Preliminary Research: Editing Techniques

To better prepare myself for when it comes time to work on the actual film, I decided to look at different techniques to use in the editing room. Even though I've edited a film before, I felt as though the experience was just learning the bare bones and basics of the editing process. This time, things are different and it's time to improve my skills as an editor.

"6 Ways to Edit Any Scene — Essential Film & Video Editing Techniques Explained" by StudioBinder

Some of the editing techniques shown in the video were great to use later down the line on different projects but didn't quite feel right to use for this film. Using an intellectual montage would take the viewer out of the narrative of the film which I think plays a stronger role in storytelling than the use of editing in this case. Cross-cutting would make sense when used later on in a film when there is proper building but doesn't have much use in the intro. There isn't enough going on yet to cross cut and if you do, it might make the intro more confusing and muddy to watch.

The first technique that the video goes over that I was more interested in was eyeline match use. This is something I somewhat utilized in the editing of the chess film but I don't think made the best use out of it. In an eyeline match, a cut is made to a shot of something that the character just had their attention on. It can play an essential part in the film's storytelling. Having a cut from the character's expression to what they look at helps the viewer understand what they are feeling about what they see. This can be used to emphasize and highlight specific details important to the film's story, such as a item left at a crime scene or details a detective picks up. It can also mess with an audience's expectations by deciding not to show what the character looks at to build mystery and intrigue or delaying the cut to make it more dramatic.

Another technique that stuck out to me was a split edit. Split edits are when the sound or image of your film changes before the other. This technique can be used to make conversations feel more natural and smooth. I noticed that this was subtly used in the interrogation scene in American Psycho when some characters speak and the cut is made a little while after. Our film was going to be crime-focused so lots of conversation would have to go on as the case progresses and action wouldn't be at the forefront. Utilizing this technique more  during scenes like this makes the conversation that is happening more interesting to view as it doesn't cut as soon as someone speaks and it allows the viewer to pick up on the character's thoughts and emotions about a particular subject through their expressions. 

Overall, this gave me a better understanding of the ways you can cut from one scene to another. More specifically, why you create a cut, what you are cutting to, and how you are doing it. Different types of cuts work better for different scenarios. Cutting isn't just about the best looking transitions to use in order to get from one scene to another but more so about the way you present a series of events. The specific cuts you use can contribute to the story you are trying to tell and affect the viewer's perception of events. When cutting from one shot to another, it should have a specific reason to switch what is being shown and the way you make that cut affects how an audience may perceive that reasoning. It's about knowing how to use these specific techniques to create the meaning you want.