Editing

Editing

Transitions

Crosscutting – Two lines of action happening at the same time, cutting from one line to the other.

Cut-in, cut away – Moving from a distance away from an object to a closer shot.

Dissolve – When one shot fades out while another fades in.

Iris – A circle that either gets smaller or larger depending on the focus.

Establishing shot – From a distance, makes the location and mood of the movie clear. Setting the scene.

Shot/Reverse Shot – Shots edited together that alternate between characters

Superimposition – Layering one shot in front of another.

Wipe – Transitions – Where a line passes across the screen with another shot.

Matching

Eyeline Match – Show a person and, then what they are looking at.

Graphic Match – The shape of one item becoming the next object.

Match on Action – same piece of action, but from different angles

Mise en Scene

Mise en Scene

The 5 elements of Mise en Scene

Setting

• Setting and locations play a key part of film.
• Settings can manipulate the audience by building audience expectations.
•  Setting can help us to understand when and where the film is set.
• The setting needs to be linked to the correct costumes and props.

Props

Iconography – the distinguishing elements, in terms of props and visual details.

Costume, Hair & Makeup

• Costume, hair and makeup acts as an instant indicator to the audience of the characters personality, status and jobs.

Facial Expression and Body Language 

• Facial expression and body language provide a clear indicator as to how characters are feeling.
• It can also communicate information about relationships.

Lighting

• Can be used to give a sense of place, weather, mood or a characters state of mind.

Key Types of Lighting

• Low key lighting – Created by using a key and back light, produces sharp contrasts. Deep, distinct shadows and silhouettes.
• High key lighting – More fillers used, natural and realistic, creates a bright lit, sunny set.

Filming

Filming

The Dominant

• Where our eye is attracted first.
• Size, colour, lighting and focus is used to do this.

Shot and Camera Proxemic

Shots are defined by the amount of subject matter they include.

• Composition -The objects in the frame can be placed to suggest underlying designs or shape.

Framing 

Do the characters have no room to move around, or can the characters move freely? 

Evaluation of the Preliminary Task

Evaluation of the Preliminary Task

In the task we had to make a short video involving a conversation between two people (using the shot/reverse-shot), someone coming through a door (match-on-action) and use the 180 degree rule, which is when the characters in the scene are connected by an imaginary line which the camera only operates on one side of for every shot in the scene so the characters are always on the same position in each shot.

What went well?

The use of the shots was executed well. We had two instances of the shot/reverse-shot in a conversation. The 180 degree rule was also used in these conversations as for the duration of the conversation the audience never sore anything behind the camera and the characters stayed don the same sides of the scene. Out match-on-action was used when I walked through the door to start the first conversation. The camera shows his hand opening the door then cutting to him coming through it, the door being open the same amount as the first shot.

Our editing skills were also used well for this clip. We used a variety of shots and different angles, editing them together in most instances very well. The most frequently used shot other than the shot/reverse-shot was the match on action which can be very difficult to use as it may cause continuity issues if not edited properly, however we used them very well.

Improvements:

There were three instances were the audience could see the Josh Graham, our camera-man, in the reflection of windows. The first was the shot of me reading the text message, we can see Josh’s hand in the reflection of the screen. The second was the shot of me walking past the water fountain when Josh’s shoulder is visible in the reflection of the door and finally when me and I leave the scene after the first conversation the audience can briefly see one half of Josh as he films.

Another minor problem was ensuring that the video had continuity. For filming we had to ensure we had access to the areas of the school for both days and that all people involved wore the same clothes on both days. This issue was handled well and we prepared very well for any potential continuity issues. However the was an instance of a continuity error. In the scene were me is coming down the stairs, there is a shot of his feet coming down and he leads with right foot but in the next shot (a match-on-action) he plants with his left, this was minor but still noticeable by us and the audience.

Lessons learnt for next time:

Firstly we learnt the importance of location. As we could only film during school time we had a very limited number of locations. We took this into consideration for our final piece, ensuring that our location matched our characters behaviours and our stories narrative.

We also learned the importance of costume. As we were in school we could only were our sixth form suits, however for our final product we spent time assessing what costume our characters would wear and then developed a full costume list so it matched our narrative to give the video a more authentic and genre specific feel.

Between the time we filmed the Preliminary task and our final product we developed our editing skills so we could incorporate more challenging shots.

Shot, Reverse Shot

Shot, Reverse Shot

Two or more shots edited together that alternate characters, typically in a conversation situation. In continuity editing, characters in one framing usually look left, in the other framing, right. Over-the-shoulder framings are common in shot/reverse-shot editing. Shot / reverse shots are one of the most firmly established conventions in cinema, and they are usually linked through eyeline matches.

The Stendhal Syndrome (La Sindrome di Stendhal) (Dario Argento, Italy,1996)

180-Degree Rule

180-Degree Rule

The 180-degree rule of shooting and editing keeps the camera on one side of the action. As a matter of convention, the camera stays on one side of the axis of action throughout a scene; this keeps characters grounded compositionally on a particular side of the screen or frame, and keeps them looking at one another when only one character is seen onscreen at a time. The technique allows for an expansion of the frame into the unseen space offscreen. It is referred to as a rule because the camera, when shooting two actors, must not cross over the axis of action; if it does, it risks giving the impression that the actors' positions in the scene have been reversed.

Match on Action Shot Practice

 Match on Action Shot Practice

We did some practice Match on Action shots. These are the results.

 Match on Action Shot 1

 Match on Action Shot 2

Match on Action

Match on Action 

Match on Action is the same piece of action, but from different angles

Here is an example from Traffic (Steven Soderbergh, 2000)

A match on action adds variety and dynamics to a scene, since it conveys two movements: the one that actually takes place on screen, and an implied one by the viewer, since her/his position is shifted.

Preliminary Task Video

For our Preliminary task we shot this!

Preliminary Task

We used the Preliminary task to help us practice our us of key rules and shot types;

- Match on Action

- 180-Degree rule 

- Shot, reverse shot