Editing - An Introduction

Editing is one of the most important parts of filmmaking.  The job of the editor requires a lot of hard work and originally didn’t get much appreciation, but nowadays editors often work closely with the director during postproduction.  It is responsible for creating the tempo and rhythm of a film, and is a valuable device for coordinating sequences to inspire emotional responses such as sadness and suspense.  It determines the length of every shot and the flow of every scene. 

Not only is the film cut in terms of visuals, but audio must also be edited – this includes voices, music and other sound effects.  The editor needs to allow train of thought but not allow viewers to lose attention. If a scene is improvised then cutting it is even harder, like a jigsaw puzzle.  There are also several rules to be followed such as the 180° Rule and ensuring that invisible cuts are in fact invisible.

The History of Editing - Timeline

1895 – Louis Lumière invented the Cinematographe, an all-purpose camera, printer and projector.  Its ability to film was limited; only one static frame could be filmed and even then most reels lasted thirty to fifty seconds.  Even Lumière himself claimed, “The cinema is an invention without a future."  His first film, Sortie d’Usine (France, 1895) , was simply his workers leaving the factory he and his brother ran.  Staged to happen while the camera was rolling, the shot was filmed from when the gates opened to when the gates closed.  Le Jardinier et le Petit Espiegle (France, 1895 - Louis Lumière) is a very early comedy.  It is also one of the first films to feature a plot, and the opportunity for film to become an art form is realised.  Partie d’Ecarte (France, 1895 - Louis Lumière) is an example of the spacial restrictions in early film – it is staged to be a live-action display of a painting.  Paintings are confined to the space they are painted in, they have limits or boundaries set by the canvases they are painted on.  What Lumière hadn't discovered in his time was that one could pass through these boundaries in film.

 

1896 – Arrivée d’Un Train en Gare a la Ciotat  (France, 1896 - Louis Lumiére) is an example of a shot used often in early action films  in the primitive movie era.  The shot used is also characteristic of photography, something incorporated even today in modern films.  R.W. Paul, a scientific instrument inventor, designed a of projector named the Theatrograph that used a Maltese Cross system with intermittent movement that was projected onto a screen.

 

1898 – Elements of theatre are brought into film.  Come Along, Do! (Britain, 1898 - R.W. Paul) featured multiple constructed sets, props, two scenes and it encouraged emotional response from the audience.  In this case, the film tried to make its audience laugh.  Notably, this film containd the first ever splice.

 

1899 – The Kiss In The Tunnel (Britain, 1899 - George Albert Smith) pioneered an interesting way to connect phantom rides and drama.  It began with a phantom ride, then as the train approached and entered a tunnel, it cut to a shot of a man and a woman sitting in a carriage.  After the kiss, the action returns to the train’s phantom ride as it leaves the tunnel.  This is an early production of action continuity.

 

1900 – Grandma’s Reading Glass (Britain, 1900 - George Albert Smith) is the first film  that breaks up the scene as a device - that is, we get different shots within a scene purely for effect.  This is the first film to use POV shots.  In the same year Smith released As Seen Through A Telescope (Britain, 1900) , which includes more POV.  However, rather than being an actual shot filmed through a telescope, the photography actually was through a black card with a circular hole in the middle.

1903 – R.W. Paul produced A Chess Dispute (Britain, 1903) , which discovers leaving the “window” that formed a barrier – since then out-of-shot action has been used.  The Great Train Robbery (U.S.A, 1903 - Edwin S. Porter) was one of the first action films.  It also featured very early camera movements, on-location shooting and cross-cutting.  Life Of An American Fireman (U.S.A, 1903 - Edwin S. Porter) is an early narrative film that uses suspense and supposedly uses several pioneering edits.  It has been argued that this is not the first film to use them, however.

 

The 180-Degree Rule

As the world of film expanded and developed, Continuity Editing was created to ensure form and structure.  The cardinal rule of Continuity Editing is the 180° Rule.  The 180° Rule is used in the production of film to help the audience understand a scene spatially.

In a scene in which two objects are interacting, an imaginary line goes between them called the axis.  Cameras can be placed along this line or can rotate around the objects, but not cross the axis – thus only covering a maximum of 180°.  There can then be shots of the two objects without confusing the audience.

 

http://katienicholls6143asfilmcoursework.blogspot.co.uk/2011/11/research-180-degree-rule.html Friday, 11 November 2011.

 

Dramatically, this can resemble empathising with the objects or the characters, seeing from their point of view or understanding conflict in some way.  Therefore we are encouraged to relate to and identify with the characters or objects in the shot, especially if the camera is oriented closer to the axis as we are able to see more from the point of view of said object/character. 

 

 

- http://youtu.be/lFHLE24hDQY

 

Above is a snapshot from a scene in the Michael Gondry film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (U.S.A, 2004).  It is an interesting scene because it breaks the 180° Rule rather a lot.  What is actually happening in the scene is that one of Joel's (Jim Carrey) memories is being erased while he relives it.  As the scene progresses during his discussion with Clementine (Kate Winslet), more and more of the covers of the books are becoming blank.

            Not only that, but there are lots of shots which disorient the audience through breaking the 180° Rule.  This is intended to make the scene seem dreamlike and confusing; as if the memory was collapsing in vain of Joel’s attempts to save it – which it is.

