AS1: Task Two – Editing for a Purpose

Creating pace

During films the speed of Editing always changes because it has to match what is going on in the scene. For example if the film is a Romantic film, it will be slow to match the tensity of the the scene. If the film was action/thriller the editing will be very fast to match the intensity. All films use this kind of editing to get a better feel of the scene. i am going use some examples of films that use this kind of editing.

Developing Drama

For the fast editing i am going to use the film "The Good, The Bad, The Ugly" because it has many different scenes that i can use to describe, and analyse. I am going to use one of the last scenes of the film because it has a great example of how the speed editing creates excitement for the audience to experience. In this scene the three actors are going to have a shootout and the winner will be able to find the gold that is buried in the graveyard.

For slow editing i am going to use the film  because in most scenes the director has used slow editing to really get the audience into the scene, and this is very clever because unlike an action scene it will be relaxed and you will focus more. I am going to show a scene where they use slow editing to create a slow and emotional scene. here it is below;

                                     


Also fast editing is used to create an action pack scene. Directors and editors, for an action scene would make the shots last for only a split second to make it more dramatic, and this is very effective to fit all kind of action into that particular scene. Most Action scene consists of this type of editing weather it is an action fighting scene or a car chase scene.

Here is an example of a scene from the hit movie the Bourne identity which uses short editing techniques to make the action scenes more tense and fast;
As you can see in this clip from the movie, the shots last for only a short amount of time to get the feeling of excited for the audience. This a very good example because you see all angles from the fight, and therefore you can get a better feel of the scene.




Storytelling and engaging the viewer 

Editing might also be used for storytelling because you can view it step by step. It will also give you a chance to look at the piece of film frame by frame to see if it matches and if it goes well with smoothness of the film. This will also engage the viewers and draw them into the film and there are examples of this above. Different editing shots will decide the pace of the scene and therefore will decide the interest the viewer has by this scene depending on the style and effectiveness of the editing.

Relationship to genre 

Each genre has different types of editing. For example fast quick edits of a scene is best match for an action film or a horror, and a slow paced form of editing will be for a romantic or comedy genre. Each form decides the feeling the viewer gets whilst watching these genres. For example the director/editor will want the viewer to feel relax whist watching a comedy of romance so they can feel engaged and attached to the film. But for action films and horrors the director/editor will want the viewers to be on edge and not relaxed so they can feel the rush that the film can potential give to the audience. But there can also be slow edits for action/drama films, for example the scene in titanic where the ship sinks.





Combining shots into sequences 

Combining shots into sequences is when you put all shots together to make them run smoothly together. Once they have been singly edited they can be put together. The editing must be smooth and look invisible so it can look like just one big shot. An example of this is in the action film, Mr and Mrs Smith. 

Creating Motivation

If a piece of footage is edited well, it can create motivation for the audience of the footage. Many films about sports and training create motivation to the viewers because of the way the scenes are edited and the music put with the scene. One of the most successful motivation scene's, are the scenes from the Rocky films. Each film has a scene where he trains, and intentionally it creates motivation. Here is an example of this: