Purpose and Principle of Editing

1. Task 4: Editing
By Mustafa Said

2. Purpose of Editing
Editing is the modifying and preparation of material for a final product. The
purpose of editing is to create a story using a narrative. This can be done by
piecing raw footage together to create a story in any chronological order.
Editing can be very significant whether a music video or movie as it helps the
audience receive information. Editing helps so much as it enables viewers
watching to engage with the product. Editing consists of many techniques and
principles such as the 180* angle rule, combination of shot or linear or non
linear. For example, Arrow is a non-linear drama series and this is because it
always uses flashbacks in the drama.

3. Principles of Editing: Story Telling
Story telling is the way to get the audience interactive. A story can be
told by words or actions. A story can include a narrative which is the
way a story is told. For example these stories can be told in a
chronological order or non-chronological order. A chronological order is
where a story is told in a linear way so the story goes forward in time.
For example, the movie Ant-Man has a story with no flashbacks and
starts in a linear way keeping the movie simple.

4. Non-Chronological Order is when a story is not shown from present to future. It
may start from Past to Future then Present or in any other form. This includes
flashbacks or starting the film from the future for example 2 years from the
Present. The Butterfly Effect is a perfect example of this as throughout the
movie Ashton Kutcher travels from his Present to the Future or Past as he reads
his diaries.

5. Open ended storyline is when the story is left with a cliff hanger making the
audience predict what will happen next? A good example of an open ended
storyline is ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ where Alfred spots Bruce having Lunch in
Vienna having lunch.
A closed story line is when
the story is left completed
at the end with no Cliff-
hangers. A great example
Would be ‘Lone Survivor’ as the ending was clear how Mark Wahlberg survives
and gets rescued at the end.
Lone Survivor Ending!
Dark Knight Rises Ending!

6. The 180* Rule
The 180* Rule is a very important principle while filming. This principle is used
most in almost every scene when two or more people are having a
conversation, dinner, interrogation or anything else. This keeps the viewer
from having to be disturbed looking all over the place where as two or more
main subjects are in the same positions. This rule was applied in the movie
‘Pulp Fiction’ when John Travolta and Samuel Jackson are having a
conversation at a diner. The camera angle can be taken from anywhere as long
as the main subjects are positioned in the same place.
Watch Now!

7. Can You Break The 180* Rule?
You can break the 180* rule as long as if it makes sense. For instance, if
you want to create confusion to the audience to suit the scene or if you
want to move the camera angle from one side of the shoulder to the
other and let the audience aware. Yet if you break the principle in
certain moments, it can look messy. For example if a person is walking
away and you cross the line, it can look as if the character is walking in
a different direction. In The Dark Knight interrogation scene, you can
see how the cameras move from one side of the shoulder to the other
side during a shot-reverse-shot.

8. Creating Pace
Creating pace while editing in any media text is where the scenes
speed up or slow down certain parts. Pace changes the way the
audiences view the text and make them understand it in different ways.
For example, music videos do great editing when it come to creating
pace. As the music speeds up so does the scenes. In Falling In Reverse’s
music video for gangsta’s paradise, the pace of editing in increased
when the flow of music speeds up as the beat drops.
Watch Now!

9. Combination of Shots
This is where all individual camera shots taken are edited and are pieced
together to make one long sequence which is visible for the audience and
makes a clear understanding of what's going on. It also helps the viewers
eyes keep relaxed. This was introduced by Sergei Eisenstein in the 1920’s.
The fighting scene in Spiderman 1, includes combination of shots such as
match on action, mid- long shot, extreme close ups, close ups and more.

10. Techniques: Continuity editing/error
There are many techniques in editing such as Continuity. This is one
of the most important techniques needed in every media text. It
gives the viewer the impression that the Mise on Scene is kept
constant throughout the scenes. For example if someone was to
wear a blue shirt, in the next shot he must be wearing blue
throughout the scene, not a different colour shirt and same design,
otherwise this would be known as a continuity error. This is why in
Film casts, you would have a continuity manager to keep an eye on
such things.

11. Cutaway
A cutaway is when viewing, you cut away from the main subject to
show the surroundings and other things happening around the main
subject such as other people’s expressions etc. For instance the movie
Drop Zone where there are sky divers who are in the air and one of
them has a parachute that don’t work, the next shot shows the facial
expressions of those on the ground.

12. Ellipsis
Ellipsis is when the plot is shortened during the story duration of a film or
music video etc. For example, in a movie if there is a young person, after
that scene they might show “10 years later” and that young person is
now an adult. An ellipsis is usually marked by an editing transition such
as a jump cut, fade, wipe, change of scene or dissolve. Ellipsis is used to
also show suspense and mystery. Quentin Tarantino used ellipsis very
well in the movie ‘Reservoir Dogs’ where we see Michael Madsen and
Steve Buscemi talking at a restaurant then suddenly Steve Buscemi is
running away from a robbery he done in the next scene. This makes the
audience think why was there a robbery and what happened?
Click Here To Watch :)

13. Fast/Slow Motion
This is where an effect of an action is either done in fast or slow rate.
So in a scene of a film or music video an action scene may be in fast
motion such as fighting. If there is a bomb explosion usually there
would be a slow motion. This is just to satisfy the viewer to able to so
clearly than in real life. A great example of this is the music video for
Skrillex’s First of The Year. Both fast and slow motion is used and go
well together with the flow of the music.
Watch Now!

