Unit 21 Film Editing

Colour Key

 

-Green: This is improvements to my work whether that is added information or spelling mistakes.

Black: This is the original work before improvements.

Red: Peer assessments.  

Pink: Teacher Marking

Required for Unit 21

History of Editing

The popplet here shows what I will need to include for this unit. It involves the history of editing, famous editors and a timeline of when they worked and what they done to make editing what it is today. I will also need to show some editing techniques used in films today and how they have used it successfully and what effect is has had on the audience. Furthermore, I will need to show the techniques I used for my trailer, and then analyse them to explain why I used them and how have they affected the outcome of the trailer. 

The earliest type of editing was in the 1890's when the first motion cameras were invented.

Montage- Was invented by Lev Kuleshov, a Russian, who got loads of different film clips and put them into one film called 'Montage'.

CinematographeWas invented by two brothers called 'Lumiere Brothers' in 1895 it was a device that was a three in one it contained recording, capturing and projected motion in pictures.

Edwin S. Porter- Came along and showed us that films can be cut instead of one long film in 1901. He also used footage to tell a different story, which was unrelated to the to the original footage.

D.W Griffith's- His first film "For Love of Gold", 1908, featured the first ever continuity cut. In the 1915 film "The Birth of a Nation",he used camera techniques that include "Panoramic long shots, Still Shots, Cross-Cutting and Panning Shots, These techniques are still used in films today.

History of Editing Timeline

Different types of Editing

Editing- Selecting and joining shots together to create a finished film.

Cut- Visual type of of editing where one shot is instantly replaced on a screen by another shot. Whilst editing, you use the cut type when you want a scene to end before an important scene or action occurs. This is to give the audience some cliffhangers while watching films, as the scene has been quickly cut to another scene. 

Continuity Editing-  Editing that creates tension through shots. This builds up action within the film but also within the audience making them question what will happen to each of the individual characters. This creates smooth continuous action shots, keeping the audience interested. 

Non-Continuity Editing- Shots are mismatched to disrupt the time in the film. This draws the audience in, it also disturbs the illusion of reality (using flashbacks).

Cross-Cut- It starts with one scene then works backwards to a scene that was not shown to the audience. A cross-cut would be used when two characters are approaching one another for example: one character is walking down a street to get to a certain location, whereas, the other character is heading towards the character opposite them. This is usually used when the film is in a transition between 1st and 3rd person.

Dissolve- Gradual scene transition, the editor overlaps one scene with another. It makes the scene more smoother. It also used when the film following the storyline in a certain sequence (Linear or non-linear).

Errors of Continuity- Disrupts the flow of the scene/failing to match action or props. The plot is shown to the viewer over a matter of time throughout the film, this means that all the way through the film, the audience is left guessing about what is going to happen next.

Eyeline Match- Matching eye line from two or more characters. This is usually used when someone is being interrogated by someone else, this creates tension in the audience because the camera is continuously cutting from one person to another quickly. An example of a film that uses the eyeline match is 'Shutter Island', this is used when  'Teddy Daniels' (Leonardo DiCaprio) is interrogating a criminal, to show the tension between one another the eyeline match is used to show both characters body language and emotion during the scene. 

Fade- Visual transition between shots or scenes that appear on screen. Fade is normally used when someone is having a dream or a flashback, this creates suspense in the audience as something may be revealed to them regarding the future, this could mean in a horror film that the killer is revealed in the middle as someone either has a dream or flashback of being with the killer.

Jump Cut- Jumping between scenes i.e. people before an attack, then the aftermath of the attack, then jumping back into the attack. This is effective in films as it is builds tension but also reveals to the audience who lives and who dies. Jump cuts are effective in films such as: 'Pulp Fiction' where it starts at the middle, then goes back to the start and then goes to the end and so on. 

Shot-Reverse-Shot- People having a conversation, showing each person in chat individually, when one person speaks the camera will be on them and then it will go onto the other person speaking. The Hunger Games is a good example of Shot-Reverse-Shot. This is shown when the superior person is speaking and the less superior people are watching them and listening to them closely. 

Linear- In order of the actions i.e. It starts at the beginning, goes to the middle and then comes the end. You start at the beginning when you wake up, the middle is when you have lunch and the end is when you have dinner and then go to sleep. 

Non-Linear- This is not in order of how it should be i.e. it could start at the middle, go to the end and then it ends at the start. It is similar to Jump cut in a way where it starts at one scene then jumps to a scene before the event will happen then will jump back to before or during the event. 

