Experimenting with Editing Techniques

Editing techniques from J_Scott01

Affiliation - Short Film - Non-Continuity Edit

Affiliation - Non-Continuity Edit - Evaluation

Regarding the non-continuity edit, I wanted to do something that made this particular edit stand out in comparison to the others, through experimentation and perhaps dabbling outside of what would be expected of the film in a creative and unique manner. I decided to start the edit on a more haunting and illusive note, which spawned the idea of Spencer’s prominent line - which is presented as if Benjamin is hearing this for the first time, shocked by what is unfolding in front of him. The audio was extracted from the footage and placed against a black screen, whilst several audio effects were applied to the various iterations of Spencer’s line, which achieves the desired haunting echo effect.

Following a non-diegetic transition sound effect, the scene from near the end of the film - which the line originates from, plays out accordingly. This is a clear representation of non-continuity, due to the stream of events leading up to this moment Having not yet been shown to the audience. The reason that I chose this style of presentation for my non-continuity edit is that the format gives the audience a taste of what is to come, before putting them back at the beginning and working out for themselves how the characters end up where they are at the start.

Appropriately, the visual and sound effects used to illustrate the transition back to the start of the film represent that of a vintage tape, linking in to Pete’s brief interaction with one at the start of the film, as he turns off the classic jazz music playing in the background before approaching Benjamin. Editing wise, I sped up the footage to approximately 3000 times its original speed, allowing the audience only glimpses of the film - without them possibly knowing what is happening as this occurs.

The time-reversing sequence comes to a close as the camera lingers on Benjamin’s pocket watch, with this mis en scene obviously tying in with the concept of time travel (not in a literal sense), which has just been demonstrated to the audience. The screen then goes black as the tape seemingly ends, with a similar sound effect to that barely heard at the beginning of the final continuity cut of the film accompanying this as a form of transition effect.

The film then seemingly resumes as normal, once again beginning with Benjamin’s pocket watch, as the previously distorted music plays properly - setting the scene exactly as intended. From this point onwards, the audience should have some insight that the character of Spencer is not all that he seems, in contrast to someone who has only watched the continuity edit - who would be in the dark as to what is taking place in comparison. What should especially grip the audience in my opinion, is the fact that the opening scene ends with Spencer being shot - which gives the audience an especially different outlook on the events that take place, perhaps a sense of anticipation - rather than curiosity.

Affiliation - Short Film - Continuity Edit

Affiliation - Continuity Edit - Evaluation

The continuity edit of my short film relies heavily on the master scene script and storyboards, which it remains faithful to for the majority of the time. When comparing the final continuity edit of my film with my final storyboards, this is clearly noticeable. The combination of both camera and editing techniques alongside the solid planning that has gone beforehand, enabled the film to appear as professional as possible. In this evaluation, I will go on to break down the process behind the camera and editing techniques used during the creation of this particular cut of the film.

The edit begins with an extreme close-up shot of a central character’s pocket watch, this shot also pans slowly to the right, as noted in the storyboards. The amount of techniques used within this very first shot hopefully establishes the level of professionalism that is to come from the use of such innovative shots. A long establishing shot follows this, which introduces the audience to the three characters present in the location, with the shot being lined up in perfect unison with the bar itself. The lighting here is noticeably yellow tinted and off-coloured to give the vibe of an old western aesthetic, with the seemingly warm environment giving the idea of a closed and isolated space to the audience.

An example of continuity is shown when one of the characters is escorted out of the bar by the barman, with the shot changing angles midway through his departure, in order to further illustrate the layout of the bar in the audiences’ minds. The reason that this is an example of good continuity being that the characters remain where the audience would expect to see them, without any unnatural teleportation between shots - as this would be an example of unintentional non-continuity, which shows a lack of professionalism.

The standard medium close-up shots of the characters are now introduced, which remain relatively consistent throughout the edit and should flow naturally and go unnoticed in the eyes of the audience. Mis en scene helps to give the next character a sense of threat, due to the dark atmosphere that surrounds him as he makes his entrance - with the close-up tracking shot of Spencer’s feet being one of the most notably stylistic in the entire production.

The low angles that this particular character is shown from should be noted, as this is an intentional detail to make the audience feel as though they are below him. This contrasts with how the previously introduced character; Benjamin, is portrayed - as he is intended to be a relatable character, as opposed to Spencer. The production was shot using the Single Camera technique, as opposed to the multi-camera technique, meaning that “shot reverse shot” was used frequently, although the actual effect is completed during editing.

During the film’s midway flashback sequence, a wide shot showcasing all the relevant characters is once again employed, acting as an establishing shot for this short sequence. This was done in a similar manner to an earlier shot in the film, so that the audience can follow the sequence of events clearly. The next notable shot is a tracking over the shoulder shot, which is used to great effect in order to reveal the film’s supposed antagonist; being the character of Anthony, whilst also showcasing the reaction of the other characters.

Another notable camera technique used throughout the film is a shift in depth of field, a primary example of this is when Pete the barman has a realisation, he faces a board on the wall (mis en scene), before the focus shifts from him to the object - as does the character’s thoughts. This effect was also employed during other moments of significance throughout the film, generally between two or more characters during conversation. The effect was put to good use in my opinion, as it emphasised the importance of the dialogue being spoken to the audience.

During the editing process, I put my past experiences and knowledge of the editing process to good use. The overall aim of this particular edit was to maintain a steady and realistic pace that would appear satisfactory in the eyes of a general audience, perhaps even being comparable to a professional and fully funded production. Therefore, I ensured that my edit stayed in line with the established storyboards that came before it, with techniques such as the aforementioned “shot reverse shot” method being used consistently throughout my continuity edit of the film.

