Unit 21- Editing techniques

By Paris Beszant
 Well done, Paris, you’ve achieved a solid Merit.
To get a higher grade for Learning Aim 1 you only have to develop your
underdstanding on a few slides but you must act on the comments below
and read the specs on weebly to see how!!!
EFFECTS
To add effects that aren’t possible
when filming.
To add on screen graphics- text and
background music.
Sound effects- parallel -reflects
what’s shown on screen.
Contrapuntal- contrast to what is
shown on screen.
Too add inserts/ overlays- archive
footage.
EFFECTS AUDIENCE
Creates an effect on the audience-
evoke an emotion.
Shapes our responses- emotional
impact psychological impact.
Audience positioning- viewer, victim,
violator.
Thought provoking creates enigma.
SHOTS TIME
Editing can show a variety of To slow or speed up a shot.
shots- engage the audience. To change the order of shots.
Transitions- change of To add flashbacks or flash forwards.
location- audience positioning. Linear/ Chronological.
To create an order. Continuity montage- makes a
Transitions- fade, dissolve, soft connection between shots, can show a
focus, hard focus. passing of time or to show a hint
towards a message or meaning.
Ellipses editing- showing a passing of
time.
THE PURPOSE OF EDITING Shot/ sequence duration.
NARRATIVE
To slow or speed up a pace of shots.
Plot- on/off screen- including text.
Story- on/off screen.
Structure.
Character- screen time.
Characters- the convey a type of.
THE MILLER AND THE SWEEP (1898)
The Miller and the Sweep was one of the first films to be made.It was
done in one take because of not being able to edit. It does not have
many editing techniques and it only lasts around 40 seconds.This is
because they did not have much equipment and weren’t able to
create many techniques. However, they did use one technique called
the 180 degree rule which allows the camera to only film from 180
degrees so this doesn’t confuse the audience and the characters
would be out of place. The film is in black and white , this is because
of not having the ability to have colour in those days. The film is
about a miller and a sweep who get into a fight and you can clearly
see the difference in the Miller and Sweep because the Miller is
dressed in white and the Sweep in dressed in black. You can also see
because of the direction the are walking in. The miller has walked
from the mill where as the sweep has walked from the complete
opposite way.The Miller and Sweep film has established rules that
have been used a century later. Binary opposition has also been used
where two opposites have been placed in the same film, the idea of
good vs evil has been shown in this short film, shows one character
coming from the left or the screen and the right of the screen.
 A TRIP TO THE MOON (1902) BY GEORGE MELIES.
A Trip To The Moon is a film made in 1902. George Melies created this film, he was an illusionist and was the
first to use in camera editing which was a big development in the film industry. Trip To The Moon was also
the first sci-fi film to be made. It is 13 minutes long and shows a number of techniques, including ellipsis
editing which Mellies was the first to introduce. This film is more advanced than The Miller and The Sweep
because it was made after and therefore more techniques had been developed. The first ever dissolve was
used, this was used through a process called destructive editing where the dissolve was made through cutting
the tape and putting the two tapes together and overlapping them. This technique shows the transition in
time. There is still no dialogue but there is music,non diegetic music, which builds up during the film to show
the different stages of going to the moon. They tried to also use a dolly by getting someone to move towards
the camera because the cameras were too heavy back then to move the actual camera and needed someone to
move toward the camera rather than moving a heavy camera towards the person and the props. This is used
when the person is the moon and he/she moves towards the camera. This film is a lot more developed than
The Miller and The Sweep but not as developed as The Great Train Robbery.
 THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY (1903)
Ellipsis editing is used to change location and sense time. In
‘The Great Train Robbery’ ellipsis editing is used when the
robbers leave the guard’s house to go and take the train.
The train is in the background of both images to show the
audience that the footage is live. In the first image the
train is moving to show this and then cuts to the next
scene where again the train is in the background
In this shot the film maker uses a
dummy to show the actor
throwing the man off of the train
after they are fighting and he has
beaten him up. Using a dummy is
easier to show the man being
thrown off because you can’t
actually throw the real actor off.
