Unit 2: Communication Skills for Creative Media Production - Video Editing

Scenario – You are going to develop a web-log about video editing designed to help young people with their film production skills

Task 1

You will extract information about the development and principles of video editing from a range of written sources;

Books

Journals

Web-sites

Magazines

Newspapers

Identify at least three sources and print them out or photocopy them.

Read with concentration – skim read and scan three articles about video editing

Annotate the articles – write notes, summarize, highlight text, underline passages

Video your annotation or photograph the completed documents and upload them to your web-log.

Summarize the relevance of your research to your project

Summarize the purpose of your research.

Compile a bibliography of secondary sources

Video Editing Techniques

Seamless Editing/Continuity Editing:

When the cuts between shots are fluid and barely noticeable.

Fade Out:

The gradual fading from the picture and sound to black ( or another color) and silence.

Fade In:

The opposite of fade out.

Dissolve:

The Superimposition, a quick overlapping/mixing of two images (one image over the other) - usually implies a passage of time.

Superimpose:

The mixing, blending of many shots over one another to combine various different images. Created during the post production digital editing phase.

Cut:

A stop, or break in action usually indicated by moving from one camera angle or shot to another.

Slow Motion:

Slow Motion is a stylistic edit, which serves to slow down fast action and draw our attention to it.

Fast Motion:

The Speeding up a shot by its frame rate - to make things seem like they are moving faster.

Shot-reverse-shot:

A series of shots between two characters in a continuous fashion.

Match on Action (Reference 1):

Filming the same action from two different points/perspectives and editing them together to make them look seamless and as one although the clips could of been filmed weeks apart. If a character begins an action in the first shot and completes it in the next shot it creates a visual 'bridge' which disguises the cut.

Cross Cutting:

Cutting back and forth from one location to another, telling two stories t the same time between cuts, usually building up to similar climatic events.

Montage:

A single pictorial composition made by superimposing many pictures or designs.

In filmmaking, a montage is an editing technique in which shots are juxtaposed in an often fast-paced fashion that compresses time and conveys a lot of information in a relatively short period. (1)

Parallel Editing:
Parallel editing (cross cutting) is the technique of alternating two or more scenes that often happen simultaneously but in different locations. If the scenes are simultaneous, they occasionally culminate in a single place, where the relevant parties confront each other. Used often to create tension and suspense. (2)

(Following shots taken from the popular TV show: Peaky Blinders)

Establishing/ Master Shot:

A shot, at the head of the scene that clearly shows the locale the action is set in. Often comes after the aerial shot.

Aerial Shot:
Birds eye view shot, usually computer generated.

Crane Shot:

A shot where the camera is placed on a crane or jib and moved up or down. Think a vertical tracking shot.

Hand Held: A shot in which the camera operator holds the camera during motion to create a jerky, immediate feel.

Dutch Tilt: A shot where the camera is tilted on its side to create a kooky angle. Often used to suggest disorientation.

Medium Shot: The shot that utilizes the most common framing in movies shows less than a long shot, more than a close-up.

Close Up: A shot that keeps only the face full in the frame. Perhaps the most important building block in cinematic storytelling.

Long Shot: A shot that depicts an entire character or object from head to foot. Not as long as an establishing shot. Aka a wide shot.

High Angle: A shot looking down on a character or subject often isolating them in the frame.

Low Angle: A shot looking up at a character or subject often making them look bigger in the frame. It can make everyone look heroic and/or dominant. Also good for making cities look empty.

Over the Shoulder Shot: A shot where the camera is positioned behind one subject's shoulder, usually during a conversation. It implies a connection between the speakers as opposed to the single shot that suggests distance.

Two Shot: A medium shot that depicts two people in the frame. Used primarily when you want to establish links between characters or people who are beside rather than facing each other.

Subjective Point of View:

An individuals unique perspective through his or her own eyes.

