Mal RY ce: 46 wilt GAEL CHANDLER FILM EDITING GREAT CUTS EVERY FILMMAKER AND MOVIE LOVER MUST KNOWwei BASIC CUTS The at of editing occurs when the combination of sv er moe shots takes meaning to the next level ~ excitement, insight, dock, or the epiphany of discovery, ~ Professor Ken Dancyger from his book ‘The ‘Technique of Film and Video Eating In this chapter we'll cover common cuts that are seen in every movie, These cuts form the basic languege of film editing; you will spot them in the rest ofthe book’ chapters. So what exactly is a cut? Read on,CUT “Te joining togher of 00 dierent shots; or occasionally, avo parts of the same shot. BASIC CUT: “Two shots ecited together Every cut mast be motivated; in other words, the editor ‘must have a reason for making it. A cut builds story, idea, cor emotion, changes the point of view, or keeps the pace going: In fac: a cut may do some or all of these things. inshet | islanders cross a bridge In Shot 2 sentry with a spearwatches ‘the bridge. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Gest 2 » fim editing » gael chandlerREVERSE CUT A cat tothe opposite (reverse) angle, The cut can be fom: the front of a character to the angle behind the character (Revere 1) or vie versa. Or the ct car be from a character (o characters) to the characer (or chanactes) theyre facing (Reverses 2-4). REVERSE | ‘This reverse cuts from behind the boy as he aims for ‘the tourist bus con the highway below to the front of the boy. Babel By showing how characters act, reac, and interact, reverse cuts keep the audience involved in the action and dialogue. Reverse cuts also often demonstrate the dialectic dance of opposition as characters confiont, confound, and cuddle each other.REVERSE 2: ‘Walking the mal REVERSE 3: Inthe chapel The Bride introduces her Jover (eft) to her groom (right) Bil REVERSE 4: Watching a plyA. A h (DOINIT C\/I\A/) POV (POINT OF VIEW) AA reverse cut that comesponds to where a characteris looking; a POV is a cat what the characteris seeing POV I: vines mes | bucket into a well, eae wondicite we re Will Be Blood APOVis a highly motivs contains approximat POV2 es (elected cuts) Jean-Do emerges | from acona | and sees medics The first frame is ‘the POV shot. The Diving Det ord the Buttery acter sees something and the auctience wants 10 see it too, The Diving Bell and the Buaerfly 21% POV shots as Jean-Do, its main character; is immobilized by a stroke. Do you remember what happened? bbasc cuts > point of view » 5Pov: Spying the pirates down the beach Pirates of the Conbbeany FOV 5 Inhis trucks sidePove: Scanning for rebels, Pon's Labyrinth basic cuts » point of view » 7Pove: Little Chef (the rat) watches the action from inside a colander: & » filmediting » gael chandierINSERT AND CUTAWAY These fers ae wed intechangenly to desi a ut oa sl, significant detail of a ene. A dase example sac to a Let sme fr of writing, as exemplified in Cutaway 1. Note: These terms are also used feely as nouns and verbs CUTAWAY |: ‘This cutaway to 2 posteard (middle frame) forms the rucal response ‘that reunites the society-crossed « lovers. Brokeback Mountain(CUTAWAY 2: Checking be ‘tracking device. tit CUTAWAY 3: Reading a cue. The Dain aan N 6 » film edting > gael chandler pene LT‘Commonly, they act as introductions w scenes (Cutaway 4) or segues between scenes (Cutaway 5), forwarding the flow of information — usually scene location ot time — and the action. CUTAWAY 4: The insert ofthe title on the deor shot (midele frame), efficiently moves the story fom the exterior establishing shot. (top frame) to rghtirsde the necting (otton frame). ie Ultimaturn DIRECTOR | Central inteligence Agency basic cuts » insert and cutaway » 17CUTAWAY 5: A deves literal cutaway A shot of J.-M. Barrie and a wife at his plays ‘opening night is followed by a c cutaway to his maid cutting out ‘the poor review. Finding Neverland 1 » fim editing » gael chandlerCUTAWAY 6: Editors routinely cut away to shorten time or bridge Cutting away to between two mismatched shots. In dialogue scenes, the mother and especially in documentaries, reaction shots are often child bridges dialogue inserted to skip over unwanted dialogue and advance between the pair oftwo-shots of the couple on the couch, the action. basic cuts » insert and cutaway 9 19a Lastly, cutaways can cleverly comment on the action as this scene from The Da Vinci Code illustrates. CUTAWAY 7 Pursued by akiles a museum curator makes a desperate run for is life, passing paintings which reflect his distress and doom. The Da Vind Code 20 » film editing » gael chandler a a