The Great Train Robbery was made in 1903 by a man called
Edwin S. Porter, he worked for Thomas Edison who invented
light bulbs meaning Porter had access to all the latest
technology of the time. This film has a lot more techniques in
it and is more developed. It uses parallel editing to cross cut
between narrative. This was mainly done through destructive
editing when you would cut the tape and stick them together
In this film there are four different narratives. The guards, the robbers
(the hole in the wall gang) ,the town’s people and the sheriff’s posse.
The guards perspective is him being tied up and left alone in his house
to then his daughter finding him. Then the robbers perspectives of
them tieing up the guard and then leaving him and stealing the train.
The town people’s perspective of being at the barn dance and then
having the guard come from his house to tell everyone then having the
sheriff’s posse go to find the robbers and arrest them.
Only the rich were able to go to the cinema
because of the cost and in the film there is a scene
of the rich being made to surrender. Being a rich
person at the cinema watching this you would be
scared in case that happened to you.
 THE BIRTH OF A NATION (1915)
In The Birth Of A Nation was created by D.W Griffith in 1915, Griffith worked with Porter in the early days of film production and
is able to get the latest film equipment. Griffith is also said to have invented the language fro film including words like close up ,
long shot and zoom. This film uses many techniques including cross cutting,eyeline match, titles and graphics and the use of the
iris lens in the camera creating flashbacks and different colouring to show the different timing. The film starts off with discussing
slavery and has flashbacks of the time before when slavery was allowed.This film is a lot more advanced than earlier films because
more techniques had been discovered including the use of the iris camera, this created flashbacks which made the audience
understand that this was a flashback and therefore knew what was going on, this is used a lot in the first 3 minutes of the film. The
iris shot makes us focus on the young boy and the camera focuses only on him. It then focuses on the father and his daughter who
are on the opposite side to the young boy , they agree with slavery. In this film the first ever eyeline match was also created and
used to show the brother reading a letter then to a shot of the letter so that for the first time the audience could feel involved in the
screen action because they could also see what the character was reading. The film also uses cross cutting to show the scene
moving from the brothers to the sister and her cat, in the first three screenshots it goes from the siblings talking to then reading a
letter and cuts back to them. This film is better than the first two because of the difference in the use of the camera because the
cameras in The Miller and The Sweep had to stay still and were positioned in one place , this was a static camera where as in this
film the cameras were much lighter and smaller and were easier to move about. Cross cutting is used in the film to a parallel
narrative within a sequence. Murch’s 6 editing techniques help the audience to know what is going on, these are effects , shots,
narrative, time and effect’s audience. The different variety of shots help to audience to engage, the use of close ups and over the
shoulder and a iris shot. These shots allow the audience to understand which shot is which and what effect the filmmaker is trying
to get across.
 MOVIOLA (1924)
The Moviola cutting machine was developed in the 1920’s, it was used to edit movies by Iwan
Serrurier in 1924. In the 1920’s it would have cost around 600 dollars now it costs much more than
that about 20,000 dollars. During 1923 only 3 machines were sold, However this now allowed edits
to incorporate sound for the first time and is used in the film industry when editing films. The
Moviola allowed film editors to view film whilst editing, this made it much easier for them to edit. It
allowed the editors to study individual shots in their cutting rooms. The Moviola is still in existence
now
CITIZEN KANE (1941) BY ORSON WELLES.
Citizen Kane starts off with several scenes shot outside of where the character lives.The house appears to
always be in the background of every scene that has been shot, the house does not look appealing and looks
quite threatening, there are several fades in and out of the different shots. Enigma is created because we
have no idea of what is going on or who the man is. The slow pace and melancholic atmosphere, suggests or
foreshadows impending doom.The audience doesn’t know what is going on as there is nobody telling us
and there is no voice over to let us know what is happening. Citizen Kane is a much more developed film
that the others we have covered it has a film stock of better quality and new lighter weight cameras which
allowed Welles to film with post production editing in mind. Collecting shots to edit together meant that
this allowed him to control the pace of the narrative,time and space. We are meant to understand that the
man who is shown later in the scene was not allowed to enter the place when he was younger but closer to
the end we see how it is no longer closed off , he is wealthy and has now been allowed to enter as time has
gone on and he has grown up. As he rises up in status he is allowed into places like this. Dissolves are used
in the start to show the transition in time and power, status and wealth.The opening of Citizen Kane is slow
and the slow paced transition of time builds up the enigma in the opening scenes.Fades are used to show
the development of character and to manipulate time. The camera is a subjective camera where Welles has
carefully chosen what he wants us to see. The editing in the sequence is ellipsis editing.
This is the first 15 shots of the opening
to citizen kane, these first few shots
show the transition in time and power
and wealth of the character. The
opening has many dissolves and are
put in the position to watch the slow
pace transition and delay in
time.Enigma is being created in these
scenes and suspense is being built up.
 SUSAN ALEXANDER KANE
In the opening we see an image of a woman Susan Alexander and then the camera goes up through the sign which is lit
up and in bold writing except for her name which is dull and not as clear as the rest of the sign. The camera then goes
through the cracked,broken window where we see Miss alexander alone looking sad and depressed,we go in the
window with her as if we are the camera dn are with the camera looking over her and her life. The broken glass in the
window could reflect her and how she may be feeling, her heart and dreams maybe been broken and therefore not
worth it anymore. She may be a singer in the club she is sitting in but we first see her alone possibly drunk or
drinking.The glass being shattered shows her shattered life. She has been shown through the roof of the glass of the
building to see a side of her we are not meant to see, the sound has also been edited to synchronize with her mood.We
as an audience are looking at her through the glass, possibly sneaking up on her to show her life in a different
perspective. She is normally a bubbly show woman but we are seeing the side of her that is possibly shattered and a
side she doesn’t show people. Her dreams of being a big star may have been shattered and her life is not what she had
wanted it to be. When we see the main character we see a medium shot of her so we can clearly see her face and what
she is doing and in this case she is drinking and looks upset with the way her life is going. The first real shot we see of
Miss Alexander isn’t a happy one , we do not see her enjoying herself or having a good time. In fact we see her unhappy
and looks as if her life is not going to plan at the point and she is stuck performing in this club and even that is not
going well as her name isnt lit up in the sign , this suggests she may be out of a job or not be able to work there
anymore. This scene shows us the possibility in downfall in a character's career. The first shot we see is her face and
this is a close up to show us who she is and what she looks like.
 BREAKFAST MONTAGE
In the breakfast scene Kane and Emily are at the table having breakfast each morning of the time they are married.
In the first few shots you can tell that the two characters are very much in love as they are sitting close together but
as the years go on and the couple’s marriage goes on, the further apart they are getting, they go from sitting next to
each other and staring lovingly in each others eyes to sitting completely on opposite sides of the table. The whole
sequence we are shown is a flashback. We see a whole lifetime of marriage disintegrate in the space of one scene.
Emily grows more confident over the years and challenges him where as he grows in power and more dismissive
,egotistical and powerful. Sound added in post production to create atmosphere , mood and to develop character
The scene spans over several years. The shots used are mostly close ups, medium close ups and full body shots this
is to show the characters and their facial expressions and emotions throughout their marriage as they have grown
apart throughout their life together. Their facial expressions start off happy and looking in love but then as the years
go on and the scenes go on they start to look more unhappy and less in love than they did in the first scenes
together.

Shows how the couple's marriage spans over several years and how they have grown apart over than time, in the
first image they look in love , you can tell from their closeness whereas the last image they are sitting on opposite
sides of the table and are not even talking.
 THE STEENBECK FLATBED EDIToR (1953)
A flatbed editor is a type of machine used to edit film for motion picture.Steenbeck is manufacturing film editing
tables for the motion picture industry. Picture and sound rolls load onto separate motorized disks, called “plates”.
Each set of plates moves forward and backward separately, or locked together to maintain synchronisation between
picture and sound. A prism reflects the film image onto a viewing screen , while a magnetic playback head reads the
magnetic audio tracks. Steenbeck is a company that manufactures flatbed editors. The Steenbeck company was
founded in 1931 by Wilhelm Steenbeck in Hamburg, Germany. More than 25,000 machines are in operation around
the world. It was used in a film called ‘jimmy’s hall’.