Pans:
swing (a video or film camera) in a horizontal plane, typically to give a panoramic effect or follow a subject.

Tilts:
swing (a video or film camera) on a vertical axis - sky to floor or floor to sky.

Forward Tracking:
A tracking shot is any shot where the camera moves alongside the object(s) it is recording in a forwards motion typically using what is known as a Camera Dolly on a track.It is a shot that follows a subject be it from behind or alongside or in front of the subject.

Reverse Tracking:

A tracking shot is any shot where the camera moves alongside the object(s) it is recording in a reverse motion typically using what is known as a Camera Dolly on a track. It is a shot that follows a subject be it from behind or alongside or in front of the subject.

Vertical Tracking:
A tracking shot is any shot where the camera moves alongside the object(s) it is recording in a vertical motion up/down typically using what is known as a Camera Dolly on a track. It is a shot that follows a subject be it from behind or alongside or in front of the subject.

Zoom In:
To increase rapidly the magnification of the image of a distant object by means of a zoom lens.

Zoom Out:
To decrease rapidly the magnification of the image of a distant object by means of a zoom lens. To consider the essential points, rather than the details of a subject.

(6)

Arc Shot:
A shot in which the subject is circled by the camera.

Bridging Shot:
A shot that denotes a shift in time or place, like a line moving across an animated map.

Cowboy Shot:
A shot framed from mid thigh up, so called because of its recurrent use in Westerns.

Deep Focus:
A shot that keeps the foreground, middle ground and background ALL in sharp focus.

Dolly Zoom:
A shot that sees the camera track forward toward a subject while simultaneously zooming out creating a woozy, vertiginous effect.

Locked-down shot:
A shot where the camera is fixed in one position while the action continues off-screen.

Library Shot:
A pre-existing shot of a location — typically a wild animal — that is pulled from a library.

Matte Shot:
A shot that incorporates foreground action with a background, traditionally painted onto glass, now created in a computer.

The Sequence Shot:
A long shot that covers a scene in its entirety in one continuous sweep without editing.

Steadicam Shot:
A shot from a hydraulically balanced camera that allows for a smooth, fluid movement.

Top Shot:
A shot looking directly down on a scene rather than at an angle. Also known as a Birds-Eye-View shot.

180° Rule (Reference 2):

The 180° rule is a cinematography guideline that states that two or more characters in a scene should maintain the same left/right relationship to one another . When the camera passes over the invisible axis connecting the two subjects, it is called crossing the line and the shot becomes what is called a reverse angle. This rule is set when filming to avoid confusion of the audience and is established when the initial shot is set up.

All coverage should be shot from one side of this 'imaginary' line. Subconsciously the audience will form a mental map of where the characters are located in the scene from the first master shot. Crossing this line can be very disconcerting to an audience and, at least momentarily, takes them out of the story and leaves them re-establishing their understanding of of the scene which should be heavily avoided.

An example of this in a simple case is an actor walking down the street, if the first shot shows them walking from right to left, then all of the coverage should be showing the actor walking from right to left. If you jump to the other side of the actor, therefore crossing the line and breaking the 180 degree rule, it appears as if the actor has decided to return from where they came from now walking from left to right although not altering the actors actions.

A difficulty is posed when there is a circle of actors in the scene, the 'Line' will change position and alter to the dynamics of the conversation change which needs to be carefully planned so the shots can be edited taking the audience gently to a new understanding of the layout of the scene as the position of the line changes with each shot.

However the rule can be broken in creative and purposeful ways. It can be broken to add interest to a scene or exaggerate the producers/directors intentions of impact on the audience such as creating a feeling of disorientation to enhance the storytelling. Another example could be used to express character emotion such as confusion in the mind of one of the characters. It can also be broken without confusion by physically showing the camera movement crossing the line.

Historical Development of Film Editing:

Edison – (3)

When Edison’s assistant W.K.L Dickson invented the motion picture viewer the device turned out to be an instant success, although Edison hoped the invention would boost the sales of the phonograph (record player), they could not conclude a way to match the sound with the images.

This led Edison to conduct the creation of the Kinetoscope a device giving you the ability to view motion pictures however without sound. Patented in August 1897 most of the early Kinetoscope films have burnt due to the acidic base of the film, luckily enough for us he produced paper copies of the individual frames on the film a prime example of this would be Edison’s first ever moving pictures ‘Fred Ott’s Sneeze.”

Movies at the time we considerably short due to the fact Edison believed that a viewer would not be able to stand the ‘flickering’ for a long period of time (lasting no longer than 10 minutes). Initially the Kinetoscope could only be viewed by one person at a time however this was soon replaced by screen projectors so the film could be viewed by a whole room of people at once.

Expanding from this both Edison and his assistant wanted to film a high umber of motion pictures so they opened the first ever movie studio in 1893 known ad the ‘Black Maria’. Using this studio they created between 200 and 300 films examples such as the ‘Three Acrobats’ produced in 1899.

Lumiere Brothers – (4)

The Lumiere brothers were French pioneer manufacturers and inventors of Photographic equipment and were able to create an early motion- picture camera and projector called the Cinématographe.

The Cinématographe was a device, created in early 1895, which combined the Camera with the Printer and Projector. Officially patenting it in February 1895 this new device was smaller than Edison’s Kinetograph, hand cranked, and lightweight.

The most key innovation was the mechanism through which allowed the film to be transported through the camera. Using two pins or claws they could be inserted into the Sprocket holes already punched into the Celluloid film strip, these pins would move along and retract the film leaving it stationary during exposure.

This device had the ability to record, develop and project motion pictures allowing it to go down in history as the first viable film camera. They then used this to capture footage of workers leaving a factory at the end of the day known as “La Sortie des ouvriers de l’usine Lumière” (“Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory”) which is considered to be the first motion picture.

Leading from this the brothers unveiled the Cinématographe in their first public screening in December 1895 after a number of other private screenings. IN early 1896 they then opened Cinématographe theaters in London, New York, Belgium and Brussels and produced more than 40 films in that year alone.

By 1905, the brothers withdrew themselves from the movie making business to favor the developing of the first practical photographic color process which was known as the Lumiere Auto chrome.

D.W. Griffith – (5)

D.W. Griffith was known as one of the earliest directors and producers in cinema, making his name with his innovations and directing the film ‘Birth of a Nation’ in 1915.

He originally worked as an actor and playwright before turning to cinema, creating innovative filmmaking techniques. Although he directed the feature length blockbuster movie ‘Birth of a Nation’ it was highly racist within its content. This movie told the story of the Civil war and the Reconstruction era based and adapted from the book ‘The Clansmen’. This was first seen in the U.S and was further lauded for its pioneering storytelling forms, which still greatly influences modern moviemaking and shapes ideas around audience cultivation.

Furthering the idea of racist themes the blockbuster movie was blatantly racist and distorted history with straying depictions of African Americans. The story line involved the creation of the Ku Klux Klan formed in vengeance over a women’s death. Although gaining a lot of criticism the film continued to run and spurred outrage in a variety of places leading to as an example: riots breaking out during the show.

Griffith was able to achieve this blockbuster due to his highly innovative with his filmmaking techniques utilizing close-ups, cross-cutting, cultivating a deeper emotional milieu (a person's social environment) and fade outs to distinctive effect which was a major breakthrough in filmmaking technology creating possibilities that would help develop film in a massive manor.

Georges Melies (Reference 3):

Melies being a performing magician at the time luckily owned his own theater and after being inspired by the Lumiere brothers Cinematogragh in 1895 he decided to add films to his program using a projector, from the English inventor R.W. Paul, to build his own camera as the Lumiere brothers were not as of yet selling machinery.

