The goal of an editor is to be essentially undetected. We piece together our films and our videos and we want them to look as good as possible. The end product, no one "sees" our work. If you are a good editor then no one should notice the editing. That's when you know you've done a good job. For instance when you see a bad movie and all the cuts just stick out to you like a sore thumb, you know they shuck at editing. But those movies where you can just get sucked in, and it all seems to flow together and just looks beautiful, that's the sign of a true editor.
As an editor you are building a puzzle. When everything fits together, it makes a picture (a motion picture, ha! See what I did there?). When you put in the pieces wrong, it's unpleasant to look at and doesn't make much sense. Just like a cut in your film. It might jump too much or two little. You might cut it too early or too late. Rhythm and instinct is what gets me by. You have to feel the rhythm of the scene and what you want people to feel. Which brings me to my next point:
Editing is like dancing. When or where you step can make it flawless and continuous. When you miss a step or a beat, people will notice. You can feel it's just not right. The song you dance to is different to every situation. In a scene where your actor is running or fighting, it will be at a faster pace then if they are calmly eating a meal or strolling through the park. And it's not even Evey scene, every clip has a beat too. The way I do things is, watch a clip, feel where I think it would be good to end, and then play it through a few more times. If I can hit that same spot over and over just with my gut, I know it's a good cut (that rhymed). Once you get a hold of the rhythm for editing, you will be unstoppable.
-Sirwhovian, Out!
If there's anyone to learn editing from, it's you. Making things flow seems hard and easy at the same time. I've seen plenty of people editing, and their movie looks choppy and unappealing. And you just want to tell them to make it flow. But a beginner can't just "make things flow". You have to have experience, and be aware of what your edit would look like to someone other than yourself. Someone who hasn't been starring at the same footage for hours. But it just seems like such a simple concept to make one shot transition smoothly into the next. But you need to know what your doing to really make it unnoticeable.
ReplyDeleteThat is very true. I encourage everyone to edit MANY things, you DO learn so much from every piece you edit. I think one thing that helped me a bunch, was watching things I edited a long time ago, and hadn't seen for a while. Another thing to do, is to always be watching films and paying attention. When you always observe other people's art work, it will sink in. Everyone find their gut feeling one way or another. But I say, learn from others mistakes. Watch 'Birddemic' and you will know what not to do on eveything related to film!
DeleteOh Birdemic... What a piece of crap... It's on Netflix if anyone wants to watch it.
ReplyDeleteYes and if you're a filmmaker, you will cry and curse the hevens that something that horrible would ever be allowed to exist.
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