DIRECTION - THE EDIT WORKSHOP WITH SIMON

Film editing is part of post-production, or everything that goes on after the actual shooting of the film stops. Other aspects of post-production include sound editing and mixing, computer generated effects, and soundtrack creation.

Simon took us back to his student days as a film maker and showed us a short video as to how the rushes where cut and cello-taped together on a machine called Steenbeck, they were still used up until the year 2000.

It looked something like this ....

The first ever edit used in film making was in 1903 'The great train robbery' by Edwin S Porter

The film used a number of innovative techniques, many of them for the first time, including parallel editing, minor camera movement, location shooting and less stage-bound camera placement. Jump-cuts or cross-cuts were a new, sophisticated editing technique, showing two separate lines of action or events happening continuously at identical times but in different places. The film is intercut from the bandits beating up the telegraph operator (scene one) to the operator's daughter discovering her father (scene ten), to the operator's recruitment of a dance hall posse (scene eleven), to the bandits being pursued (scene twelve), and splitting up the booty and having a final shoot-out (scene thirteen). The film also employed the first pan shots (in scenes eight and nine), and the use of an ellipsis (in scene eleven). Rather than follow the telegraph operator to the dance, the film cut directly to the dance where the telegraph operator enters. It was also the first film in which gunshots forced someone to dance (in scene eleven) - an oft-repeated, cliched action in many westerns. And the spectacle of the fireman (replaced by a dummy with a jump cut in scene four) being thrown off the moving train was a first in screen history.

In the film's fourteen scenes, a narrative story with multiple plot lines was told - with elements that were copied repeatedly afterwards by future westerns - of a train holdup with six-shooters, a daring robbery accompanied by violence and death, a hastily-assembled posse's chase on horseback after the fleeing bandits, and the apprehension of the desperadoes after a showdown in the woods. The steam locomotive always provided a point of reference from different filming perspectives. The first cowboy star, Gilbert M. 'Broncho Billy' Anderson played several roles: a bandit, a passenger who was shot in the back, and a tenderfoot dancer. The remarkable film was greeted with the same kind of fanfare that Sam Peckinpah's violent The Wild Bunch (1969) received many years later.

                                          HISTORY TIMELINE OF EDITING.

                                              

                                             

GETTING TO THE STORY .

We discussed how some shots will not be relevant to use in the edit and how the audience will get board if we don't get in and out of the scene at the pace we intend.

In my last project 'Y4' I was also told this exact thing, it's not necessary to see every single move of the character ie. A man is getting into a car - he checks his mirror - he puts his belt on etc. that is not exciting to watch we need to move the story on.

We watched the opening sequence of 'No country for old men', It was a great example of a scene moving on without having to see the characters do everything in 'REAL TIME'.

Simon explained that the worst feeling for him as a director and for most directors is getting rid of (What would have been seen to gold dust) scenes that have took time and money to get it right and not have it put in the edit, its sacrifices that need to be made to ensure that the audience will enjoy it.

I also felt the same in my first edit, it was really hard to let go of so much material as i had worked so hard and long to try get the shots.

THE BIGGEST AND EASIEST MISTAKE TO MAKE IS LEAVE TO MUCH IN.

THE TASK

We was given a script to read and some footage to edit we had to edit three different versions.

The first version was to be the longest, the second to be from Effie's POV and lastly the quickest version. Below are my three edits.

I feel that the last edit was straight to the point, it wasn't really necessary to see Alan walking towards Effie, the story was about returning some papers to Effie, it's a simple story.

In the last version I missed out a line 'I am sorry Im late' this is done on purpose because I want the audience to wander why he is sorry, I created my own Cliff hanger.

I am defiantly going to take what I have learned into my project and when I am doing my story board because before I thought that the audience had to see entrances and exits, but getting to the point straight away is so much better because it makes the pace more interesting.


We watched a scene from 'Shane' and talked about the POV's, from every camera angle it was from the point of view of one of the characters, below is the scene we watched.

I thought maybe I could use this idea for my project but my vision wouldn't match the shots I have in my head, however it was interesting to see the long holds on the shots and the tension that them shots can create with the audience.
I want to create tension but I want to find some news ways to do that.