Melies over his time made films in all the genres of the day and during his first year of production he created 78 films (most of which is lost) this includes his first trick film 'The Vanishing Lady' in 1896:

This was simply achieved by stopping the camera and substituting the skeleton for the woman before continuing to film however in Melies later work he used stop-motion and other special effects to create more complex magic and fantasy scenes which was fascinating at the time due to the few laboratory manipulations possible. He also acted in many of his films and was recognized as a dapper and spry figure due to his features.

In order to control the mise-en-scene and cinematography of his films he built a small glass enclosed studios in 1897 which gave him the ability to design and construct sets and bring them to life from canvas flats.

Melies' 1899 film 'The Dreyfus Affair' told the story of a Jewish officer that was convicted of treason in 1894 due to false evidence put forth from anti-semiotic motives. The controversy that was still raging when the Pro-Dreyfus picture was being produced. He then further released each of the ten shots as a separate film which when shown together, the shots combined into one of the most complex pieces of work of cinemas early years. However modern prints of 'The Dreyfus Affair' typically are combined with all the shots in a single reel.

Leading from this Melies began joining multiple shots and selling them as one film beginning with 'Cinderella' in 1899. His work became extremely popular, mainly his fantasies, in France and abroad which furthermore lead to imitations and pirating so Melies had to open an sales office in 1903 to protect his content.

In his first years of production his films involved very sophisticated stop motion effects which a recent discovery of utilizing editing supports this and cancels out criticism of Melies depending on static theatrical sets. He would cut the film in order to match the movement of one object perfectly with that of the thing into which it was transformed and these cuts were designed to be unnoticeable. Melies often also enhanced the beauty of his elaborately designed mise-en-scene using hand allied tinting.

References/Sources:

References:

Reference 1 -

Reference 2 -

Written Version (with annotation) :

Cinematography 180 degree rule

What is The 180 degree rule?

You'll hear people talk about the 180 degree rule and not crossing or crossing the line when filming coverage. What is the line they're referring to?

If you can imagine an actor walking or running in a direction then you can picture the path they are following as a line. If two actors are talking to each other then draw a line to connect the two places where they are standing and extend the line in each direction to the edges of the set. Even if there are many actors in the scene you can still draw a line connecting the two opposing sides of the action.

All coverage should generally be shot from one side or the other of this imaginary line. The audience subconsciously forms a mental map of where the actors are located in the scene and from the first master shot will be thinking that "Mary is on the left and John is on the right".

If you go to a close-up of Mary filmed from the other side of the line it will suddenly appear that Mary has jumped to right side of the set. This kind of change is very disconcerting to an audience and, at least momentarily, takes them out of the story as they attempt to reestablish their understanding of where everyone is located. You want to avoid anything that takes your audience out of the emotion of the scene.

In the simple case of one actor walking down the street, if the first setup shows them walking from the right to the left, then all the other coverage should show them walking from the right to the left. If you jump to the other side of the line you break the 180 degree rule and it looks like the character has suddenly decided to return to where they came from. You can do this if you need to include a shot of the actor turning a corner for the scene to make sense.

A difficulty comes when you have a circle of actors in a room or seated around a table. The "line" will change position as the dynamics of the conversation change. Then the director needs to carefully plan where the coverage is shot so the edit can gently take the audience to a new understanding of the layout of the scene as the position of the line changes.

How To Creatively Break The 180 Degree Rule

Stanley Kubrick and other directors have become known for breaking the 180 degree rule. Sometimes seemingly to add interest to a scene but there are other creative uses for breaking the 180 degree rule. Such uses include if the director wants to create a feeling of disorientation in the audience to enhance the storytelling. Another use could be to show confusion in the mind of one of the characters. Jumping back and forth across the line while the character contenplates a difficult decision would demonstrate his mental state.

In this video from YouTube Richard Pena does an excellent job of explaining one example of how to maintain the 180 degree rule, even when the actors change positions.