Hand-in Deadline: 17th February 2017
Unit: 16/22 - Film & Video Editing Techniques
Scenario: You have to demonstrate your knowledge of film and video editing techniques, as you will come to producing a film for a small production company. You are to produce a report in the development, purpose and conventions of film and video editing techniques.
TASK(s)
All three of these sections of the assignment must be completed. One task, three sections:
- Development - in-camera editing; following the action; multiple points of view; shot variation; manipulation of diegetic time and space; film, video; analogue; digital.
- Purpose - storytelling, e.g. engaging the viewer, development of drama, relationship to genre, creating motivation; combining shots into sequences; creating pace.
- Conventions and techniques - seamless; continuity; motivated; montage; jump-cutting; parallel editing; 180 degree rule; splicing; transitions, e.g. cut, dissolve, fade, wipe; cutaways; point of view shot; shot-reverse-shot; providing and withholding information; editing rhythm; crosscutting; cutting to soundtrack.
- Include examples and explain thoroughly -
DEVELOPMENT
- In-camera editing - involves the cinematographer taking a strict approach that involves scenes following a strict order of shots. Thus, the edit is already complete, as the shots are already accomplished. Here is an example found on YouTube.
- Following the action - an example of such would be Mr. & Mrs. Smith's couple showdown. This is basically where the camera follows wherever the action is going, and helps build up tension where a director may want some to be made, in order to entice viewers and engage the audience into something exciting.
- Multiple points of view - sees a scene in a film from the various perspectives of multiple characters, with shots usually focusing on them and transitioning between the characters and action. It allows audiences to see the characters differing, or somewhat similar, reactions to the events taking place. An example of this can be seen in Magnolia.
- Shot variation - where a shot can be filmed static, with no cuts throughout to show a piece of film, or where many different film shots are put together to also create a piece of film. 10 Things I Hate About You is a mainstream example of this.
- Manipulation of diegetic sound and space - this involves the editor editing the speed within any shooting of a scene or a set of scenes, whether it be in TV or film. This is done to perhaps skip time and pick up the pace, so the audience do not get bored so easily, as well as to hurry the story along. This can be seen in The Karate Kid training montage.
- Film - by definition, this is a thin flexible strip of plastic or other material coated with light-sensitive emulsion for exposure in a camera, used to produce photographs or motion pictures, usually composing a story or event recorded by a camera as a set of moving images and shown in a cinema or on television.
- Video - the recording, reproducing, or broadcasting of moving visual images. Of course, this is the basis of film on all media outlets. It involves making creative video editing decision in the post-production of film making and video production.
- Analogue - the name given to traditional tape-based video post-production, to contrast it with digital editing, which uses mate- rials stored in a computer. Tape-based editing is linear because you cannot jump instantly to any point in a videotape.
- Digital - a non-linear editing system (NLE) is a video (NLVE) or audio editing (NLAE) digital audio workstation (DAW) system that performs non-destructive editing on source material. This is an example of digital. Non-destructive editing is a form of audio, video or image editing where the original content is not modified in the course of editing – instead the edits themselves are specified and modified by specialized software.
PURPOSE
By engaging the viewer with storytelling and developing drama, one can grab a viewers attention and, further, the mainstream masses. Keeping the audience interested is key, but then this leaves to question: which shot to use with which line of dialogue? These are the questions that will be brought up. Where precisely do I place transitions from each shot to the other, or when I want the audience to feel clam, excited or scared? Telling stories is a universally shared problem among editors in the media industry - to craft a story is to make art, but art must offer meaning. This meaning can be brought about in differing ways and opinions, be it through dialogue, filming of certain shots or through other means.
The role of the editor is to make the audience understand what is happening with the filmed footage, as well as maintain the pace of footage, be it slow or fast. Footage must be edited in a way not to confuse the audience, so you do not distract away from meaning. By keeping it interesting, you keep the audience involved, whether it is by withholding information from the audience, or to let them know before even our characters do. This of course is done through a combination of shots, and is the means to achieve either one of these end goals.
Take, for example, this perfectly illustrated video by YouTuber Nerdwriter1, who makes the case that Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban is the best Harry Potter film of the franchise. He makes his argument by taking notice of director Alfonso Cuaron's direction of the film, tone, as well as the choice in cinematography by Michael Seresin, whom both sought to bring upon the coming of age for the Potter franchise. The use of certain shots and camera angles, as well as the directing, pacing and acting of the film, all point towards Harry coming to terms with growing responsibilities as he grows from teenager to young adult. He finds himself alone yet also finds the strength to persevere.
This is the simple story of a young boy coming to terms with the realities he faces. It is both beautiful, tragic yet endearing and somewhat reletable. We can all relate to the character of Potter in this film on some level, given that we have all been in a position where we face loneliness and isolation, and feeling as if something is out there to get us. A story like this can both entertain and inspire, perhaps even reassure the audience.
Stories such as these, however, are not just limited to film. They can be found across all forms of medium, such as music, music videos, video games, radio and TV. Of course keeping with actual video and film, as well as the cinematography that comes with it (featuring techniques such as shots and angles), the purpose of a the various conventions and techniques used in filming and editing tend to have a varied meaning, depending on who you are looking at.
For example, many films tend to use the famous shot-reverse-shot to depict two individuals engaging in a discussion, and this shows each individual's reaction to one another. Every Frame a Painting however, argues that the renowned Coen Brothers (Joel & Ethan) having taken this form of art and made it their own. Considering the Coen Bros. films focus on complex characters and contain heavy dialogue segments, this comes to no surprise.