During some parts of the scene, we feel as if we’re peeking at the conversation occurring without permission.  Some of the camera angles show the two actors behind bookshelves, and the camera is peering over at them, which we can see in the snapshot above, as if we were spying.  This adds to the confusion of reality mixing with unreality, the connection Joel and Clementine have disintegrating and the grasp Joel has upon his memories.

- http://youtu.be/Kc80eNzxpJo

In terms of actually using the 180° Rule, here is a scene from Cameron Crowe’s film We Bought A Zoo (U.S.A, 2011) .  It focuses on the discussion between Matt Damon’s character, Benjamin Mee and Scarlett Johansson’s character, Kelly Foster.

The establishing shot has the two of them walking towards the camera discussing the enclosures at the Zoo.  There is then a shot of Kelly from beside Benjamin in which she tells him that the places in which the animals are kept are not cages.  Each shot of her thus far is from Benjamin’s side, which may be to show us that all we have seen of Kelly so far is from Benjamin’s point of view.

When the two stop, the 180° Rule comes into play properly.  As can be seen above, over-the-shoulder shots of both characters are seen in the shot/reverse/shot format.  Now, while Kelly is framed independently, we start to learn about her personality and character.

To begin with, the two are playfully discussing the zoo, but after a few seconds there is conflict between them and they stop walking.  Kelly confronts Benjamin about why he bought the zoo.  One thing I noticed during this scene was how the shots of Benjamin were always from below and the ones of Kelly were from above.  I think this is a reference to how Benjamin already knows the answer to Kelly's question before she even asks it. "Why not?"

Parallel Action

Parallel action varies the linear unfolding of a story.  In a sequence the editor will cut from one character or object in a story to another in a different location.  It is supposed to build tension by making viewers ask themselves the following questions:

1.    When will the two stories meet?

2.    How will the two stories meet and how will they influence each other?

Although the viewer is omniscient, in this case they don’t know how the story will end or the answer to the above questions until there is a revelation on the subject.  

 The below diagram is an explanation of how parallel action works.  The red arrows indicate which shot we are watching as viewers.  The blue and green arrows are representative of the two storylines, and the yellow arrows show the cuts between shots of the different stories.  In the end, traditionally, the two storylines will interact or come together in some way.

To explain this further with an example, I am going to discuss a movie called Strangers On A Train (U.S.A, 1951 - Alfred Hitchcock) .  I will also analyse the sequence with as much detail as possible.  It contained parallel action and the sequence is an iconic early use of it.  The scene I will be talking about is the opening scene, a link to which is supplied below:

 

- http://youtu.be/7bjA-4no1ZY


Synopsis:

Amateur tennis star Guy Haines wants to divorce his vulgar and unfaithful wife Miriam so he can marry the elegant and beautiful Anne Morton, daughter of a senator.  While on a train to meet Miriam, Haines meets Bruno Anthony, a forward stranger who recognizes Guy from gossip items in the newspapers that detail his marital problems. During lunch in Bruno's compartment, Bruno tells Guy about his idea for the perfect "Criss-cross" murder(s): he will kill Miriam and in exchange, Guy will kill Bruno's father. Since both are strangers, otherwise unconnected, there is no identifiable motive for the crimes.

As one will see when they watch the scene, there are shots of Bruno and Guy one after the other, as decreed by the rules of parallel action.  While watching the scene we ask ourselves, as viewers, the two questions about the finishing of the sequence: in this case we want to know if, when and how the two men meet each other.  Then, at the end, they sit opposite each other on the train and begin conversation, giving us the answers to our questions.

In terms of shot structure, screen direction and pace are used to create the expectation of their meeting for the audience.  Notably, there’s use of the 180° Rule.   The two characters appear to be walking towards each other.  Additionally, there's the exclusion of the characters’ faces – the audience presumes that their identities will be revealed soon, perhaps when we see their whole body during the doorframe shot - but we only see their backs.

Despite the two walking towards each other, they both actually are just walking towards a doorframe they both go through, one after the other.  In regards to their identities being hidden, at the end of the sequence we see their faces and they begin to talk to one another.                                                    

From the two characters we gather the following information: they appear similar.  This is probably supposed to represent how they are both in similar situations.  They catch the same taxi, both have similar bag carriers, both catch the same train for some reason and both cross their legs once they sit down.

There are several techniques used with metaphorical resonances in this passage.  To begin with, it’s worth mentioning that the hiding of the characters’ faces represents how they are strangers to each other – they have no relations to each other whatsoever before they meet on the train.

Secondly; one of the two gets out of the taxi, walks through the doorframe and sits down on the train before the other, implying that this man (Bruno) is one step ahead of the other guy (Guy).  It is important to bear in mind that Bruno is the one who proposes the criss-cross murder.

Furthermore, before they meet, there is music that builds up to quite a high level of intensity.  This may be indicative of the stress either of the plot or of the relationship of the two characters.

Finally, the most important metaphor is that of “criss-crossing”.  One evident example of this is how, as the train begins to leave the station, it crosses over several other train lines.  Also, as the two men sit down, both of them cross their legs.  These two actions both refer to both guys’, Guy’s and Bruno’s, lives crossing.  It also connects to the idea of parallel action and two storylines crossing.