EDITING AND TRANSITIONS

Mitchell Frost

Cut■ The Cut is the most commonly used transition. A cut is where one shot is instantly

replaced by the next shot. ■ Just placing different shots you have shot next to each other creates a cut.■ Although simple, the cut can have devastating effects, with some of the most modern

and professional texts using it. ■ In my planning, I have planned to make use of the cut transition as I feel that the

transition is best for the majority of my trailer and will work well when used with a loud, deep bass sound. The cut will allow me to cut scenes off, leaving the audience wanting to see more. I hope to create a ‘choppy’ fast paced trailer using the cut transition.

■ Although I hope to use the cut transition, I realise that it is one of the most basic transitions. I recognise that I made heavy use of the transition in my AS production and therefore if I wish for my trailer to be an improvement, editing wise, of my AS production, I must look at exploring other transitions in order to create a professional looking trailer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJIr1Xl1V7cAn example of the cut transition used in a trailer.

Cross fade/dissolve

■ A gradual fade from one shot into the next is called a cross fade or dissolve.■ Cross fades create a more relaxed feel as they are slow and gradual. ■ Cross fades are typically used is certain scenarios, in order to create a relaxing

feel, to convey a sense of time and place. It is also typical to see the transition used in a scene of a film where a character is unconscious or dreaming.

■ I plan to use the cross fade at some point in my trailer as I like the sense of continuity it creates. I also particularly like that the transition helps to focus on the change in location and I hope to exploit this in my trailer in order to convey a range of locations in my full film. It is not typical to see many cross fades in a physiological thriller, however I will look to challenge this by making use of the transition in order to create a scene, a typical of what the audience is used to seeing, therefore exciting the audience and encouraging them to watch the film as this is something they would have never seen before.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpQGT5bbUBk&safe=active

An example of cross fades being used in a jewellery promotion video, here it is used in order to create a relaxed feel, making the film more appealing to look and at the same time helping to sell the product.

Jump Cut

■ A Jump cut is a transition which makes the scene appear as if it has Jumped forward in time. To do this a section of the footage must be removed, this fragments the scene.

■ Jump cuts draw attention to the man made/artificial side of the film and therefore can not be used to create continuity editing. A jump cut is most commonly used to confuse the audience, for example, during a fight scene, as this would portray what the character is feeling. The action that the audience have missed in between the jump cut, which has been deleted, is what gets them asking questions and actively consuming the film.

■ I feel that jump cuts are best used in order to cut out the less important parts and focus purely on the important parts.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1yUwWG5ikE

Several examples of Jump cuts used in contemporary films

Graphic match and cut away

■ A graphic match is where the end of one shot, ends with a frame which contains the same colour, shape, size (compositional elements).

■ A graphic match can be useful when connecting two scenes which a completely un related to each other; the transition is useful in forming a relationship between two scenes, no matter how disconnected they are.

■ A graphic match is a smooth transition and allows for continuity.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaGd6PQg3ig

An example of a graphic match

Parallel editing

■ Parallel editing is an editing technique, which cuts between two separate events which are happening at the same time. For example, it is typically seen in phone call scenes as it allows for the audience to see both characters speaking on the phone, although the characters themselves can not see each other.

■ Parallel editing gives the audience a better understanding of the narrative and presents them with the opportunity of being an omniscient audience.

■ Although sometimes the two scenes contain characters in different periods, with different costume, lighting, music etc. parallel editing helps draw some sort of connection between the two opposing scenes.

Adobe premier pro CS6

I will use Adobe Premier Pro CS6 in order to compile my footage and bring it all together to create a professional looking trailer, as part of a promotional package for my planned film ‘hatched’.Premier Pro CS6 is a piece of editing software which contains an extensive range of features and editing capabilities. All transitions of which I have discussed previously and will need to use in the production of my trailer are available on premier pro CS6. I chose to use premier pro to edit my trailer as I was already familiar with the programme as I had used it last year for the production and really took to the software after watching many tutorials on Adobe.tv and creativecow.com. The ease of the programme, is what swayed me towards continuing with the programme.