This document discusses the film editing technique of montage. It begins by defining montage as a technique that combines short shots or clips into a sequence, often set to music, to imply the passage of time or simultaneous events. It then provides examples of how montages can be used to evoke different emotions in different genres. The document goes on to discuss the development of montage, from its origins in Soviet film theory to its widespread use in modern Hollywood films. It also outlines some common montage techniques like quick cuts, voiceovers, and music. In conclusion, the document emphasizes the important role montage plays in film editing and storytelling.

1. Montage tequnique
in Film studies
Prepared by :-Sneha Agravat
Sem-3
Roll no.:-16
Department of English MkBU

2. What is Film studies?
Film studies is an institutionalized academic
discipline that focuses on the serious study of
films, cinematic history and film culture and is
majorly informed by film theory. Unlike what
some people may believe, film studies is not
concerned with filmmaking or the
technicalities of film production itself but is
rather focused on studying cinema the way
one would with art or literature. It involves not
just analysing the content of a film, but also
looking into its form, the narrative, technique,
stylistic elements and the historical, socio-
political, economic, and cultural aspects and
context surrounding it. This article aims to
provide an introduction to what the field
entails by delving into its history and further
looking into some of the major concepts
involved.

3. One of the most fundamental aspects of the medium of film is
the ability to edit and rearrange images and shots to create a
story. The difficulty in editing and film in general is to be both
effective and efficient at the same time. This enables the
audience to understand the story while also being completely
engaged. One of the most useful tools that filmmakers have to
execute this is the montage.These days, nearly every
Hollywood film includes a montage. But a montage is more
than just a highlight reel set to music: it’s a technique that can
help the director and editor of a movie advance the story
quickly and effectively.
Introduction

4. ● Montage is a technique of film
editing that combines a series of
short shots or clips into one
sequence, often set to music.
The word montage is French for
“assembly” or “editing.
● Montage sequences often imply
the passage of time or multiple
simultaneous events, and are a
vehicle to present the audience
with a lot of information at once.
What is montage?

5. They can be used to evoke a range of emotions—for
example:
● In a romantic comedy, a montage can show a sense of growing
love or attraction between two love interests getting to know one
another.
● In a sports movie, a montage can show an athlete training for a big
game, and heighten suspense or tension about the outcome.
● In a drama, a montage can underscore grief and sadness by
showing a widow struggling with the loss of her husband.
● In a horror movie, a montage can show the main characters
preparing to defend their home against a killer or supernatural
force.

6. ● In the silent era, the film could make the audiences laughing
through the exaggerated movements and expressions. But now,
with the science and technology’s development and progress,
the simple audience ’ s psychological needs, the gorgeous
colors wonderful music compact rhythm and the perfect plot, all
of these have become the measure scale that a film is good-
looking or not.
● The Montage is one of the important factors to decide the film’s
success or failure. Not only in the aspects of structure story
plots, creation figure characters, rich expressive force of the
film, “Montage” has an important role which can not be replaced
by other art means, but also in the aspects of attracting the
viewers desire, mobilizing the viewers emotion, “Montage”even
has played a key and decisive role.
THE ROLE OF THE MONTAGE

7. THE DEVELOPMENT OF MONTAGE
● Montage exists in people’s daily life.
● Everyone has this feeling, when you watching a
theater or a film, you will pay attention to someone
or some special part on the stage accompanied by
the plots or personal preference, instead of your
eyes unmoved to keep a close watch on some
place.
● This is actually explains that as the audiences, we
make a “ Montage editing ” for the watching
contents in there unconsciousness.
● In the film and television works, the charm of
montage is that it can not only bring the visual
enjoyment to the audiences, meanwhile it can let
the audience in the same time experience.

8. Why Use Montage?

9. ● Speed up time:-
● Whether it’s a day, a week, a month, a year, or a decade, a
montage can accelerate time in a way that makes sense to
the audience and stays true to the story. It can be like a
highlight reel for the action passing.
● Convey a lot of information at once:-
● Sometimes, a story has crucial details to communicate, but
a director doesn’t want to devote a great deal of time to
explaining them. A montage can speed up that process
and catch the audience up in a matter of seconds.
● Heighten tension:-
● You may have noticed that many montages happen about
two-thirds of the way through a movie, often right after the
climax of the story. A montage can renew and reinvigorate
an audience’s interest in a character or a storyline as the
film builds to a conclusion.

10. ● Compare and contrast:-
● Alternatively, sometimes montages happen at the very beginning of a movie. A
montage that compares and contrasts the daily lives or routines of two characters
can establish their statuses, and thus their levels of power, in relation to one
another.
● Reveal character:-
● A montage can be a vehicle to reveal the ways a character is changing. From quick
cuts of a drug hallucination one night to the effects of illness over the course of six
months, a montage can help the audience quickly understand a dramatic shift in a
character’s physical and/or mental state.Combine multiple storylines. There isn’t
always time to feature every single storyline from start to finish. A montage is an
effective way to combine storylines and ensure every character gets their due.
● Combine multiple storylines:-
● There isn’t always time to feature every single storyline from start to finish. A
montage is an effective way to combine storylines and ensure every character gets
their due.

