Film editing skills of directors and directors

12 film editing skills directed by the director

Film editing means are mainly to ensure the distinctiveness of characterization, the coherence of story, the rationality of time-space relationship and the accuracy of rhythm processing. So what are the movie editing skills? The following is for reference only!

1. The editing should be compact.

an unnecessary pause in an actor's dialogue. Shorten the blank space in the middle of each sentence, and even subtract the lengthy and unimportant dialogue. But before you cut out the dialogue, please consult the director first.

generally speaking, my method is to cut out the exact version from the beginning, instead of cutting out a longer movie and then reducing it. The attention of most movie viewers is generally less than 9 minutes, which is equivalent to the length of a general movie. If the film is about 1 minutes long after the initial cut, you basically need to cut it to 9 minutes to make the film more compact. But if the film lasts for two hours or more after the initial cut, it needs "major surgery".

2. Temporary music.

Many editors like to cut movies with temporary background music and use temporary music as a placeholder.

Here I put forward two reasons not to advocate this practice:

First, once people like temporary music, it is difficult to find a suitable soundtrack that feels good.

Second, temporary concerts become your "spiritual pillar". You will be more tolerant when boring scenes are accompanied by interesting music. I prefer to edit a powerful movie scene and make it perfect through proper editing.

if a scene can stand on its own, the music will be icing on the cake. The only exception is the music setting of montage lens. Therefore, I can do better when editing.

3. Don't use French Open editing method.

The original French Open TV series used a specific dialogue editing method: the sound was completely synchronized with the picture, and there was no overlap.

The common methods are: cutting A picture-A finished the dialogue-cutting B picture-B finished-cutting A picture back, and so on.

walter murch, a master editor, named this editing method French Open style editing method. But in fact, the audience responds better to the fact that it does not coincide with the sound and picture clips.

I think this editing method is closer to real life. We first hear someone start talking and then look up. Or a person is talking, we will see how our friends react. This editing method is closer to people's natural reaction and will make the film smoother.

4. Action coordination.

using gestures, props, line of sight or walking is one of the editing methods.

But walter murch said that the best way is to let emotions show naturally, or to cut out a smooth narrative rhythm, while technical editing is the last thing to consider.

but it must not be ignored, because the mismatch of movements will make it difficult for the audience to enter the play. However, an editor friend often tells me that "paying too much attention to matching will constrain editing". If the audience can fully participate in the play, they often ignore the discontinuity of those shots. The duty of editing is to integrate the audience into the plot as much as possible.

5. move the camera lens.

moving lens is the main way to shoot action movies, which can be track camera, rotary arm camera, camera stabilizer or hand-held camera.

Action movies usually present a tense atmosphere. When I edit a movie, I like to edit it when the camera is moving, so as to ensure that one shot after another is in motion, but many directors disagree. They prefer to edit it before the camera starts moving or after it stops moving. But I prefer the compact editing method, which makes the audience dazzled.

6. Don't always use the same angle for editing.

If the director shoots many shots from different angles, don't mechanically switch back to the same angle all the time, or reread the same lens position used not long ago.

Of course, there are only two angles in a dialogue scene, so it is difficult to avoid repeated editing. However, if the director shoots with different lens frames according to different needs, he might as well reflect the director's intention through editing. Don't be bound by editing rules, such as main shot/single shot/inversion, main shot/single shot/inversion and so on. You can try to mix and match.

7. The shots are in groups of three.

when it is necessary to switch scenes, it is usually in groups of three. Hold for at least 1.5 to 2 seconds or longer.

For example, in the scene where the protagonist enters the room and looks around, editing the viewpoint lens in groups of three can visually show the audience the whole scene seen by the protagonist and imitate our real world to make the audience immersive.

8. Focus on editing the actor's eyes.

actors attract attention on TV, in movies and on stage with their faces, but the most important thing is the actors' eyes.

I always pay attention to the actors' eyes when editing intense dialogue scenes. Do they convey appropriate emotions? How did you react to the actors in the play? The actor's performance determines my editing. This principle makes me focus more on the main actors who convey the dialogue and cut off the reactions of others.

9. Eliminate the "air" in an actor's performance.

similar to the first point-I like compact editing. Note that most actors exaggerate beyond the proper level. Actors will emphasize pause, add more mistakes than the script requires, stutter more and glance longer, but the responsibility of editing is to restore the performance to normal through appropriate editing. Cut out lengthy actions and dialogues to make the film real and unpretentious.

1. Form the story.

It is said that there are three kinds of movies in the world: script, shooting and editing.

No matter which type you edit, you should pay great attention to the story context, and don't be afraid to change the script or shoot content, as long as it is meaningful. Many editors visually present the story by recording the script in the screen. This can help you make sure to present the story to the audience with the most fluent logic.

11. Use digital assistive devices.

digital media such as modern NLEs and finishing techniques provide producers with many auxiliary tools.

for example, digital images can be magnified many times. You can use these tools to zoom the photographer to enlarge a lens to shoot a wide scene or close-up, which will be easy if you use RED digital camera with 35mm film. As long as the image quality is guaranteed, there is no need to be afraid to zoom in.

Many editors often discuss editing with multi-screen screen. Usually, it means that the schedule of two actors is not in line with the preset (for example, in a close-up of over-the-shoulder shot or two people), but the scene rhythm can be edited properly to slow down the time between the two actors.

If the camera is locked and the overlapping parts of actors' actions are not too complicated, you can create a brand-new OTS lens in a simpler way. It produces a visual effect that two actors are different in the time selection of performance.

12. Make your own choice, but also consider others.

The duty of an editor is to form a story and grasp the rhythm of the film.

The most important thing is to help the director achieve creative visual effects. But you should also have your own ideas. Most editors finish the initial cutting independently. This is your first chance to put a distinctive personal brand on the film. After the original editing, the director and the editor will work together to turn the editing into the version that the director wants.

The choices you make when editing and changing an actor's performance all affect the audience's viewing experience. For example, cutting out the repeated parts in the dialogue can enhance the tension of the picture. This conveys that even after the filming, the editing work should not be neglected.

The decision made by the editor can easily change the feelings conveyed by the scene, so any decision must obey the plot. Of course, you can only make such editing if there are logical reasons and the director agrees. If you don't agree, you should provide an alternative.

I like to review the shot before choosing the best scene. At first, the director may have marked the third and fourth shots as the shooting range. I may actually start with the first shot and then use the second half of the fourth shot.

when I repeatedly introduce the dialogue of actors, I often cut off the cut scenes that contain few shots. Although you have thought about explaining the reasons for your editing, you should also be prepared for the change.

Most directors don't review every shot in post-production, but modify it according to the version of your edited performance, whether they appreciate the actor's performance or not. If they really appreciate an actor's different performances, they will suggest modifying the clip or finding the right part from the shot. The more the edited scene makes people feel brand-new and present the most convincing performance, the more the director will agree with your technology. ;