LINEAR AND NONLINEAR EDITING (70s-90s)
Linear video editing is a process of selecting, arranging and modifying images and sound in a
predetermined, ordered sequence from start to finish. Linear editing is most commonly used
when working with videotape. Unlike film videotape cannot be physically cut into pieces to be
spliced together to create a new order. Linear editing is simple and inexpensive.Linear editing is
when everything is in order from start to middle to end , all in order without flash backs.
The Nonlinear video editing method is a way of random access editing, which means instant
access to whatever clip you want, whenever you want. So instead of going in a set order you are
able to work on any segment of the project at any time in any order you want.Non linear editing
includes flashbacks and the film is not all in order , it includes flashbacks which allows the
audience to know what happened before.
Non-linear editing is the most natural approach when all assets are available as files on video
servers or hard disks rather than recordings on reels or tapes—while linear editing is tied to the
need to sequentially view film or hear tape.
 TRAINSPOTTING (1996)
In the film trainspotting one of the main rules in editing gets broken when one of the characters is in a
interview and he has taken drugs. The 30 degree rule gets broken when a series of jump cuts have been
used but this makes it very noticeable that the jump cuts are happening, in editing you are not meant to
know that the jump cut is happening but in Trainspotting this is shown very clearly and the audience can
see that this is going on ,his is meant the show that the character is on drugs but it is too noticeable to the
audience. The rule is broken because the camera is moving forwards and backward and less than 30
degrees. This scene follows the 180 degree rule but does not follow the 30 degree as all the cameras stay on
one side , following the 180 degree rule but failing to follow the 30 degree. In these images you can see the
difference in the closeness and when watching as an audience you can see it jump from one scene to the
next.
CGI EDITING (2000)
CGI is the creation of still or animated visual content with imaging software. It is the application of
computer graphics to create or contribute to images in media, television and game. CGI is used to
produce images for many purposes including visual art, advertising and film special effects etc. CGI is
used a lot in modern day film , in the film Saving Private Ryan it is used a lot with green screens and
creating fake explosions to put in the film to look real. CGI can also be made from 3D graphics, it allows
visual scenes to be two dimensional and is used mostly for creating scenes or special effects in films and
television. They used CGI in this scene below where they turned a green screen into looking like they
was climbing up a hill that now looks like they are climbing over water and used a green screen fake
explosion to create real explosions in the film that they were not able to create in real filming.
 MOTION CAPTURE
Motion Capture is the process of recording reliable data for movement analysis, the process of recording the
movement of people and objects. Motion Capture is when dots are placed on humans to allow the editors to
change them into something else.It was used in both King Kong and Planet Of The Apes, they used it to
change the human body movements into animal body movements using dots placed on their bodies. It has
to be used in these films because of having animals in it as the main characters they must use motion
capture to allow the actors to act as animals and pre form animal movement and because this is not possible
just through the actors acting and the unability for humans to move like apes would Motion Capture must be
used for this to be allowed. Among the other cameras on set , one sits on the actors helmet to make sure all
of the actors facial expressions are caught and that every exact facial expression is caught because the
actors have to act exactly like apes and follow every moment that apes do. This has to happen because
human and apes have different muscles so when the actor must where the camera so the editors can edit it
to make the actors facial expressions into an apes.
MONTAGE Editing & THE SOVIETS (1920’s)
The ‘Soviet Montage Theory” is an approach to understanding and creating cinema that relies on
editing. Montage is a process of cutting up film and editing it into the screened sequence.This is
normally used to advance the plot in some way. Intellectual montage is the juxtaposition of short shots
to represent action or ideas. Montage was further developed by Lev Kuleshov and Sergei Eisenstein ,
Kuleshov said that by the way shots are placed will show the difference in how they are viewed by the
audience. The Soviet Montage Theory is to understand they way in which montage works, Soviet
filmmakers in the 1920’s disagreed with the way montage worked. Pre war Russian cinemas had relied
on importing a large number of films and most of the basic materials of making films. In the 1920s
film stock was unavailable to film makers therefore unable to make films, films were edited with new
intertitles to improve their content, films has music and drama added to them.
