Reading and Writing

“As a film or video editor, you edit the reality of your viewers”

(Schroeppel, 121).

This is a quote from The Bare Bones Camera Course For Film and Video that describes editing film and video as creating a vision for the viewers just as you edit everyday frames with your eyes. As a filmmaker, your choices of how the visuals and audio are presented help tell the story and convey your message clearly. When editing and establishing which shots make the viewers react to your message, it is important to have an objective eye. Schroeppel recommends taking some time after filming to come back to the editing process to make sure you are not too attached to the scenes and you can cut them without feeling too attached to them (Schroeppel, 123).

When creating your shot list, it is important to establish your setting within the first few shots of the film in order to introduce viewers to the world of the film. Another tip involves recognizing basic similar sequences and pairing them together such as a series of interviews or similar shots or frames in the same location. It is also important to make each shot is different than the previous so that the viewer is not confused why the shot only shifted slightly (Schroeppel, 130).

Lastly, the pacing is important when determining when to cut to the next shot. As an editor, it’s imperative to determine when the content is most captivating and when to switch in order to keep the viewer’s attention. The “Grammar of video editing tutorial” recommends a good rule of thumb is the second you are bored with a shot, cut to the next one. However, the content of your film is the most important factor that dictates the pace. Informative or more serious content requires longer shots whereas comedy and lighthearted content may work better with shorter cuts.

During the editing process, I have always enjoyed a cross dissolve, but learned that most editors don’t use cross-dissolves for standard editing. In “15 creative editing techniques every video editor should know“, Ryan McAfee says, they usually represent a passage of time and there should be motivation behind the dissolve (McAaffe, 2024). Therefore, having a purpose behind your transitions also makes your film seem more professional and captivating for the viewers.

Finally, Schroeppel recommends taking some time away not only after filming but also your editing process. It is helpful to come back to editing with a fresh eye and continue to edit from an un-biased perspective.

Research to Inform

This opening scene from Hot Fuzz is an example of very fast edits to show exposition and set the mood. The background of his life story is established in a very short amount of time with the fast edits and create a casual and humorous style.

This transition in Spiderman 2 from Spiderman into the Green Goblin’s sunglass lens is an interesting transition to note. Moving from a wide shots and shrinking it into an eyeglass lens is a clean transition and helps the viewer get the message that the Green Goblin is watching Spiderman’s every move.

The beginning scene in Big Fish has many dissolve transitions that show the passage of time as they show scenes from the protagonist’s childhood. There are also many panning scenes that transition into the next as the camera pans to show different parts of the protagonist’s life. This creates the storytelling aspect and helps establish the mystical and slower moving mood of the film.

Create

The montage below is entitled “Autumn in New York” and represents a video for tourists to show the beauty of Central Park in the fall. I found the editing and adding music, voice-over, and sound effects the most enjoyable part of the process. It was challenging to find enough autumn colored leaves to fill each specific shot, especially the wide once since all of the leaves haven’t turned to fall colors yet. It was also challenging to fight the natural elements of wind and find shots where people weren’t crossing into the frame because I was filming in a public park filled with people.

My tripod was helpful in creating steady shots, but it was challenging to find the right space and also carry all of the equipment and set it up quickly for each shot. I also found that the storyboard served as a great guideline and starting point but I ended up straying from some of my original ideas because I found better shots in the moment. Overall, I enjoyed the editing process and wish I had more time to finely tune the details even more.

Citations:

YouTube. (n.d.). Grammar of Video Editing Tutorial: Pacing. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_tIccGPgA4

McAfee, R. (2024, April 1). 15 creative editing techniques every video editor should know. Pond5 Blog. https://blog.pond5.com/11099-13-creative-editing-techniques-every-video-editor-should-know/

Schroeppel, T. (2018b). The Bare Bones Camera Course for film and video.