The video above is of Match Cuts. A match cut is where something cuts from one shot to another to match up with the action or the subject which is shown. 

Cross-Cutting is normally used to show action that are happening at the same time. In cross-cuts, the camera will normally cut away from action to action. Using a cross-cut may create suspense by constantly switching between the action scenes. 

A jump cut is where a scene is filmed from the same camera angle, but the scene jumps forward in time to show something happening in the scene. For example, in the video above, 'Breathless' the scene is of someone in a car, every so often there is a jump cut which shows the length of the journey, the jump cut is also used to show the character at different locations.

In The Hunger Games, a shot-reverse-shot is used to show two characters speaking to one another, this is often to show their facial expressions and their body language. Because this is used, this gives the audience a strong feeling that the two characters have a close bond to one another.  

Comparison of two editing techniques used in different films

Hot Fuzz (Drama, 2007)

In this clip of Hot Fuzz, Nicholas is moving to a place in the countryside called 'Sandford', this is shown in the film by jump shots, this is portrayed by cuts to blackness, then changing the scene so the character starts in a taxi, it then goes to a shot of the taxi light going off before the black screen appears and the taxi is heard going off. Another example of this is when the character is on a train, then it goes to another black screen in which the train is heard but nothing is on screen. When the character is in another taxi heading to his new home, the music is calm and slow to show that they are now in the countryside after they moved from London. 

To cut down the journey in the film, it has been edited to have jump cuts to show the length of the journey, for example, Nicholas is seen at a train station before he is next seen waiting for a taxi. Then, to continue to show his journey, the is a jump cut to different stages of the taxi journey. One of the jump cuts, shows Nicholas looking out of the window, as he does there is a flash of thunder, this suggests that he is furious about his moving from the city to the countryside village of Sandford and therefore, will be angry and rude towards the villagers of Sandford. At the end of the scene, Nicholas gets out of the taxi with all of his belongings, the taxi leaves and then it starts raining. Because he has no clue where he is going, Nicholas is left stranded in what he thinks is the middle of nowhere, he therefore gets drenched in rain, which shows that his time in Sandford will not be pleasant.

The Karate Kid (Drama-Sport, 2010)

In Karate Kid (2010), when the kid goes to to the maintenance guy, he starts showing off in front of him. Then there is jump cuts between the kid and the maintenance guy. There is also some scenes that involve shot-reverse-shot. This is effective as it is showing the kids actions and movement. It is also showing the audience what the maintenance guy is doing at the moment when the kid is showing of his skills. 

However, unlike Hot Fuzz when there is travel the screen shows the character travelling, followed by a black screen with the sound, when travel occurs in the Karate Kid, it is shown to represent what type of country they are in and how travelling in that country is different to other countries, i.e. is the route long, is it busy or is it quiet (Is it in the Countryside or an Urban area). Near the end of the scene there is a passage of time, where the kid goes home after the first training session, where he puts his practise into action when he hangs his jacket up, it then goes to a shot of him training on a different day with different weather, which shows the kid has spent his days training to become one of the best in the country or the world. Because the Karate Kid is set in China, the difference between urban and rural is shown through the editing. The urban scenes are fast paced, whereas, the rural scenes are quite slow, the urban scenes also have more noises to show that travelling is happening. Because the rural areas are quiet, this shows that only the poor people are in the countryside, as they only want to find work.

Guardians of The Galaxy (Fantasy, 2014)

In Guardians of The Galaxy, 2014, visual effects were shown in the film by filming scenes with Rocket Raccoon and Groot, where they have to be edited in to scene that is shown in the film. Another example of this is when the background is in space, where it is originally filmed in front of a green screen. This allows the film to be edited so the background is in space.  

The editing techniques used in the film are used when there is an important scene, for example: when there is a fight scene the editing will show the two opponents then it will show the fight with dramatic music which builds tension in the audience. The film is a non-linear order as it starts in the past, it then cuts to either the present day or the future. Throughout the film it sometimes cuts back to the past, before jumping back to the present day. The filmmaker has made the film this way to show the past that the characters had and the reason they do what they do in the future (Fight evil/protect Earth). Although the film only shows the past through the view from the only human in 'The Guardians' we are also told from the other characters, who are from all over the galaxy, what their past was like, how they lived and what they did. An editing technique used in the film was cosmic landscapes. This meant filming a scene in front of a green screen before editing the background into space where there is the sun, asteroids and stars. Furthermore, during a scene where a prop used was meant to be a purple stone in between two stones, it was filmed with the stone being a dull red before editing the stone and its surroundings to fit into what it is actually meant to look like i.e the stone becoming purple, with it having a purple luminous outline, signifying that it may have some importance in the film.   