MONTAGE- LEV KULESHOV
Lev Kuleshov is a soviet filmmaker , was the first to dissect the effects of juxtaposition of images, through
his experiment and research he discovered that depending on how shots are assembled. He created the
effect that if the audience were shown the same man pulling the same facial expression but shown three
different things then the audience would think he is reacting completely different to the three scenarios
but he is not. Kuleshov put the scene of the man firstly reacting to a bowl of soup then to a coffin then to
a woman.However , the man was reacting completely the same to all three the audience just didn’t notice
because Kuleshov had discovered the idea of cutting and putting it in whatever order. The six scenes
below are of the actor reacting to the three different things he was placed with. Even though, we can tell
that the man is reacting the same the audience did not and thought his reaction included hunger, sadness
and lust.
 MONTAGE- SERGEI EISENSTEIN
Sergei Eisenstein created the idea of metric, rhythmic, tonal, overtonal and intellectual editing.
Intellectual editing is a way of creating meaning through the juxtaposition of shots and the use of “intellectual montage” contributes in
creating meaning through juxtaposition of two shots or more which collide to produce another one which becomes purely conceptual. The
idea of the concept behind this sequence that Eisenstein builds here is the idea that the lion is a visual metaphor of the bombarded people.
The lion represents that they are now ready for revolution. Metric editing is used to show linear time or mythical time, the pram with the
baby falling down the steps would happen normally a lot faster than it did, it creates mythical time by making the baby falling take much
more time than it should because people’s reactions are being shown and this also creates suspense and fear. Rhythmic editing is used to
show the soldier's feet on the steps and then the baby falling down the stairs, the two opposing forces descending at the same time, the
innocent baby in the pram and the murdering group if troops. Tonal editing is show through emotion by the use of lights, shadows and
framing, the woman on the stairs with her son is a key part of emotion shown in the scene. Overtonal editing is rhythmic, metric and tonal
all together. ‘Fragments (cinematic shots) have no meaning of its own but is a unit of discourse and as such participates in creating meaning
through its relationship with other fragments.
PUDOVKIN(1893-1953)
Pudovkin was Kuleshov’s most outstanding student and he invented the five different editing techniques,
in the 1920’s when the soviets got access to film and editing equipment he created some of the liveliest
films, he was a propagandist. He invented five editing techniques , these are..
1)Contrast
2)Parallelism
3)Symbolism
4)Simultaneity and
5)Leit Motif.
Each of these five techniques are used in every film in the world, they help the film to become better and
by using Pudovkin’s techniques the audience will understand the shots use and the need for that use.
 PUDOVKIN’S FIVE EDITING TECHNIQUES- CONTRAST
The first editing technique is Contrast,this is when you cut from one shot to a drastically different shot, these
are to compare two different scenes together. This is used in the Godfather in the baptism scene. When one of
the Tony Montana is having his Godson baptised and he is saying in church that he will help to raise this child
to do no wrong but then it cuts to a lot of people being killed because the main character has got his men to go
and kill all of these people. The film cuts back and forth from the baby being baptised to the people being
killed. As he is renouncing the devil his men are gunning people down. Cutting from one scene to another
shows that one good thing is happening whilst another bad thing is happening and both of these things are
caused by the same man. Another example is ‘Space Odyssey’ where a bone is thrown in the air and then cuts
to a space station, this is to show how mankind has evolved over time.
 PUDOVKIN’S FIVE EDITING TECHNIQUES- PARALLELISM
Parallelism is a way of connecting to scene’s visually by matching certain elements within the scene. This is
used in the film ‘Hugo’, when the interconnections of a clock then fades to the streets of Paris in 1930.
Parallelism is often used to jump from one time period or location to another. Steven Spielberg also does
this in ‘Indiana Jones’ , the film cuts from a young Indiana Jones and jumps forward in time , 26years to
him at a much later date. This is also used in ‘Jurassic World’ , the scene cuts from a woman screaming to a
man yawning waiting for a train whilst the train brakes screech in the background, this can also been said to
be the same as Alfred Hitchcock’s, 39 steps scene . Where pretty much the same thing happens.
