Unit 9: Digital editing for moving image

Starting Tuesday 26th April 2016 in room 155 in the Media building.
For further information, contact Jed Gibbs MA by email: jgibbs@totton.ac.uk

link to Pearson PDF page 139 (151 of the actual PDF)

Unit introduction

Did you know that editing is regarded as one of the most important roles in terms of moving image? It is said that editing can make or break a production. It is the part of the moving image process where the meaning or intention of the director is realised. On large budget productions editors work closely with directors and cinematographers to produce a product which maximises all their skills; on lower budget productions the editor may also be the camera operator (and director!) but generally speaking the editor will be expected to cut material shot by others.

Digital editing is the process of taking the raw footage and arranging it to create meaning so that it is clear and creates the desired effect. Editors decide what to keep and what to remove from the raw footage (rushes), in what order the footage is to be seen and how it will be joined together through a variety of techniques to make sense to the viewer.

As editing is central to creating effective moving image productions, there is a strong demand in the job market for editors with appropriate technical, creative skills and knowledge of editing software. Entry positions include assistant editors who have the ability to use digital editing software to digitise (log and capture) footage in preparation for the edit or freelance editors looking for their first professional production to cut.

In this unit, you will investigate the different ways that editors join together the shots so that they make sense, convey meaning and create audience response. You will also learn how to digitally edit a sequence, trailer or short film/video so that it presents a series of shots that the audience can understand and which meets the brief of the director or client.

This may include conveying a mood, tone, atmosphere or dramatic effect onscreen.

Learning aims

In this unit you will:

A understand the development of moving image editing

B know the techniques and transitions used in digital editing for moving image

C edit a moving image sequence following format conventions

D review own moving image edit.

Learning aims and unit content

What needs to be learnt

Learning aim A: Understand the development of moving image editing

Topic A.1 Early cinema

Learners will understand the pioneer editing techniques and styles and trace the development of editing as an established part of ‘moving image language’.

Early cinema consisted of the following:

● no editing

● actual events, e.g. Lumière Brothers (1896) L'Arrivée d'un train en gare de La Ciotat

This 1895 French short black-and-white silent documentary film was directed and produced by Auguste and Louis Lumière. Contrary to myth, it was not shown at the Lumières' first public film screening on 28 December 1895 in Paris, France: the programme of ten films shown that day makes no mention of it. Its first public showing took place in January 1896.

The film is associated with an urban legend well known in the world of cinema. The story goes that when the film was first shown, the audience was so overwhelmed by the moving image of a life-sized train coming directly at them that people screamed and ran to the back of the room. Hellmuth Karasek in the German magazine Der Spiegel wrote that the film "had a particularly lasting impact; yes, it caused fear, terror, even panic." However, some have doubted the veracity of this incident such as film scholar and historian Martin Loiperdinger in his essay, "Lumiere's Arrival of the Train: Cinema's Founding Myth". Whether or not it actually happened, the film undoubtedly astonished people in the audience who were unaccustomed to the amazingly realistic illusions created by moving pictures.

The Lumière brothers clearly knew that the effect would be dramatic if they placed the camera on the platform very close to the arriving train. Another significant aspect of the film is that it illustrates the use of the long shot to establish the setting of the film, followed by a medium shot, and close-up. (As the camera is static for the entire film, the effect of these various "shots" is affected by the movement of the subject alone.) The train arrives from a distant point and bears down on the viewer, finally crossing the lower edge of the screen. (Description from Cinema History YouTube channel)

● no narrative (no story or plot)

● where a narrative existed it was played out in one continuous shot.

Topic A.2 Pioneers of film editing technique and style

● Techniques:

editing in the camera, e.g. George Méliès (1902) A Trip to The Moon

cutting at a workbench (Moviola), e.g. Edwin S. Porter (1903) The Great Train Robbery - considered to be one of the first significant early US narrative films. Greatly influenced by the British film "Daring Daylight Robbery" (1903) it introduced many new cinematic techniques (cross cutting, double exposure, camera movement and location shooting) to American audiences.

Also Battleship Potemkin (Odessa steps scene)

Complete film in HD with ads

● Styles, e.g.: o surreal editing (special effects editing), e.g. Méliès (1902) A Trip to The Moon

o continuity editing (cutting together different shots of various distance [framing] to create narrative connections), e.g. Edwin S. Porter (1903) The Great Train Robbery.

Topic A.3 Technical developments in editing

Learners will understand the developments in the technical processes of editing that have seen a transition between linear and non-inear editing:

● film editing, e.g. celluloid print, 16mm, 35mm cutting and splicing, joiners, negatives, DI (Digital Intermediate) process

● TV/video editing, e.g. reel-to-reel videotape editing, multi-camera editing, live editing (studio), offline editing, online editing

● linear editing, e.g. pre-digital editing

● non-linear editing, e.g. digital editing software, computer editing.

Topic A.4 The purpose of editing

Learners will know that the basic responsibilities of the editor have remained the same over time. The purpose of editing is to control:

● time - speed up, slow down, compress time, stretch time, flashbacks, flash forwards, to fit a specified running time, to control time within the narrative

● space - creating a logical and believable space between characters or objects not sharing the same shot

● rhythm - the duration of shots controls the flow and ‘beat’ of the moving image production, which allows the audience to understand the message or story.

Learning aim B

Websites
www.englishandmedia.co.uk/mediamag.html – the English and Media Centre
www.imdb.com – a movie database
www.mediaknowall.com – a Web guide for media students
www.mediawatchuk.org – Mediawatch

Analyse how techniques and transitions are used in an edited sequence using accurate terminology. You should make reference to the following:
  1. continuity
  2. motivated
  3. montage
  4. jump-cutting
  5. parallel editing
  6. transitions

Other editing techniques.

Learning aim C

1. Prepare competently to edit your moving image production the TV commercial for ‘Off the wall’ video games company.

Your production folder should include:

  1. all your footage
  2. any graphic files
  3. sound files
  4. music files     incompetech.com   |  jamendo   |  joco + fan projects + kinetic typography example

Shop Vac from Jarrett Heather on Vimeo.

2. Use editing techniques imaginatively, edit your TV advertisement in a style appropriate for the target audience and to the specified brief.

Learning aim D: Review own moving image edit

You must showcase your work to a focus group that consists of your target audience and your client; you must obtain and evaluate feedback from them in written format.

paper   |   surveymonkey   |   googleforms

Once you have completed the screening and gained the feedback, you must undertake an evaluation of your final product that takes into consideration the opinions of others, and includes discussion of the following points:

  • aims of the brief
  • original idea
  • planning
  • strengths (what worked well)
  • areas for improvement (what could be better).
If you are working in a group, you must evaluate your individual role as well as the overall production.

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