Affiliation - Short Film - Teaser Trailer

Affiliation - Teaser Trailer - Evaluation

For this “Teaser Trailer”, which is around a minute long, I wanted to set the scene and mood for the film clearly in front of the audience, without giving away too much of the plot, which can prove difficult due to the nature of a short film not having as much footage as a feature length film for example. However, I feel as though I have achieved the appropriate level of information given away to the audience, which is mysterious in its presentation, yet still remains enticing.

As for the music which accompanies the trailer footage, this was sourced with properties such as “ambient” “dark” and “mysterious” in mind, on my behalf. This led to the discovery of this particular track, which I felt was a good fit for the mood and style of trailer I was going for. The slow rhythm of the music allowed me to input the footage so that it corresponded with the timing and beats, this allowed for a seamless flow which blends both the audio and visual components of the trailer together - which is hopefully appreciated by the audience.

I wanted to play out the first few seconds of footage naturally, to parallel the opening of the actual film; this eases the audience into the world being presented before them at a slow pace to start with. This pace then picks up slightly as the music develops, extracts of dialogue are introduced and elements of action are shown. Pete’s line “time of the bar lads” is very generic so does not give away any of the plot; however, it does help to further set the scene of a closing bar.

The format of the trailer is that it gradually introduces each character, although not necessarily in full view or detail, just to give the audience a taste of their personalities. As mentioned in my evaluation of my final continuity edit, the character of Benjamin is intended to be the most relatable character from the audience’s point of view. It is for this reason that it is his voiceover that the audience will hear upon watching the trailer, which is overlaid on top of the introduction of each other character - this is bookended with his reaction to Anthony’s entrance.

A striking yet vague tracking shot of Spencer’s shoes as he enters the bar seemed a wise choice for use in the trailer, due to the unique single camera technique employed for the shot, along with the mystery of the character’s identity from the audience’s point of view. Diegetic sound can be heard as his feet impact the floor, with the low tones appropriately accompanying the soundtrack which continues to play throughout the teaser trailer.

Once the characters of Pete, Benjamin and Spencer are established (however briefly) to the audience, I found it important that the introduction of the film’s antagonist should appear even more mysterious than that of the previous characters, due to the shock value of him finally making his appearance in the final film being a significant element to the plot.

For this reason, we first see the other characters’ reactions, followed by a looming silhouette, which is concluded when the character is very briefly seen placing something on the bar. Due to the dark tone that ensures, the audience can only assume that the character is bad news, and whatever he has placed upon the bar is of great significance - due to the aid of the other characters’ reactions also being impactful.

In regard to editing itself, a cross-fade effect was employed at the end of the trailer, in order to emphasise the somewhat dark nature of the item Anthony placed on the bar. This effect was keyframed at a particularly slow speed, in order to fit the slow tone of the film and the trailer’s music, which is slowly coming to a halt by this point. The logo shown was spaced out and simplistic in style, with shadows surrounding its edges, once again emphasising the mysterious and shadowy nature of the film as a whole. A cross-fade was once again used to phase the logo out, which coincided perfectly with the trailer’s music also coming to a slow close.

Showreel

Link to Showreel

Business Development Interview

In this Business development interview, myself and my colleague Chaz discuss our aspirations concerning our upcoming film production company - Northern Flame Films. This interview covers the logistics of founding a film production company, as well as what we hope to achieve in the long run concerning film productions and expanding our avenues and the directions we go in. We also reflect on our ever-growing back catalogue of media productions that have helped us get to where we are in the present, providing useful insight into the industry as a whole.

Mock Interview

This is my mock interview, in which I am interviewed by my college lecturer, concerning my experience and hopes for the future within the media industry. In this interview, I document previous productions that I have created, in which I have gained various skills throughout which are essential to my role as Editor in the media industry. The interview establishes myself as a professional editor with plenty of experience concerning the role and its impact on the productions that I contributed to.

Teeside University Retrospective

At Teeside University, we watched a presentation hosted by two students. Each of which specialise in the same area of the media industry, although one was a freelancer, with the other being hired by a company – being LADbible. The freelancer spoke of what his career choice entailed, with experiences working with broadcasting companies such as Sky. The area in which they both specialised in was journalism, although the requirements of the job roles varied due to their different circumstances.

The freelancer described the difficulties of acquiring a one-off job, although the eventual reward can be higher than that of a full-time worker. The full-time worker described the security of a full-time job, in comparison to the one-off gigs of the freelancer – although this involves working under the orders of someone else in contrast to being your own boss.

Working under someone else results in you having a lack of control over your working environment – however this may be more reliable than managing your own time, which is another important aspect of being a freelancer.

If you are not well experienced in time management and do not trust your own judgement, the option of freelancing may not be suitable – whilst a controlled and stable environment may be more appropriate, in the form of a full-time job under an employer. Both students expanded on how the university encouraged them to pursue these job opportunities and presented such unique options to them in the first place.

Business Card

Buisiness card from J_Scott01

The information provided includes my portfolio of previous video productions and projects, as well as methods of contact such as phone number and email address. Going back to the colours chosen to represent my business card, the vibrant red against the darker shades helps to make the card stand out in comparison to others. The striking design, which incorporates triangles of various shapes and sizes, utilises these colour choices well, making the business card as a whole appealing to the eye. This ensures that I have more of a chance of success in regards to finding myself jobs in the industry.