The document discusses various editing techniques used in television dramas such as cuts, shot reverse shots, matches on action, and fades to black. It provides examples of these techniques from the drama Sex Traffic and explains how they were used to build tension, keep viewers engaged, and follow the action. The document also contains tables analyzing editing devices and their functions used in film clips.

2. Wipe
Match on Action
180
Shot reverse shot
Fade to black
Dissolve
Cut List as many
transitions as
they can
think of that
would be
used in a TV
drama

3.  We are going to watch
the first 15 minutes of
Sex Traffic (2004)
 A powerful two-part
drama about two young
Moldovan sisters
kidnapped and
trafficked through
Europe to the dark side
of London, betrayed by
pimps and police, and
fighting for their lives. Watch now on 4oD

4. Transition Seen in Sex Traffic Why the transition was used in this drama
Cut Show the different characters involved – builds
tension/keeps viewers engaged
Shot reverse shot to show the conversation within the police station –
shows who is actually talking and their facial
expression which helps set the atmosphere
Match on action To follow the action scene – shows the scene from
different angles
Fade to black To introduce the drama after introductory sequence
– leaves the audience waiting to see what is going to
occur next

6. List the all of the
editing devices
that you can
think of

7.  Cutting – The simple change from one
shot/scene to another
 Cross Cutting - Editing that alternates shots
of two or more lines of action occurring in
different places, usually simultaneously. The
two actions are therefore linked, associating
the characters from both lines of action.

8.  We have studied this before for your
preliminary task.
 This is used in conversation to move from one
character to another and back again.

9.  Again we have studied this before
 This is where the camera shoots one
continuous piece of action and the edit
switches from one perspective to another.

10. A cut obeying the axis of action principle, in which the first shot shows a person off in one
direction and the second shows a nearby space containing what he or she sees. If the
person looks left, the following shot should imply that the looker is offscreen right. See
the example below -
First we see her looking... then we see what she looks at.
As her interest grows, the eyeline match (that is the connection between looker and
looked) is stressed with matching close-ups of her face and Icarus's falling into the ocean
in the painting. Again, this implies that she is looking directly at Icarus's body.

11. First we see her looking...
then we see what she looks
at.
As her interest grows, the
eyeline match (that is the
connection between looker
and looked) is stressed
with matching close-ups of
her face and the section of
the painting she is
interested in

12.  With pace you are looking for how long or
short the time between each edit is.
 If we are watching a car chase we would expect
the time to be short between each edit.
 A emotional drama may have much longer
between each of its cuts
 You can also think about rhythm. Have the
edits been timed to key moments or the beat
of the piece of music behind the scene?

13.  Watch this clip and analyse how the editing
techniques have been used in the clip.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gKkBzbdi
qV0
 Record examples for each of the techniques
using the table on the next slide.

14. Example from 24 Function of the editing
Editing Device interrogation scene devise
Cutting /Cross Cutting It simultaneously cuts from the It is used to change the location so
interrogation room to the CCTV that the audience do not get bored
room and back to the interrogation and distracted from what is going on.
room so the audience is able to see
the reaction of those who are not in
the room.
Shot Reverse-Shot The conversation between Jack ad Shows their facial expression, allows
Nina. the audience to understand what is
going on properly.
Match on Action When Jack begins to strangle Nina Match on action shows how people
you see a shot of people running are reacting to the situation and how
towards the interview room and then they present themselves when
you see them actually entering the entering into the room.
room.
Eyeline Match Jack looks left and then the shot It is used to ensure that Nina and the
changes to what he was looking at audience know that there is a camera
which was a camera. The shot zooms there is a camera there and that they
in to ensure that Nina is aware of it. are being watched.
Pace The pace is slow, and the action that As the tension between them
is occurring is happening to the increases the pace of scene increases
rhythm of the of the music. However, so that the audience stay engaged
once Jack turns over the table the and interested.
pace of the scene slightly increases.

15. In groups fill in the last
column of the table
evaluating the function
of the editing devices.

16.  Answer the following question:
 Does the use of editing in TV Dramas construct
the meaning about relationships between
characters.
 Post your response on your blog along with
this PowerPoint when it is filled in.