11. Common Montage Film
Techniques
● A montage may use a variety of film techniques, including but not
limited to:
● Quick cuts:-Typically, movie montages feature numerous shots cut
together in quick succession. This allows time to pass and the story to
advance, but without leaving the audience behind.
● No dialogue:-This isn’t a hard and fast rule, but many montages adopt
the “show, don’t tell” philosophy. Characters talking about how they
feel in a scene is generally not something that works, so showing it in
a montage instead can be highly effective. Less is often more,
especially in film.

12. ● Voiceover narration:-A skillful voiceover can clearly and
artfully convey important information to the audience. A
disembodied voice may narrate what’s happening during
a montage, providing more context.
● Music:- Montages use music to underscore the action
that is unfolding quickly and the emotions the characters
are experiencing.
● Supers:-Sometimes, montages superimpose text on the
screen to quickly relay information and updates about
characters and the story. This often happens at the end
as an epilogue to the film.
Continue…….

13. Soviet Montage Theory
● Soviet Montage Theory is
a film movement that took
place in Soviet Russia
during the 1910’s, 20’s
and into the early 30’s. It
was founded by Lev
Kuleshov while he was
teaching at the Moscow
Film School.

14. ● After the 1917 Russian Revolution,
filmmakers began experimenting
with different creative editing
techniques. Eisenstein, who started
making films in the early 1920s,
demonstrated the significance of
individual frames in his trademark
montage editing. Rather than simply
cutting together a series of
independent shots, he took a more
layered approach to the art form.
● Eisenstein didn’t invent the film
montage, but he did elevate and
change the way directors use the
technique. Eisenstein played with
shot length, movement, and cuts to
emotionally affect audience.

15. ● Metric – Where the editing follows a specific number of frames, this
is based purely on the physical nature of time, cutting to the next
shot no matter what is happening within the image. The reason for
this is to get an emotional reaction from the audience.
● Rhythmic – The cutting happens for the sake of continuity. This
creates visual continuity but it may also be used in order to keep
with the pace of the film.
● Sergei Eisenstein talks about five different methods of montage
through out his work. These varieties of montage build one upon
the other so the “higher” forms also include the approaches of the
“simpler” varieties. These are the five:
Five types

16. ● Tonal – A tonal montage uses the emotional meaning
of the shots. Not just manipulating the temporal length
of the cuts or its rhythmical characteristics. The point
of this is to elicit a reaction that is more complex than
Rhythmic and Metric.
● Overtonal – An accumulation of metric, rhythmic, and
tonal montage to synthesise its effect on the audience
for an even more abstract and complicated effect.
● Intellectual – Uses a combination of shots from outside
the film in order to create a meaning.

17. Example of Soviet Montage Theory:-
When the audience was shown the
footage of the man looking at the
dead women they described that
they could feel his “sadness.”
In the middle row the same image
of the man had been used however
he is depicted reacting to the bowl
of soup. The audience seeing this
described empathising with his
“hunger”.And when paired with the
image of the reclining woman,
audiences assumed the man
experienced lust. though the shot
of the model is the same in each
scene. This mental phenomenon is
known as the Kuleshov effect.

19. Conclusion:-
A good works of film and television cannot do without the
the editing art, the excellent editing cannot do without the
support of montage theory and practice, in the film editing,
montage theory is in the continuous development and
improvement. Keeping the montage thought, making the
montage to play its biggest role in the films, showing the
important role of montage in the film, making both the editing
and montage realize the perfect combination, which will make
the montage theory becoming better and approaching
perfection day by day.

20. Refrences:-
Annette , Kuhn FBA. “What Is Film Studies?” The British Academy,
https://www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/blog/what-is-film-studies/.
Bejoy, Nambiar. “Tere Bin.” Youtube, uploaded by Vidhu Vinod Chopra Films, 6
June 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyyI7ZcuW0k.
Heckmann, Chris, et al. “Soviet Montage - Where Film Editing Was Born.”
StudioBinder, 9 Mar. 2020, https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/soviet-montage-
theory/.
Li, Xiaoshu. “Research on the Montage Technique in the Film and Television.”
Proceedings of the International Conference on Education, Language, Art and
Intercultural Communication, 2014, https://doi.org/10.2991/icelaic-14.2014.150.
MasterClass. “Learn about Montage in Filmmaking: How to Create a Memorable
Movie Montage - 2021.” MasterClass, MasterClass, 15 Oct. 2021,
https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-montage-in-filmmaking-how-to-create-
a-memorable-montage#quiz-0.