THE CRITICAL

PRACTICE OF FILM
An kydd
Introduction Elspeth

103049

Q I k
 Chapter

Editing 9
Learning objectives
After completing this
chapter, you will be able to:

Identify the key features of the

continuity editing
Construct a scene
system;
using the
continuity editing system;
Explore how editing can create links
between different times and spaces;
Analyze the aesthetic and
rhythmic factors used in editing.

The final stages

Editing is the last phase of a film's creation when the images that have been shot diring
production and all the sound that has been recorded, are combined into the final film. The
work of the cinematographer and camera assistants, the designers and their teams is done, and
the editors, sound mixers, composer and visual-effects technicians take over. There is some
overlap in these processes as reshooting may be required, and the actors remain on cal! to
dub over the originally recorded dialogue. The editor is a crucial member of a film crew who
Oversees the extensive work of postproduction. As we will see, editing can make a considerable
difference to the look and feel of the final film. Editing is a powerful tool in the world of film
making and in this chapter, we will explore the finail stage of the filmmaking process, the edit-
ing of a film:

First, we will look at the different types of transitions that can be used between shots and the
conventions governing their use;
Then, we will look at how the continuity system works to establish cinematic space;
We will examine some of the aesthetic decisions that editors make when performing their
Craft;
Then, we will consider how editing works to create a sense of time and space;
Finally, we will touch on the theories of montage, first proposed by the Soviet filmmakers of
the 1920s, which continue to be a fundamentally influential way of thinking about editing.

185
 186 THE CRITICAL PRACTICE OF FILM

Transitions
can be cut together
wnen the editor shots in the final stages of making a film, they
joins two
cut, wnicn just involves
using
aifterent
types of transition. The simplest of these is the straight however, can also be
Snos next to each
other without any linking device. Shots,
wo a placed ins or fade outs, a n d wipes.
jOined by number of transitional edits, including dissolves, fade

the second mage a s tne irst tades

A aIssOIve replaces one image with another, superimposing
out.
A ade n brings an image in from a black screen (or occasionally another colOur).

A fade out goes from image to black (or another colour).

image and replace it with
Wipes comein many different shapes, but they basically take one

another through some form of line, pattern or shape.

With wipes, the

are not as common in feature films as the other transitional techniques.
pesshot
Second crosses the screcen to replace the first shot. This can be achieved with either a simple
line m o v i n g across t h e screen or o n e image can replace a n o t h e r using a variety or p a t t e r n s .

Ditterent transitional edits are used for different purposes. Straight cuts are most common
between shots within the same scene where there is no shift in time or space. Dissolves are often
used to indicate the passage of time, either between one scene and another or within the same

Scene. A fade in can also indicate an even longer passage of time. Fade ins start new scenes or

As well as moving the narrative forward

Sequences and fade outs indicate completion or closure.
in time, transitional devices can introduce a flashback sequence, a convention popular in Clasical
Hollywood. Certain types of wipes are often associated with a shift into fantasy or memory
Transitions are part of the basic grammar of editing, the starting point for creating the complex
levels of meaning that go intoa completed film. In the following section we will discuss the basic
structures of editing for narrative film and introduce the conventions of continuity, a way to

structure narrative space through editing.

The continuity system

for film is a complex art that requires certain choices to fashion the raw material of shot
Editing
footage and recorded sound into a consistent and coherent whole. At the outset, editors choose a
style appropriate to the type of film. Different conventions of linking shots govern narrative and
documentary styles. Likewise experimental films, by their very nature, often use a variety of edit-
ing styles, trying different techniques in order to explore their effects. Even within a particular
type of film, or in one film, more than one editing style can be used effectively.
From early on, narrative filmmaking has favoured one particular style of editing known as the
continuity system. As we saw in Chapter 1, the continuity editing system is a convention that
developed as a key component otf Classical Holywood cinema. This editing style is used to draw
the viewers into the story without consciously reminding them that they are watching a tilm. I
other words, to make the of the filmmaking process invisible.
continuity is designed workings
Chapter 7 we learned that continuity Starts with decisions made by the director during the
In
 EDITING 187

nroduction pnase. in order tor an

editor to
construct a scene that follows the rules ontinuity,
the scene has to
nave Deen
staged
and shot that O
way. This is known as shooting to
edging that the airector must understand
how the editor will assemble the shot u
t the
postproduction pnase the editor
puts the
shots together, making certain aesthetic
footäge. ".
ultimate goal or tne
coninuity style is to create logical chorces.
and within the location. Ihus, when the spatial relations between the ciaa
audience looks at a scene, it can the he
different characters in relation to each other and positt see

