Unit 16 - Development

Editing

In-camera Editing:

In-camera editing is when all the scenes are shot in sequence/order, this is make all the scenes link and make sense, if there is no editing software available then in-camera editing is used to make sure the film makes logical sense and that all the scenes are tied into one another.

 Jean-Luc Goddard used this technique in his film Breathless, the main reason is to save time editing, as the editing has already been done at the end, also to save money as you don’t have to use editors and pay them as the editing is finished when the filming finishes.

Following the action

This is when the camera focuses on the action happening at the time, the term is self-explanatory, the camera follows the characters as they are in an action scene, this is to make the audience engaged as they would want to see what the characters are doing during the action and what expression, and feeling they have, the action does not necessarily have to be focused on the ‘hero’ or main character, it can also show the antagonist and what he is doing during the scene, as it would make the audience bored if they just focused on one character all the time, as they would want to see the surroundings and the enemy, this is usually used in chase scenes to show what both characters are doing.

An example, of this is in the Start of the film, Quantum of Solace. Where James Bond is being Chased by the bad guys, and he is running away in his Aston Martin, the camera shows James driving and running away while being shot at, and it shows the villains shooting, the whole clip is about 3 minutes of non-stop action, this engages the audience as they are near to the action all of the time and they would always be on the edge of their seat, as they hope James Bond will get away.

Multiple character narratives

This editing technique is when multiple characters are witnessing the same scene, but the camera shows different people’s perspective, this is effective because it allows the audience to see different people’s perspective and how they are feeling about the event, and the expression and emotion that they have, and it can contradict with other characters and allow the audience to try and work out what each character is like.

Saving Private Ryan is an example of a film with multiple narratives as there are multiple ‘heroes’ in the film as we follow them through the war, and what they are doing. This allows the audience to feel sympathy for the multiple heroes and make sure that they succeed in their mission.

Shot variation:

This is when the shots are all different from one another, this is to show the surroundings of the characters, what situation they are in, and also to create tension as we move form one shot to another, as we expect something to happen. The shot variation sets the scene and places the characters on a scene that needs introducing to the audience as it may play a vital role later in the plot of the film.

An example of this is in the western film, The Good, The bad and the ugly, where during the final shootouts, there is shot variation, from long shots, to medium shots, and the shots keep changing which with each shot gets closer to the characters, this is a famous scene and it builds up tension and makes sure that the audience are on the edge of their seat to see the outcome of it.

Manipulation of time

Manipulation of time is when, the footage is sped up or slowed down, this is to create an effect on the audience depending on the scene, if it is a chase scene it would be sped up to make the audience more excited and allow them to see the chase in a more exhilarating way, so that it does not bore them as much.

An example of this is in the Film 300, The fighting scene were the King Leonidas is fighting during the battle, there is a use of slow-motion, this is to create an effect on the audience to show the fighting skill of the king and how good he is and allow the audience to see the gore and the wounds that the king inflicts on the enemy, The audience would then be more interested and intrigued into the film as it would allow them to see the battle scenes better.