Back to the Future (Science -Fiction, 1985)

In Back to the Future, 1985, editing techniques are shown throughout the film. For example, an editing technique is used when they are going either back in time or going into the future. This is to show the transition that they are going through i.e. from present day to the past or present day to the future.

Editing techniques are also shown throughout the film, when a significant moment takes place in either the past or present that leads to another important incident in the future. Back to the future is set in a non -linear order, this is because it starts in present day, it then goes to the past or future, subsequently ending back in present day. The filmmaker has used flashbacks to show what the characters did in the past and the future, this was successful as it showed the audience how the characters lived in the past and future. The filmmaker used flashbacks throughout the film to show the audience why the characters want to go to the future and how it will affect their family. The editing techniques used show the audience that the film is a science-fiction film because during the film where editing was needed special effects have been added, one of the editing special effects used is when the two main characters are going through time, the background editing shows both characters and the car that they are in flying through the years to get to a certain time period in the future. Subsequently, during a scene where the car is attached to a wire above it, where the car begins to start moving until it reaches a substantial amount of speed before the car disappears into space, after the cars disappears there is two small line fires where the car wheels were and because the car got so much speed it caused a fire in the road, as shown in the image above. 

Inter-Cuts

The video above is about inter-cuts. Inter-cuts are used when you want to show the setting when there is speaking. For example, for the drama film called 'Released' we will use intercuts when the kids are walking to school having a chat. Instead of showing the kids talking about school, we will show the school itself. We can also use intercuts in our drama, when some of the characters are talking to one another.

This was edited to show different moments in the scene, when the characters are speaking to each other there is something different on the screen, an example of this is when one of the characters is on the phone to someone, the screen is black throughout most of the conversation, but when one of the characters says "Calor", the screen then shows a poster that relates to "Calor". 

Continuity

Here I have edited a video to show continuity editing. The first shot is of the character walking up of the stairs from behind the character, which shows his legs before the rest of his body is revealed. The next shot is from the top of the stairs where this time the audience can see the entire body of the character, because the first shot shows stairs, the audience will automatically think that the scene will include stairs. 

 

The second shot is now at the top of the stairs, the character is then seen to be continuing up the stairs. Furthermore, the camera now gives a clear shot of the character, which gives the audience a better understanding of who the character is. As well as showing the character, the camera also shows the type of environment that they are in, this also gives the audience the understanding of the environment as well as connecting the character to the environment.

What is Continuity?

Continuity editing is where everything has to be the same throughout the film, without any changes. For example, if someone picks a cup up with their right hand, and then later on the cup is in their left hand, they have broken continuity. The audience will be able to notice transitions between shots, it also keeps a smooth continuous action, helping the audience keep interest. 

Non-Continuity

This is an experiment of non-continuity editing. The first shot is from the side of two people walking along a path. The use of non-continuity here will break the scene up into two different sections. 

The first shot is of two people walking along a path, the camera is tracking their movement along the path, a page split is used to keep the audience interested.

 

After the page split is used the people walking are now in a wooded setting. To show the non-continuity the split was used to signify that time has been sped up to get to a different location. A split could also mean that the people walking are about to be seperated, the separation can show something is about to happen to them. 

What is Non-Continuity?

Non-Continuity is where something is mismatched to uneven the flow to the shots. This makes the audience confused because a shot is not where it should be. It may mean the audience have to have an emotional response to the shot. If someone is walking in a building, and then it shows them being where their meant to be in that building then non-continuity has been used.

30 Second Montage of Film Editing

The image here is showing a camera technique that I used in my 30 second montage it is a match cut. In this case, the two people who are the front of screen are heading towards a forest, where it will cut to the two people, who will continue walking on into the next shot/scene. 

 

Because the screen is white, this shows that the two people are happy. This suggests that there is no evil or mystery in this scene, which shows that evil/mystery only occur in certain scenes or locations.

The film editing technique used above is a wipe edit. As seen in the image above, a quarter of the screen is covered by a black screen, which subsequently, is the wipe taking place, the black screen will eventually cover the entire screen. The wipe edit maybe used to cover something up, this could be another person standing/walking behind the two people who are shown in the shot.

