Here is a list of editing techniques taken from the big glossary. You should already have a copy, but if you have lost it, click this link and print it off once more.
It is clear that people have not been revising editing, so here it is. We will apply some of these terms to an extract in the lesson.
Editing Techniques
Cut. Sudden change of shot from one viewpoint or
location to another. On television cuts occur on average about every 7 or 8
seconds. Cutting may:
- change
the scene;
- compress
time;
- vary
the point of view; or
- build
up an image or idea.
There is always a reason for a cut, and you should ask
yourself what the reason is. Less abrupt transitions are achieved with the
fade, dissolve, and wipe
Matched cut. In a 'matched cut' a familiar
relationship between the shots may make the change seem smooth:
- continuity
of direction;
- completed
action;*
- a
similar centre of attention in the frame;
- a
one-step change of shot size (e.g. long to medium);
- a
change of angle (conventionally at least 30 degrees).
*The cut is usually made on an action (for example, a person
begins to turn towards a door in one shot; the next shot, taken from the
doorway, catches him completing the turn). Because the viewer's eye is absorbed
by the action he is unlikely to notice the movement of the cut itself.
Jump cut. Abrupt switch from one scene to another
which may be used deliberately to make a dramatic point. Sometimes boldly used
to begin or end action. Alternatively, it may be result of poor pictorial
continuity, perhaps from deleting a section.
Motivated cut. Cut made just at the point where what
has occurred makes the viewer immediately want to see something which is not
currently visible (causing us, for instance, to accept compression of time). A
typical feature is the shot/reverse shot technique (cuts coinciding with
changes of speaker). Editing and camera work appear to be determined by the
action. It is intimately associated with the 'privileged point of view' (see
narrative style: objectivity).
Cutting rate. Frequent cuts may be used as deliberate
interruptions to shock, surprise or emphasize.
Cutting rhythm. A cutting rhythm may be progressively
shortened to increase tension. Cutting rhythm may create an exciting, lyrical
or staccato effect in the viewer.
Cross-cut. A cut from one line of action to another.
Also applied as an adjectuve to sequences which use such cuts.
Cutaway/cutaway shot (CA). A bridging, intercut shot
between two shots of the same subject. It represents a secondary activity
occurring at the same time as the main action. It may be preceded by a definite
look or glance out of frame by a participant, or it may show something of which
those in the preceding shot are unaware. (See narrative style: parallel
development) It may be used to avoid the technical ugliness of a 'jump cut'
where there would be uncomfortable jumps in time, place or viewpoint. It is
often used to shortcut the passing of time.
Reaction shot. Any shot, usually a cutaway, in which
a participant reacts to action which has just occurred.
Insert/insert shot. A bridging close-up shot inserted
into the larger context, offering an essential detail of the scene (or a
reshooting of the action with a different shot size or angle.)
Buffer shot (neutral shot). A bridging shot (normally
taken with a separate camera) to separate two shots which would have reversed
the continuity of direction.
Fade, dissolve (mix). Both fades and dissolves are
gradual transitions between shots. In a fade the picture gradually appears from
(fades in) or disappears to (fades out) a blank screen. A slow fade-in is a
quiet introduction to a scene; a slow fade-out is a peaceful ending. Time lapses
are often suggested by a slow fade-out and fade-in. A dissolve (or mix)
involves fading out one picture while fading up another on top of it. The
impression is of an image merging into and then becoming another. A slow mix
usually suggests differences in time and place. Defocus or ripple dissolves are
sometimes used to indicate flashbacks in time.
Superimpositions. Two or more images placed directly
over each other (e.g. and eye and a camera lens to create a visual metaphor).
Wipe. An optical effect marking a transition between
two shots. It appears to supplant an image by wiping it off the screen (as a
line or in some complex pattern, such as by appearing to turn a page). The wipe
is a technique which draws attention to itself and acts as a clear marker of
change.
Inset. An inset is a special visual effect whereby a
reduced shot is superimposed on the main shot. Often used to reveal a close-up
detail of the main shot.
Split screen. The division of the screen into parts
which can show the viewer several images at the same time (sometimes the same
action from slightly different perspectives, sometimes similar actions at
different times). This can convey the excitement and frenzy of certain
activities, but it can also overload the viewer.
Stock shot. Footage already available and used for
another purpose than the one for which it was originally filmed.
Manipulating Time
Screen time: a period of time represented by events
within a film (e.g. a day, a week).
Subjective time. The time experienced or felt by a
character in a film, as revealed through camera movement and editing (e.g. when
a frightened person's flight from danger is prolonged).
Compressed time. The compression of time between
sequences or scenes, and within scenes. This is the most frequent manipulation
of time in films: it is achieved with cuts or dissolves. In a dramatic
narative, if climbing a staircase is not a significant part of the plot, a shot
of a character starting up the stairs may then cut to him entering a room. The
logic of the situation and our past experience of medium tells us that the room
is somewhere at the top of the stairs. Long journeys can be compressed into
seconds. Time may also be compressed between cutaways in parallel editing. More
subtle compression can occur after reaction shots or close-ups have intervened.
The use of dissolves was once a cue for the passage of a relatively long period
of time.
Long take. A single shot (or take, or run of the
camera) which lasts for a relatively lengthy period of time. The long take has
an 'authentic' feel since it is not inherently dramatic.
Simultaneous time. Events in different places can be
presented as occurring at the same moment, by parallel editing or
cross-cutting, by multiple images or split-screen. The conventional clue to
indicate that events or shots are taking place at the same time is that there
is no progression of shots: shots are either inserted into the main action or
alternated with each other until the strands are somehow united.
Slow motion. Action which takes place on the screen
at a slower rate than the rate at which the action took place before the
camera. This is used: a) to make a fast action visible; b) to make a familiar
action strange; c) to emphasise a dramatic moment. It can have a lyric and
romantic quality or it can amplify violence.
Accelerated motion (undercranking) . This is used: a)
to make a slow action visible; b) to make a familiar action funny; c) to
increase the thrill of speed.
Reverse motion. Reproducing action backwards, for
comic, magical or explanatory effect.
Replay. An action sequence repeated, often in slow
motion, commonly featured in the filming of sport to review a significant
event.
Freeze-frame. This gives the image the appearance of
a still photograph. Clearly not a naturalistic device.
Flashback. A break in the chronology of a narrative
in which events from the past are disclosed to the viewer. Formerly indicated
conventionally with defocus or ripple dissolves.
Flashforward. Much less common than the flashback.
Not normally associated with a particular character. Associated with objective
treatments.
Extended or expanded time/overlapping action. The
expansion of time can be accomplished by intercutting a series of shots, or by
filming the action from different angles and editing them together. Part of an
action may be repeated from another viewpoint, e.g. a character is shown from
the inside of a building opening a door and the next shot, from the outside,
shows him opening it again. Used nakedly this device disrupts the audience's
sense of real time. The technique may be used unobtrusively to stretch time,
perhaps to exaggerate, for dramatic effect, the time taken to walk down a
corridor. Sometimes combined with slow motion.
Ambiguous time. Within the context of a well-defined
time-scheme sequences may occur which are ambiguous in time. This is most
frequently comunicated through dissolves and superimpositions.
Universal time. This is deliberately created to
suggest universal relevance. Ideas rather than examples are emphasised. Context
may be disrupted by frequent cuts and by the extensive use of close-ups and
other shots which do not reveal a specific background.