PUDOVKIN’S FIVE EDITING TECHNIQUES- SYMBOLISM
A symbolic cut is one of the most famous cuts. This is used in the film ‘Lawrence Of Arabia’ when the
character Lawrence is talking to an officer about going to the desert and trying to convince him that they
should let him go, he then lights a match which is focused on an then cuts to a sunset. The juxtaposition of
these two shots underscores the fiery heat and harshness of the desert. Also in Alfred Hitchcock’s psycho it
cuts from blood flowing down a drain to the dead woman's eye , this is a metaphor of life flowing down the
drain. These two shots both relate to what is happening in the scenes , the first one the flame turns to a
sunset and the second one a plughole turns into a dead woman eye.
PUDOVKIN’S FIVE EDITING TECHNIQUES- SIMULTANEITY
Simultaneity is also called cross-cutting. This is used in the film ‘Silence Of The Lambs’ , the movie cuts back
and forth of a swat team preparing to enter the house of the serial killer whilst he is inside trying to save his
dog from the well that he has a woman trapped in, the scene then ends when the doorbell is rung, we notice
that the cross cutting is a red herring. The swat team are at the wrong house but the FBI woman is at the
right house but she is all alone because the swat team has turned up at the wrong place. This throws the
audience off because at one point you think that the murderer is going to be captured but then it cuts and
the swat team is at the wrong house but the FBI agent is in trouble because she's alone. When the swat team
realise no one is at the house they are at , the main agent realises what has happened and says the FBI
agents name who is at the other house as he knows she is in danger, this is when the scene ends.
 PUDOVKIN’S FIVE EDITING TECHNIQUES- LEIT MOTIF
Leit Motif is used as a musical term used in films to be associated with a character or place. This is used
in ‘Star Wars’ and in ‘Jaws’. When the shark is coming to bite the people, in the underwater shot of the
shark’s perspective of going to bite the people. In ‘Jaws’ you know when the shark is coming when the
music plays and this music builds up the tension, this makes the audience aware of what is happening at
this point in the film. Also in ‘Star Wars’ this is used when they are marching and when some of the
main characters are arriving on the screen, again this allows the audience to understand what is
happening in that sequence of events.
Star Wars Jaws
 ALFRED HITCHCOCK’S ‘PSYCHO’ (1960)
In the shower scene in Hitchcock’s film Psycho was the first slasher movie to be made. The montage editing technique is used
to join a sequence of cuts this technique is used to make the killing more realistic and to hide the fact the knife is not actually
entering the woman’s body. 70 plus shots are used to create the scene of the character Marion Crane and her being murdered.
In this scene a graphic match is used to show the shape of the plughole then fades to the shot of her eye, this is used because
her eye is relatively the same shape as the plughole and it is shown her life is going down the plughole. Intellectual Montage is
used when we see the characters blood going down the plughole this is also to show her life literally going down the drain. We
never see the knife enter the characters body but we can hear the noises that the knife would make if it actually did enter the
woman’s body. Sounds were synchronized with the actions of the characters to show what was going on, this is used to make
the audience jump and feel scared. The sounds of the violins intercut with the screams combined with the fast pace of the knife
reflects the panic she must be feeling and allows to audience to feel that and understand it. The character gets killed off and it’s
not even half way through the film.
TEAM AMERICA
Hollywood has used montage in parody as well as to condense time, parody is mocking action films and Rocky, GI
joe, Karate kid and Rom-Com films, all showing the puppet in the different stages, shooting then fighting then
shaving his face which is like getting ready to go on a date and is what happens in most rom- com films. Montage
has been developed to be used as a parody ,it is shown in the example “Team America” which is inspired by the
“Rocky” Montage. This montage is showing the character building up his strength , in a way it’s like the rocky
montage because he is training to become stronger because in “Team America” his team mates have either died or
are all injured so he has to step in. Hollywood have overused montage so in this type of montage they have used
parody to show what happens in each other them films but using puppets to create a comical effect and make the
audience understand it's a parody and is not actually being serious but mocking the films that have overused
montage.
 HOLLYWOOD’S USE OF MONTAGE EDITING (1970’S)
The use of montage editing is used in Hollywood to condense time, this is also used in Rocky 1 training
sequence, this is used to show different time frames, different locations and the different clothes that he is
wearing. In Rocky montage shows the change in different seasons and the different outfits he wears to
train. This helps to show a long period of story time in a short period of screen time. Leit Motif is also used
in Rocky because of the theme song and when the theme song is played you know that the main character
is going to appear. These images show the difference in seasons and time and show his stages of fitness
and how he is getting better as a fighter.
BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE (1999)
Bowling For Columbine was made in 1999 by Michael Moore , a
documentary maker.In the first 2 minutes of this it doesn’t show the
boys shooting the school but this is what happens in it, the two boys go
bowling at 6am every morning for volunteer for their school work. The
documentary starts off with a general who is in black and white, who is
telling us what parts are interesting in this documentary. It then goes
on to a voice over and shows a ‘typical’ American town and shows
people in everyday life doing their everyday jobs. Then shows the
bowling alley that the boys are at at 6am. A half naked woman is
shown holding a gun then shows the statue of liberty which is meant to
symbolise freedom because people in America are allowed to use guns
so showing the woman with a gun is representing America and what it
stands for, the woman is shown in a medium shot where you can see
she is half naked and holding a gun, showing what America is really
like and what it allows and represents. The start of the film, shows
America and the way it is. Day to day life and what happens in America
and what is allowed.
HIP HOP MONTAGE & MANIPULATING TIME
Hip Hop Montage is used in ‘Shaun Of The Dead’, it’s used to manipulate time. It's used in ‘The Plan’
sequence of the film, they start off making a plan because of the zombie apocalypse that is happening
during the film, they plan out what they are going to do. Whip pans are used to speed up this sequence,
this shows how everything is going to happen really quickly without explains step by step.
Montage is used in this to mostly manipulate
time going from the start of the plan showing
was is happening in 1 minute rather than
explaining it step by step, you understand what
happens in the space of 1 minute, this is easier
than showing it step by step, if it was shown
like that the audience would be bored after
Hip Hop Montage is a subset fast cutting used in film to watching it.
portray a complex action through a rapid series of simple
action in fast motion, sound effects are also used. They
use it in a drug scene in ‘Requiem For A Dream’ to show
the process of taking drugs and it is shown over and over
again , the repeat of taking drugs and the effect of taking
drugs. It shows the effect it’s having on the character
over time.
CAPTAIN VIDEO (1950S)
In ‘Captain Video’ there is a voiceover that tells the audience where they story has got up to and provides us
with information. Modern sci-fi’s use montage to recap the last episode, But due to the lack of technology
and shots used at the time, voiceovers were used to let you know what had happened previously. Also used
in this is cross cutting, this is used within the first scene and we see a shot reverse shot , this scene shows
parallel editing. A dissolve is also used to connect one scene with another however the technique now is
used to show the change in time which this does not do.Effects and Staging are also used but these weren't
really that accessible in the 1950’s and they lacked funding to be able to get these special effects. In one
scene we can see the bad guys are dressed in traditional suits with helmets to fit in with the sci-fi genre
whereas the rangers and Captain video are wearing military suits. The 180 degree rule and the 30 degree
rule have both been used in this throughout, you can notice this in the beginning scene. The scenes are all
linear which is an example of continuity editing. We see how the action continues through various shots.
Captain Video is shot live , this would have affected the editing techniques happening because in the 1950s
they didn’t have a lot of props and special effects so filming live would affect filming eyeline matches and
action matches.
DOCTOR WHO (1970’S)
Doctor who is a science fiction programme that started in the 70’s. In this episode of Doctor Who a series of techniques were
used. For example, iconography is used to signify a genre, a blue filter is used also to show the genre being a sci-fi, blue is
related to sci-fi so that is why it is shown, people also understand it’s a sci-fi because of the use of props and costumes you
can tell it’s a sci-fi. Also the diegetic sound helps us to realise the genre because of the machinery beeping and it's used to
make the scenes seem more realistic, they add beeps and space like noises to make the sci-fi scenes seem more real. A
lighter camera is used so the cameraman is able to carry the camera around and because of the new technology by carrying
it helps to get all angles of the characters and allows the audience to see all the different shots, you can tell that the camera
is handheld, shows the disruption. A range of different shots are used for example, close ups and long shots, these are used
to show the characters emotions and full body shots are used to show what they are doing and to show whats happening. It
shows two perspectives of two men , in two different locations. In the programme a back story is being told by a news
reporter it is normally told by a voiceover by in this its not. Graphic matches are also used when the news reporter is looking
at the tv and it cuts to a different narrative. In camera editing is also used, to take a character out of the shot but it looks like
special effects have been used, the camera is filming then stops once the person isn't in shot then plays again. The science
equipment in the tardis shows it’s a sci-fi as well. The 30 degree rule gets broken in this programme , you can see they
moved because it's more than 30 degrees.