interactions between them. their location, and therefore undestaiu

To demonstrate now
continuity editing
works, we will start with some basic scene
and examine the options editors face when cutting this scene in a continuity style. In doing this, elementsoa
we can see that
tne ruies govern continuity in operation and pay close attention to wny
rules developed and Wnat
happens when they arebroken. As we progress, we will begin to oo
at how a scene can be shot and edited with
is constructed tnrough
more complexity, in order to fully understand i
space editing. Let's begin with this very basic and simply shot scene: wo
people having a conversation. This type of scene is very common in narrative
Classical Holywood nas produced many filmmaki
will use as our example a scene from
examples, shot and edited in the continuity styie. v
Stagecoach (1939), a love scene betweern Ringo Jonn
wayic
and Dallas (Claire Trevor).
Stagecoach, Which we also studied for cinematography, is an example of Classical Hollywood
cinema. In tact there are other scenes in the film constructed using similar patterns. In this SCene,
Ringo asks Dallas to escape with him to his ranch.
The scene is shot using three principal camera positions:
A central position
which shows both characters;
A shot of Ringo from the left side of the scene;
A shot from the right, showing Dallas.

The scene starts with a long shot as Ringo follows and approaches Dallas; the camera tavours
his side and she is seen from behind. They are outside in the corral at night, leaning against oppo-
site sides of a fence. This shot is known as an establishing shot, as it establishes the setting and
the characters. In continuity editing, establishing shots are customarily placed at the start of a
scene to show the characters within the setting and to indicate their relative positions in relation
to each other. This is important as it orients the audience to the space. When the scene contin
ues, the space is broken down into a medium shot and close-ups. The establishing shot has
anchored the audience so that it fully understands where the characters are. So when the scene
cuts to the medium shot and close-ups, the relationship between the character on screen and the
character off screen remains clear. The second shot is a medium two-shot from the centrai posi-
tion, bringing us closer into the scene. In this shot we see the two characters; their positions in
relation to each other are equally clear and less is shown of the background, focusing our atten
tion on the two main characters.
The subsequent two shots are in a pattern known as shot/reverse shot. The first shot shows
one character looking in one direction, and the second shot (the reverse sthot) shows what they
re looking at. In this case it is the other character looking back at them. This can be done with
just one character in frame (as it is here), or it can include the second character seen partially from
behind, an over-the-shoulder shot. We then cut to the reverse shot to see the second character
 EDITING 189

Figure 9.3 Stagecoach, John Ford, 1939

towhom he is talking. This simple patteri is the inaic buiding block of nmany dialogue scenes in
thecontinuity system. it establishes the sjace a n e agoai positions of the characters withi
that space.

180° rule
This scene also follows the 180" rule of contiut: cditing. In other wOrds, all thhe camera posi-
tions are on one side of the action. Figure 9,+ shows you the camera positions tor all the sthots
in this scene. You will notice that there is a line crosing between the characters and marking the
in which looking at each
positions they are
other. This line is known as the axis of action
(sometimes also referred to as the action
Axis ot action
line') and it defines the spatial relations
Detween the characters. The 180° rule keeps
the camera on one side of the line, moving to
different positions, but not crossing the line to
shoot from behind. Why? Let's look at what Reverse shot
Shot
nappens when the camera croses the axis or
action.
In Figure 9.5, the camera has crossed the axis Establishing shot
01 action. This creates
a e for two reasons.
a distracting
First,
sense
the background
o Figure 9.4 180° space
 190 THE CRITICAL PRACTICE OF FILM

AXIS Of action Axis of action

Figure 9.5 Axis of action

Figure 9.6 180° space

will have
changed and, after being accustomed to viewing one side of the
space, the audience is
suddenly shown another, without a
corresponding shift in context. Second, the
characters have
now
replaced each other in space so that cutting between these two shots makes it
the characters are appear that
talking to themselves, rather than to each other. This is even clearer when
the
shot moves to the shot/reverse shot
position. If we move from one character to another across
the line, the characters will not to be appear looking at each other, but staring off into
space in
the same direction.
To emphasize the point of the 180" rule, imagine that the action in Figure 9.6 is a football game
with a team in black
playing against a team in green. If there are cameras on both sides of the
stadium and the shots cut from one position to another it will appear as if the two teams are play
ing against themselves, rather than against each other. It will be hard for the audience watching
to understand what is happening in the game, or in what direction the players are moving.

