Editing Techniques

In addition to an awareness of cinematography, editing will also be a key skill needed to construct my finished product. Although editing is largely down to personal preference, it would still be useful to understand the different techniques I could adopt when arranging all of my individual shots into one continuous narrative. Since the role of editor is one I am not so familiar with, this will be an opportunity for me to gain a theoretical approach before I apply this knowledge at a practical level. 

• Cut: In a broad sense, a cut is the most basic type of edit in film from which all others derive. It is a very simple change from one shot to the next without any transitional effects in between. 

• L Cut / J Cut: This is where the audio and video files are recored separately, which consequently allows them to be edited separately. In a J Cut, the sound of the scene precedes the visuals of the scene. This helps to imply the context of the next scene whilst still lingering on the previous image. An L Cut is more concerned with continuity than transition. The visual shots change while the audio remains continuous. For example in a conversation the camera may cut between characters but use the audio from just one take if the dialogue is clearer and more pronounced. 

• Match Cut: Also known as Cutting on Action, the match cut maintains the continuous flow of an action across two different shots. It is done to create a seamless, logical consistency. For example one character might throw a punch and then use a match cut to show the opponent receiving the punch. 

• Graphic Match Cut: A Graphic Match Cut doesn't continue an action like the match cut, but maintains a visual reference from the previous scene. For example a character reading a newspaper might cut to the same newspaper being read by another character in the next scene.  

• Parallel Editing: Can also be identified as a cross cut, this edit is a technique that alternates two or more different scenes happening in different locations. It is very common in television shows where at the end of an important episode, parallel editing will be used in the form of a montage to show where all the different characters are and what they're doing. The series finales of The Wire and Sons of Anarchy are good examples, bringing closure to multiple storylines at once. 

• Cutaway: A cutaway is like an inserted shot that interrupts the focus of the main scene and draws our attention to something else temporarily. It tends to offer more insight into the surroundings, for example in the final battle of Avengers Assemble the camera regularly cuts away from the superheroes fighting to show us the chaos being experienced by the civilians and the police. 

• Fast Cutting: This is a fairly easy term to understand. Fast cutting refers to the pacing of a scene, where several shots of brief duration are edited together (like in a fight scene) which allows the action to flow smoothly and appear intense. 

• Slow Cutting: By process of elimination, slow cutting uses shots of longer duration to make a scene appear more fleshed out. It uses less shots and allows a slower pace to be established, since there aren't many changes in perspective. 

• Smash Cut: A smash cut takes place when one scene abruptly changes into another for aesthetic or narrative purposes. Typically this is used for juxtaposition, where an intense cliffhanger will use a smash cut to the next scene where everything is tranquil. In the opening of Casino Royale, James Bond is having a conversation with an opponent about the death of one of his henchman. The scene uses jump cuts from the conversation to the gritty fight scene showing Bond killing the henchman.