Film Transition

1. Film Transition – with reference
to PROMISE
Emily Capon

2. CUT
The most basic type of shot transition, the cut is the most
common way to join two shots. In essence it is the
continuation of two different shots within the same time and
space. It is the most basic in that the film undergoes no
special processes to perform a cut; the two film strips are
simply played one after the other. While watching the movie,
this is where one image on screen is instantly replaced with
another, often in the form of a camera angle change. Though
simple in construction, the subject matter on each side of the
cut can have far-reaching implications in a film

3. CONTRAST CUT
An editor can strategically cut to juxtapose two
subjects. For instance, somebody dreaming of a
beautiful field of flowers, shot A, may be
suddenly wake up inside a burning building, shot
B. The sound would be serene and peaceful in
shot A, and suddenly loud and painful in shot B.
This contrast between peace and chaos is
intensified through the sudden transition from A
to B, something that cannot be achieved
through a gradual transition

4. L CUT
An L Cut is an editing technique that results in a cut
occurring at a different time for audio than for video.
For example, we may hear characters' voices a few
seconds before we see them on film. In order to
achieve this effect, the editor had to make an L-
shaped cut on the filmstrip itself.

5. GRAPHIC MATCH
The cut joins together two pieces of film that
contain two similarly shaped objects in similar
positions in the frame. One of the most famous
examples of this is the edit in Stanley Kubrick's
2001: A Space Odyssey where the bone thrown
by a gorilla (man in gorilla costume) cuts to a
space station

6. MATCH CUT
Like the form cut, the match cut attempts to join two shots
with similar frames together. The match cut, however, is
designed to completely hide the transition from the audience.
If a character were to walk towards the camera and completely
cover it, the editor could then choose to cut to a shot of the
same character walking away from the camera. The cut is
disguised by the character blocking the camera; the audience
still knows that a cut has occurred, they would simply have a
hard time pinpointing the exact moment

7. PARALLEL CUTTING
For example, imagine an action scene where a
villain is chasing the hero of the film. To spend the
entire chase scene trying to keep both the hero and
the villain in the frame at the same time will
become very difficult and un- engaging after a
while. A better way to approach this problem is
through the use of parallel cutting. In this example,
the scene would consist of several shots of the hero
running in one direction, and some shots of the
villian running in the same direction. Perhaps the
hero looks back, out of frame at his pursuer.

8. DISSOLVE
Like the fade, a dissolve involves gradually changing
the visibility of the picture. However, rather than
transitioning from a shot to a color, a dissolve is
when a shot changes into another shot gradually.
Dissolves, like cuts, can be used to create a link
between two different objects, a man telling a story,
and a visual of his story, for instance.

9. JUMP CUT
A jump cut is usually the result of a continuity
error, and not a stylistic choice by the director. A
jump cut occurs when a cut, designed to act
merely as a camera angle change (less than 30
degrees), reveals a continuity error between the
two shots. For instance, if a character has their
hand over their mouth in a medium shot and
not in their close up, this detail, which probably
was not noticed on set, is now painfully obvious
to the viewers.

10. FADE IN/ OUT
A fade occurs when the picture gradually turns to a
single color, usually black, or when a picture
gradually appears on screen. Fade ins generally
occur at the beginning of a film or act, while fade
outs are typically found at the end of a film or act

11. MORPH
Although not always confined to shot
transitions, a morph can be thought of as a
dissolve combined with a visual effect. Rather
than simply blending the colours together, a
morph is able to gradually reshape an object to
becom another object, creating a much stronger
connection than a simple dissolve can provide.
One example of this is the end of the film Saving
Private Ryan.