniquesyououtlines.ItalsomeansthatratherthanusingLorJcuts,Icanhavethemusetheaudioshotsfromonecamerathroughout,effectivelyeditinginalternativeshotsascutaways.

Thanksforallyouworkonthesite,andthegifanimationsareperfectfordemonstratingyourexplanations.

Cheers

Simon

LAvideoFilmmakerHiSimon,

Thanksforthekindwordsandfortakingthetimetoprovidefeedback.Imgladyoufindmyworkhelpfulthereismoreinthepipeline.

Asateacheryoumighthavespecialinterestinwatchingthefilmmakingpracticevideopostedbyayoungfilmmaker.Improudofthisyoungmansworkethic!

KeepmepostedonhowyourTVspotdirectingunitgoes.

Thanksforfollowingmywork!

Cheers,

Ed



December1,2013at1:23pm

December3,2013at1:01pm

March5,2014at7:09am


KiranThisisawesome!Youvereallycompiledagreatlistofpointersandtipshere.Ivebeeneditingforanumberofyearsandthisisstillagreatreminderofsomeofthemostimportanttechniquesandrules.Hopefullysomebuddingfilmmakers/editorswillfindthisvaluableresourceaswell.Cheers!

LAvideoFilmmakerThanks,Kiran!Welcometomywebsite.

Ed

JacobIamdoingaschoolprojectandIwaswonderingyourname.Ineeditformyworkscited

ChristineGreattipspresentedinaveryclearway!Nicearticle!

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Movie Editing Techniques - With Pretty Pictures!

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