 

Here I have used the wipe edit, to begin. The right side of the screen is in white, which shows that the two people are happy. Where as, the other side of the screen is black, which therefore, suggests that the two people walking are being followed by something, this may create a sense of mystery in the audience. Having one side white and the other side black, this creates tension within the audience as they are trying to decide whether the mystery involves both of the people walking or whether one of the two people is evil and will turn on the other. 

Here the next editing technique I used is called an Additive Dissolve. As seen in the image above, the video playing in the background will slowly be blackened out by the additive dissolve. When the screen goes black after showing a shot of the video, the blackness creates suspense within the audience. 

 

Because the screen is black, this tells the audience that someone is going to be in grief of something bad that will happen, and therefore, will be living with fear. It also creates tension of evil and mystery within the viewers as they will then realise that all the blackness that occurs in the trailer will lead to a significant event, verifying that there is evil and mystery in the world, and it can happen to anyone.

In the image above, the editing technique I used is a Dip to Black. In the image above, I have used it to start of the scene, therefore, the scene starts with a black screen, before the video in the background becomes more and more visible to the viewer. The black screen also creates tension within in the audience, as something important maybe coming up, and this is shown by the use of the black screen and the quick cuts. 

 

The use of black may also be used to present mystery. This may give the audience a suspicion that something may happen to the two people walking, therefore, giving a mystery tension to the viewers. It can also give the audience a feeling that the two people walking are fearing something.  Therefore, there is more suspense within the audience as something is about to happen.

The film editing technique used in the image above is a Film Dissolve. As the scene gets towards the end, the film dissolve begins to blackout the scene, leading to the scene being "Dissolved" out, this is to stop any spoilers from happening. The dissolve could also work with something significant happening i.e. the murderer walking past the victims, but because this would be spoiling the film, the dissolve, blackens out when the murder walks past and brightens up when the murderer is out of the shot.

 

Because the screen is turning black, this shows that there is mystery in the scene. This creates tension in the audience as something is about to happen to the two people walking. This allows the audience to get involved the trailer and the film, as they are trying to solve the mystery. Because there is a lack of colours, the audience are given the impression that the trailer and film is quite dark and gritty. 

The editing technique used above is a Split. As the scene continues the split will gradually cover the screen, as seen in the image above. The split is useful as it could close something important or focus on a certain character, as a  significant moment might be about to happen to them. 

 

The use of the black split bars give the audience the tension of the mystery. The sense of mystery may also come from the fog in the background. The fog can also be shown as happiness as it is white and therefore, the black bars give the sense of mystery. The black bars can also represent grief, either one or both of the people walking may have experienced grief or they may be about to. 

The film editing technique used here is a Iris. I have used the Iris to start a scene. The scene Iris opens the scene, by creating a diamond. I have used the Iris to focus on the two people who are walking together, which may signify that they are the main characters.

 

Because the Iris is black, this may show that there is a mystery in the scene. This could also be seen to show the presence of fear in the scene. This gives the audience the suspicion that the two people are being scared by something or someone. In the trailer, the colour green is shown, therefore, this gives the audience the sense of peace, this may mean the people walking are safe, this also gives the audience a sense of relief. 

The editing technique used here is a Clock. The video in the background is opened up by the clock moving around the screen. The use of the Clock, may tell the audience that the two people may have a certain amount of time, before something significant happens to them.

 

The black can show that there is a menace near the people walking. It can also be used to hide something or someone. Furthermore, some people are scared of the dark, so the black could be used to scare people. Nevertheless, because there is some green in the background, this shows that there is peace in the scene, potentially meaning that either one or both of the people walking are safe. In the trailer, the colour green is shown, therefore, showing that audience that there is peace in the scene and that the people walking are not facing any problems. 

The editing technique used here is a Wedge. As seen in the image above, the bottom of the screen is covered by a black wedge. It starts of with the entire screen being blacked out, before gradually, making it's way to the bottom of the screen. 

 

The blackness from the wedge suggests that there is a absence of light from the scene. This could show that there is a dark scene coming up. Furthermore, the black can also suggest that there is grief in the scene, this could mean that either of the people walking have had grief in the past or they are about to have grief. Because the scene shows some green, this gives the viewer a feeling of reassurance that nothing is going to happen to the two people walking. Because of the use of colours which are used in the trailer, the trailer may involve the audience, for example, because the colour green can be seen in the trailer, this may create the sense of peace within the audience. 

The image above shows one of the actors, who are starring in the film. An advantage of this maybe to cut something that might spoil the rest of the trailer or even the film. It is also used to build tension in the audience because something may occur, which will subsequently ruin the rest of the trailer and possibly even the film.

