Chapter 2 - Editing Styles and Conventions

Edward Dymtryk made seven rules of cutting which editors follow today:
Rule 1 - Never make a cut without a positive reason
Rule 2 - When undecided about the exact frame to cut on cut long rather short
Rule 3 - Whenever possible cut 'in movement'
Rule 4 - The 'fresh' is preferable to the 'stale'
Rule 5 - All scenes should begin and end with continuing action
Rule 6 - Cut for proper values rather than proper matches
Rule 7 - Substance first -- then form

Where as Walter Murch created 6 main criteria for evaluating a cut or where to cut:

1- Emotion (51%) - Does the cut reflect what the editor wants the audience to feel
2- Story (23%) - Does the cut advance the story
3- Rythm (10%) - Does the cut occur at a moment that is rythmically interesting and 'right'
4- Eye trace (7%) - Does the cut pay respect to "the location and movement of the audience's focus of interest within the frame."
5- 2D screen (5%) - Does the cut respect the 180 degree rule
6- Three-dimensional space of action (4%) — Is the cut true to the physical/spatial relationships within the diegesis?

Chapter 4 - Time Editing notes.

Time is a measurement
Time is a relative

Accelerated & slow motion
- sped up - slow down

Slow down -
dramatic emphasisation

Simultanious time-
two things happening at the same time
simularity between the two scenes e.g. V for Vendetta same tv show in both scenes.

Long take -
Single shot alot of CGI

Compressed time -
A montage - things happening over a long period of time compressed into a couple of minutes.

Freeze/slow -
Know the people that are in the scene
emphasise the drama and action

Slow to fast
-Catching up with real time
-Covers issues in filming
-Has to be used with no speech

Showing a montage in realtime would be boring to watch

Chapter 3 - Transition Types (Notes)

Editing Styles and Conventions
-Hollywood Montage & Soviet Montage
-Transition types are the nuts and bolts of editing
L cut/Split edit
- Appear more invisible - Realism - Seemless
- See someone talking cut to other persom to see reaction
- The reaction is half the story
- Cut video but continuous audio - Most popular
- Cut audio but continuous video - Least popluar
Jump Cut
- Background changes
- Audio continuois
- Always an obvious cut
- Cut from one point in time to another
- No transition needed
Wipes
- A convention of Star Wars
- Famous in the 80's
- Jump from one scene to another
- End/start on a static scene, wipe gives sense of movement
- Storybook feeling, turning of the page
- Complete change of scene, completely different area
Cutting for Action
- Screen direction
- Sight lines
- Cutting on the Action
- Illusion of Continuity
- Thematic Pacing and Motivated Edits
- Parallel editing
- Split edit
- Cutaways
- Fades

The History and developments of Post-production

The history of editing starts in 1903 and grows right up to this day. Although in 1903 editing wasnt as magical and talented as it is in 2011. They didnt have the advanced technology and knowledge of editing a film as we do today, all they had was no knowlede of editing and a piece of sticky tape to cut bits of film together.

The first ever "edited" film was made in 1903 by Edwin Porter and was called "The life of an American Fireman". Edwin Porter was the first man who was able to film in multiple shots, rather have one long shot in front of a stationary camera. He cut up the film strips and edited them together to make a story, the juxtaposition he had in the shots caused tension and release to the story making the story truly dramatic and caught the eye of audiences. Edwin Porter was convinced he had created a new way of telling stories and then later went on to create "The Great Train Robbery".

"Life of an American Fireman" - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4C0gJ7BnLc

D.W. Griffiths was infact the first man to be recognized as an editor, he was the first man to realise that you can cut and stick a film to make different cuts.

Notes from Cutting Edge

- Old film makers simply held the camera on a shot until they got bored or ran out of film.

- Thomas Edison's assistant discovered that you can cut and stick film reel together to make different shots.

- editing can slow down time or speed it up
- 1/24th of a second in each frame.

- 200 hours is the average feature film length, takes 8 months to a year to cut down to a 2 hour film

- editing is invisible art - the audience doesnt see the edit as it is a smooth cut

- editors weren't seen as important just hands for hire

- Director and editor have the closest relationship throughout the whole crew

- first editng equipment is called a Movieola, its described as a sewing machine

- it was called a sewing machine as it was very sexist era, editing was unimportant, normally seen as a womans job

-D.W Griffiths first recognized editor

- Russian editing most important editing in history