The purpose of this shot, argued by E.F.a.P., is that they [the Coen Bros.] want their audiences to be humored by their expressions, yet also level and sympathize with their characters, in order for them to grow to care for them, and thus get attached. This is what grabs a viewers attention and keeps their eyes on the screen. An audience will not care for a character should they not feel compelled to react to them, or whether they find them boring or annoying.
The role of the editor is to make the audience understand what is happening with the filmed footage, as well as maintain the pace of footage, be it slow or fast. Footage must be edited in a way not to confuse the audience, so you do not distract away from meaning. By keeping it interesting, you keep the audience involved, whether it is by withholding information from the audience, or to let them know before even our characters do. This of course is done through a combination of shots, and is the means to achieve either one of these end goals.
Take, for example, this perfectly illustrated video by YouTuber Nerdwriter1, who makes the case that Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban is the best Harry Potter film of the franchise. He makes his argument by taking notice of director Alfonso Cuaron's direction of the film, tone, as well as the choice in cinematography by Michael Seresin, whom both sought to bring upon the coming of age for the Potter franchise. The use of certain shots and camera angles, as well as the directing, pacing and acting of the film, all point towards Harry coming to terms with growing responsibilities as he grows from teenager to young adult. He finds himself alone yet also finds the strength to persevere.
This is the simple story of a young boy coming to terms with the realities he faces. It is both beautiful, tragic yet endearing and somewhat reletable. We can all relate to the character of Potter in this film on some level, given that we have all been in a position where we face loneliness and isolation, and feeling as if something is out there to get us. A story like this can both entertain and inspire, perhaps even reassure the audience.
Stories such as these, however, are not just limited to film. They can be found across all forms of medium, such as music, music videos, video games, radio and TV. Of course keeping with actual video and film, as well as the cinematography that comes with it (featuring techniques such as shots and angles), the purpose of a the various conventions and techniques used in filming and editing tend to have a varied meaning, depending on who you are looking at.
For example, many films tend to use the famous shot-reverse-shot to depict two individuals engaging in a discussion, and this shows each individual's reaction to one another. Every Frame a Painting however, argues that the renowned Coen Brothers (Joel & Ethan) having taken this form of art and made it their own. Considering the Coen Bros. films focus on complex characters and contain heavy dialogue segments, this comes to no surprise.
The purpose of this shot, argued by E.F.a.P., is that they [the Coen Bros.] want their audiences to be humored by their expressions, yet also level and sympathize with their characters, in order for them to grow to care for them, and thus get attached. This is what grabs a viewers attention and keeps their eyes on the screen. An audience will not care for a character should they not feel compelled to react to them, or whether they find them boring or annoying.
CONVENTIONS & TECHNIQUES
- Seamless - where you put two different pieces of film together to create a neat, smooth piece of film that runs into each piece of each other easily. An example here can be found from an episode of The Walking Dead.
- Continuity - combining more-or-less related shots, or different components cut from a single shot, into a sequence so as to direct the viewer's attention to a pre-existing consistency of story across both time and physical location. This is clearly seen in Children of Men.
- Motivated - a way of helping to suspend the audiences disbelief when watching a production, where shots are carefully chosen to push a story along and make the audience believe what they are seeing. The Hot Fuzz intro is a perfect example of this.
- Montage - the technique of selecting, editing, and piecing together separate sections of film to form a continuous whole, famously used in the Rocky franchise.
- Jump-cutting - to make an abrupt transition from one scene to another, an example shown here in The Royal Tenenbaums.
- Parallel editing - the technique of alternating two or more scenes that often happen simultaneously but in different locations. If the scenes are simultaneous, they occasionally culminate in a single place, where the relevant parties confront each other. This can be seen in Shrek 2.
- 180 degree rule - a cinematography guideline that states that two characters in a scene should maintain the same left/right relationship to one another. When the camera passes over the invisible axis connecting the two subjects, it is called crossing the line and the shot becomes what is called a reverse angle. This is shown in The Shining's toilet room scene.
- Splicing - a film splicer is a device which can be used to physically join together lengths of photographic film. It is mostly used in film motion pictures. This is used in the majority of most modern made films and TV.
- Transitions - e.g. cut, dissolve, fade, wipe. They make for a sudden or an abrupt change in scene and or scenery. The Star Wars franchise are well known for this, particularly the "prequels".
- Cutaways - the interruption of a continuously filmed action by inserting a view of something else. Here is an example of the cutaway shot.
- Point of view shot - also known as POV shot, first-person shot or a subjective camera, it is a short film scene that shows what a character (the subject) is looking at (represented through the camera). Here are numerous examples of the POV shot.
- Shot-reverse-shot - a film technique where one character is shown looking at another character (often off-screen), and then the other character is shown looking back at the first character, using the same shot as the first character. Here is a rather complex example from Spiderman, where Willam Dafoe's character confronts his split "Goblin" personality.
- Providing and withholding information - this is the use of filming and camera angles by an editor of film director in order to either keep the audience guessing of what is occurring or what is about to occur. However, it could also mean the audience knows something before even the characters on scene even know. An example of withholding information from the audience and one of its characters is perfectly illustrated in this scene from Se7en.
- Editing rhythm - describes an assembling of shots and/or sequences according to a rhythmic pattern of some kind, usually dictated by music. Here is an example from Sucker Punch.
- Crosscutting - used in films to establish action occurring at the same time in two different locations. In a cross-cut, the camera will cut away from one action to another action, which can suggest the simultaneity of these two actions but this is not always the case. Inception offers a great example of a crosscutting scene.
- Cutting to soundtrack - when the pace of the cuts are motivated by how fast the song is OR referring to when scenes and shots are cut to the film or TV's soundtrack. An example would be the Reservoir Dogs intro.
No comments:
Post a Comment