The film editing technique used here is a Pinwheel. This spins around, doing so it reveals the video. In the image above, the pinwheel is nearing the end, this is shown by size of the video, but also the size of the pinwheel.

 

Because the Pinwheel is black, this tells the audience that there is a mystery near the two people walking. Furthermore, the black bars could also show fear, which could be from the two people walking, as they might be entering a place where they have never been before. Because there is some white showing, this may mean that the people walking are happy. However, the white could also show unfriendliness, this could be aimed towards the people walking, which adds to the mystery created from the black pinwheel bars. 

Here, I have used the editing technique Gradient. I have used the gradient to blacken out the video. In the image above, the gradient is covering half the screen, therefore, the video is half covered. A gradient may also be useful in covering someone or something, and allow the audience to focus on the image that is being shown. 

 

The use of the gradient is to gradually blacken the screen, which gives suspense within the audience, as the quick fade to black suggests that mystery is near the two people. This creates the image that something is happening around the people walking, it may also mean that the one or both of the people walking might be mysterious. Therefore, this may mean that audience are apart of the mystery as they are trying to solve it as the trailer continues. This may also mean that the audience are dragged into watching the film as they want to find out what the mystery was and who it involved.   

The image above shows the director's name. This could also be used to cut something important in the trailer i.e. the victims interacting with the murderer.

The editing technique used in the image above is a CheckerBoard. As seen in the image above, the CheckerBoard, has some squares that are black and some which are showing the video. 

 

The use of black and white gives the viewer the image that there is mystery and grief in the scene, but there is also happiness in the scene. Because there is black squares and white squares this may reveal to the viewers that there is a chance that the people have faced grief or they may be about to face grief. The black squares make the audience feel that something is serious is about to occur in the trailer, and subsequently, the people walking.

The film editing technique used in the image above is Barn Doors. In the middle of the screen, the Barn Doors, are gradually moving outwards, covering the video, leading to the screen becoming black. The Barn Doors, are covering one of the people who are walking, which may suggest that the person that is not shown is not real or something has happened to them. 

 

Because the door is black, this may show that there is mystery in the scene or either of the people walking are mysterious. The black can also represent grief, this may show that the two people walking have experienced grief or they are about to, therefore, meaning that something is about to happen to them, which will subsequently, change both of their lives forever. Because there is a lack of white in the scene, this might be seen as a sign of unfriendliness, meaning that something is watching them and it is not looking to befriend them. Because the black signifies unfriendliness, this may drag the audience into wanting to watch the film, because they were intrigued by the colours used in the trailer, and therefore, want to watch the film, so that they can solve the mystery that they saw in the trailer.    

The editing technique used above is a Band Wipe. The screen is gradually being covered by the band wipe. In the image above, only one of the two characters is shown, this may mean that something is about to happen to the character that is not being shown, and that the person that is shown, will potentially live.

 

With the majority of the screen being covered by blackness, this creates the sense that the two people walking are either nearing fear or even mystery. Therefore suggesting that something is about to happen to the two people walking, and it therefore, is not likely to be nice. However, the because there is the slightest glimpse of white, this may show that there is small chance of hope for either one or both of the people walking. While watching the film trailer, the audience may feel a sense of fear, because of the colours which have been used, furthermore, they may also try and solve the mystery that is in the trailer, because this is also shown to the audience by the colours which have been used, this may mean that the audience become involved in the mystery.

In the image above, I have started to add sound to the trailer. The music fits well into the genre of the trailer, as it builds tension within the viewer, the music clip will play throughout the trailer. However, I may add a more upbeat song to the trailer, to try and create more suspense in the trailer. Subsequently, because the music has not been overlapped yet, this may mean that the music may not be suspenseful, and will not therefore, have the audience on the edge of their seat. In the trailer, there are some moments where the music becomes more upbeat, showing that there is something serious about to happen or is happening, however, when the music is slow, this shows that nothing significant is happening at that particular moment in the trailer.  

For the image above, I have overlapped music into the background, this is to give the film trailer more depth into what type of genre it is. Because there is some upbeat moments in the music, therefore making the viewer want to watch the film when it is released because it grips them in to wanting to watch more to see what happens to the characters. Because I overlapped the music, I hope to create suspense in the audience, this may mean that the audience who are watching may be on the edge of their seat, as they are being drawn in by the music. This may also be seen to show a significant event occuring in the trailer, as the music is building up something may be happening in the video, although the audience will not know what it is as it will not be spoiled to them.