FARSCAPE (1999)
Farscape is a sci-fi that was made in 1999, the opening credits is a montage.There are dissolves in the
opening credits. There is an intertextual references that reminds us of other alien beings. It uses props and
sound effects to establish it's a sci-fi, blue lights are used and dramatic sound effects are used, iconography
is used to also show sci-fi. These effects are used in the show because they all show sci-fi and are used so that
the audience know it’s a sci-fi. Flashbacks are used in this to explain what’s happened. A synchronised
soundbridge was used to show the backstory, it was diegetic to the story and this is used to show us what is
happening in the scene and giving us backstory of the character. Low-key lighting is used to show the
darkness of space, mood and atmosphere. Enigma is created through sound effects and a dripping sound is
created but we don’t know what it is so therefore enigma is created. Eyeline matches are used when the alien
is looking at something , it then cuts to show us what the alien is looking at. CGI is used in Farscape because
the alien is a puppet or a toy model that has been used to create an alien character because it is not possible
to get an alien a toy model must be used.
A blue character is used also to show sci-fi,,
instead of using a lot of blue light they have
chosen to use a blue character so that the
audience understand it's a sci-fi.
 BATTLESTAR GALACTICA (2004)
In “Battlestar Galactica’ there is a use of different techniques eg action matches, eyeline matches, cross cutting
and SRS.In the start we are shown an establishing shot of the spaceship, pegasus, this is to show us where they
are and what the sci-fi is going to be about, it is most likely going to be about space. Iconography is also used in
this to show the props, costumes and spaceships, all of these establish the idea of it being a sci-fi. In one of the
scenes there is the use of a shot reverse shot where the main characters Apollo and the Admiral are talking about
who is getting arrested, there is a wall in front of where they are speaking and it’s as if we are not meant to be
listening to their conversation but we are and we are not supposed to be involved because the wall is there to act
as a barrier but then the 180 degree rule gets broken and we are let into the conversation from a different angle
and shot, the rule is broken for the purposes of the narrative. ‘Battlestar Galactica’ is made in a later year than
Doctor Who and Farscape this is because of the new tech that has been developed and new equipment that is
available to the filmmakers ,so new edits are able to be made and the picture is more developed. There is a cross
cut from the Admiral in the oxygen room to back in the ship with all of the other pilots,this shows us the two
different narratives that are going on at the same time and we are getting both peoples perspectives of what is
happening.
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA OPENING (2004)
The opening sequence of ‘Battlestar Galactica’ includes a lot more CGI ,this shows how much
technology has developed over time, there are also many fades and dissolves ,that all show the
changing of time, there are 2 main dissolves , the first one is a cross dissolve and the second one is a
dissolve to black, this changes time by skipping. There are two montages, in the first one it is the
opening for the programme/ holistic. In the second montage they have an episode specific, this shows
the audience what happened in the last episode to remind them. There is also three different
narratives, going on in the montage showing all three in one video, seeing what will happen in all
three different narratives, showing all 3 narratives at the same time shows the audience that there are
three completely different things going on at the same time, one of a man, one of a man and a woman
and one of people waiting for a bomb to explode.Eyeline matches are also used.
STAR TREK: NEXT GENERATION
The opening of ‘Star Trek Enterprise’ starts off with a dissolve from showing the name of the show to
then going onto a map. It is showing human development and the development of technology and the
change over time, the use of many dissolves shows the development in editing and filmmaking. The use
of dissolves had become more used over time. A graphic match is used this is also to show the
development and change over time. The opening of Star Trek has many fades and dissolves to show the
different things going on throughout the different time periods. In this mostly fades and dissolves are
used, the dissolves show time and this opening sequence uses dissolves to manipulate time and show the
audience the change and transition over time and how things have changed over time.