14. Match Cut
A match cut is when a director cuts from one scene to a completely
different scene, but keeps objects from the two scenes graphically
matched in a very similar fashion to establish continuity and flow. It
also presents a smoother transition that does not end up confusing
the viewer. It shows a relationship between two different objects to
create a visual metaphor. Such an example is used in the movie ‘The
Fall’ during the wedding scene where the priest’s face transforms to a
mountain top.
https://www.
youtube.com
/watch?v=1Z
ECJDyR028

15. Match-on-Action
This video editing technique is when the editor cuts from one shot of
an action to another shot that matches the first shots action the very
same way. In the scene of ‘Bringing Up Baby’ you can see how the lady
lights her cigarette in both shots.
Watch Scene Here!

16. Parallel Editing
Parallel editing is when editors cross cut two scenes that are shown
happening at once during the plot to create a juxtaposition which
usually occurs in different locations. In the opening scene of
‘American Sniper’, Bradley Cooper is getting ready to snipe his target
in the war zone while at the same time there are soldiers with a tank
that kills a suicide bomber.
Click To See Full Video.

17. Shot-Reverse-Shot
A shot-reverse-shot is used when two people are talking to each
other. For example if character A is talking to character B, when
character A finishes, the shot is taken of character B to either see
their facial expressions or if they are talking to reply back to character
A. A great example is used in Spider-Man when Harry Osborne is
talking to himself as two different characters in the mirror.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0xiCIMIwLY

18. Transitions: Fade In/out
Film transitions are used during the post-production by which is used
between a change of scenes. Fade in and fade out are used to show a
transition to and from a single colour. Fades are usually used to show
the beginning or end of a scene. A quick fade is used to show some
time has passed such as a few minutes or hours however a slow fade
shows a longer time period has passed such as days, weeks or months
etc. The opening sequence to ‘Six Feet Under’ used many transitions
such as fade in and out.
Opening
Sequence Here!

19. Dissolve
A dissolve is another smooth transition in editing. A dissolve is a slow
way of moving the audience to the next scene and also expresses a
passage of time such as someone waiting or a change of seasons etc.
So as one scene dims out, the next scene brightens out on top as if
both scenes were dissolved into each other. Such example is used in
the music video of ‘Nas Album Done’ by Nas and DJ Khaled.
Click To Watch!

20. Development: Analogue Editing
Before digital editing there was analogue editing which was all done by hand not software which was very
tiring and time consuming. There was a negative film which all the footage recorded went onto when
filmed and would later scene by scene would be cut using a splicer and pasted together to create
cutaways. When finished this film would then be fed to a machine called a Moviola or K.E.M which was a
brand invented in Germany in the 1930s. Footage would be filmed on a box camera which was invented in
1816 and improved as time passed. A film reel was attached to later invented cameras so that footage
filmed were saved on a negative film. Analogue editing could not have used special effects and filming was
very simple and realistic. Each frame was very important and with just cutting one out it would just look
like a jump cut each shot disturbing the viewer.
Click To
See How
It's
Done!

21. Digital Editing
Digital editing has made editing very simple and less time consuming and is done using a software. Camera
have also developed digitally and are very easy to use. Digital editing software's have been invented allow
you to use your computer to edit video and audio with a modified keyboard and mouse. The video and
audio that you capture on digital camera generally stored on a hard drive and then is accessed on a
computer. The hard drive can then be withdrawn from a camera or a USB cable that is attached to a
computer to access footage. This differs remarkably from old-fashioned editing that the video can be
randomly accessed. The computer can access any hard drive very rapidly and pull up any section of video
and audio that you want and use to edit. There is no need to change videocassettes or reels. Video clips can
be dragged and dropped and moved around at will and manipulated in many ways with very little effort.
Generally, these clips are laid down on what is called a timeline which is displayed on the computer screen
so there is no need for a Moviola. You can move any clip anywhere, you can either delete them or store
them in files and kept aside making everything organized and professional. With digital editing you can add
special effects and add titles as well and also speed up the pace in editing or slow it down.
History of
Video
Editing...

22. Smartphone Software
Smartphones today have allowed convergence meaning the software has allowed
people to use different applications for different purposes. Such examples is how you
can use a camera on smartphones to capture pictures or record videos with high
definition quality. With the use of other applications, you can now add special effects
and edit you’re videos or pictures you have captured and saved in the gallery. Due to
this amateurs can now use their smartphones to film and edit rather than investing a
lot of money on professional equipment. This can also make their final productions look
professional depending on how they edit. They can cut and paste and also put together
different videos as well as adding titles. Smartphones also include their own inbuilt
microphone which is able to produce clear sounds for the videos avoiding wind. You
also have applications such as ‘Cameo’ that allow you to make short films, edit them
and share online! To Get more
Info on such
Apps! (IOS)
Cameo App Walk-Through.
How To Edit Using Cameo.