Time Manipulation

Screen Time - A period of time represented by events within a film.

Accelerated Motion - This is a technique that speeds up the action in a particular scene, the clip below has short bursts of fast motion allowing the pace of the action to keep up.

Slow Motion - ... is used to to slow down the shot alowing the viewer to take in all that is on the screen during what would usually be a fat paced sequence. This effectcan also make the clipmore dramatic.

Long Take - This is a single take, completely uncut, this effect can give the sequence a feel of authenticity.

This scene makes use of multiple time manipulation effects including slow motion, fast motion and real time all in one long take.

Editing Techniques: Transitions

Cut... is the simplest form of editing. Cutting is simply joining one shot to another.

A Fade... to black is often used at the end of scenes to signal the changing of scenes. If, however, it is a fade to white it usually signifies the loss of life and, or, conciousness. A fade can also allow the film to progress in time, whether it is by minutes or years.

Dissolve... is used to slow the film down and to relate two shots to one another. Dissolve is rarely used outside of multi-camera productions as it rarely fits in with most single camera projects without looking as clean.

Wipe... is rarely used, but when it is, it is for the change of location. Wipe is usually used along with motion on screen, giving it a smoother look. The wipe transition has been implemented heavily in the Star Wars franchise.

Jump Cut... is used to skip ahead to keep up the pace but keeps the two shots linked by using a constant. For example the beginning of 2001: A Space Odyssey jump cuts from a bone that has been thrown into the air to a sattelite floating through space.

Using Montage

This is an example of a classic Hollywood montage taken from Rocky IV. It features a passage of time during which Rocky and Ivan Drago are training for their fight. The Rocky series is well known for it's use of montage and has been referenced in many films and TV shows since.

The use of montage in Soviet film making is all about juxtaposing shots to create new meaning in the film. A good example of this is the 'Odessa Steps' sequence from the 1925 propaganda film, 'Battleship Potemkin'.

The French use of the word montage is the literal translation for the English word edit.

The History of Post-Production

When Auguste Lumiere commented on cinema, he claimed it was 'An Invention without a Future'. This is a very pessimistic view on cinema, despite the fact that he didn't have the retrospective view on cinema we have now.

In 1903, the film 'The Life of an American Fireman' had a huge influence on the future of cinema and editing. This was the first film to feature two scenes edited together to show two locations at the same time. It featured a woman in her house while it burned down while the fire-fighters left the fire station. This creation has become a staple in the film industry that is now not only wanted, but expected in every film released.

A Moviola is a large editing machine resembling a green sewing machine on legs.

An average feature film contains 200 hours of footage with 24 frames per second. An editor is required to go through all this footage and cut it down to approximately two hours.

In Russia, as the October Revolution was in full swing and the Bolsheviks were rising up against the government, Vladimir Lenin was using the medium of film to influence his illiterate countrymen to follow him and help him gain control of Russia.

The power of juxtaposition was tested by cutting a bowl of soup, a woman draped over her husbands coffin and a child cradling a soft toy with a man's face. Although the man never changed his facial expression, the audience perceived it as though he looked at each shot differently.

The film 'The Untouchables' features a scene where a pram is rolling down a flight of stairs, this sequence is a nod to the highly influential 'Battleship Potemkin' by Sergei Eisenstein.

The 40's and 50's marked the industrialization of editing. This time was best summarised by the quote "I don't want it good, I want it Tuesday". During this time, films were created more efficiently and as a result more were made and released with the sole intention of making money. Directors were also rarely involved with post-production as it was handled almost exclusively by the studios.