Shot selection
From the point where the dialogue starts until they are interrupted, the scene from Stagecoach is
nearly two minutes long. In that time the camera is placed in basically four positions: the position
of the establishing shot, the central position for the two-shot, and the shot and reverse shot posi-
tions. In the production phase, the whole scene might well have been shot from each of these
positions and the editor would then have four different camera positions to choose from when
constructing the scene. This selection is not done randomly, however. The editor constructs the
scene so that it can tell the story in the most effective way and enable the audience to empathize
with the emotions of the characters. In this scene the shifts from the long shot to the medium
shot, and from the medium shot to the close-ups, are used to punctuae or accentuate particulat
moments of dialogue.
During the establishing shot the conversation is casual, with Ringo expressing his fears tot
Dallas's safety outside at night; the take is fairly long as they continue to discuss why they te
both travelling to Lordsburg. When Ringo tells Dallas that his family were killed, the scene no
into a medium shot; she responds by recounting her own losses. These
about the characters' histories remain in medium shot as they are background to the
moments of revelatou
emotiot
 EDITING191

i the scene tnat rollowS. When Ringo starts to talk awkwardly to Dallas about his tee

shot
no
moves into à iOse-up. Close-ups bring the character towards the audience:
tney
he
the viewer into the emotion. In Chapter 6, we learned how the
to draw ta
ced
close-up can o ar
nhance emotion and here the close-up
gives increased emotional weight
to t i s
pas
moment.
s
As Ringo continues teing Dallas about his ranch, the shot cuts to her reacting to what heis
It is an important technique when editing: the shot selection does not always
ne
saying
.

aracter who I5 taiking Ine eaitor can include a reaction shot to show the
sno
character wno
hara

speaking. but reacng to nat the other character is saying. In this moment. Dallas's reactions
important
as im
as Ringos offer, as she listens to
him and starts to hope for a close
better ne
up exchange the c e r as ingo asks her to go, then the shot cuts back to her telling nin
that she doesn t now n i . At this point, after she has not yet agreed to go, the scene moves ba

out into the tvo-srot wnicn pulls the audience out of their emotional world, before Dalas
despairingly waiks away trom Kingo and they are interrupted by Curly (George Bancront

rule and jump cuts

30
There is another convention that regulates where the camera is positioned for shots that tolow
each other. This convention relates to how close the camera can be placed to the position for tne

previous shot. The 30 rule suggests that the camera must move at least 30° between two consec
utive shots or change lens trom wide angle to telephoto. If this does not happen, the twO Snots
will appear too close to each other and will therefore be confusing and disconcerting to the aud
ence; the viewer becomes more aware of the cut. When the camera does not move sutticiently
between shots it is knon as a jump cut and is considered to be a break with the rules ot conti

nuity editing.
Of course, many frilmmaking styles consistently break continuity conventions for etfect. Jump
cuts became popular during the late 1950s and early 1960s in a film movement known as the French
New Wave. This was an important moment in film history when a group of young ftilmmakers were
experimenting with different techniques and themes in film, and breaking with standard conven-
tions such as the continuity system. One of the first New Wave films was Breathless (1960) directed
by Jean-Luc Godard. This film is well known tor
its use of jump cuts. (See Chapter 12 for further
discussion of the jump cuts in Breatlless.)

Axis action Adding complexity to the scene

As we have seen, the rules of continuity editing
work to place characters in relationship to each
other and to the space and setting. As always,
these 'rules' are a starting point, not an absolute
standard. ith 180" space, the axis of action
functions as a general guideline only. There are
three particular ways in which the axis of
Lessthan 30
action can be seen to be tluid and shift within
a scene:
igure 9.7 30° rule
 PRACTICE OF FILM
CRITICAL
192 THE

o n screen;
movement of t h e pertormers
the
Through
Through camera movement;

around the line.

Through cutting

axis of action itself moves with the characters. In aa

to realize that the Scene
It is very important
are not seated at a table, but are moving, the axis then assumes differen
where the characters in the scene. The charact
to where the
characters are at any given point acters'
positions relative establish multiple action lines in.
interaction with each other also any
movement, action and
during their conversation, Dallas and
instead of being stationary Ringo had been
given scene. If, the one between them and one each along the
walking. there would have been three action lines:
direction in which they moved. The camera could then be placed at different points around t
ne

relation to the position of the characters and their forward

conver. movement. Also, in a
space in
sation between three or more characters there are multiple action lines linking the different char.
in Stagecoach.
acters in the conversation; as in the group scenes
In addition to the axis of action shifting with the characters' movement, the camera itself can
move across the line. When the camera passes two characters, with the action line between them,
the viewer also moves around the line with the camera. Therefore there would not be the same
disorientation that occurs when there is a straight cut aCross the line. A cut across the axis of
action is most noticeable as a break with continuity when it occurs from positions directly oppo-
the line, it assumes a neutral position.
site each other. When the camera is placed close to, or on

From this neutral position it is less

shift in the scene's
perceptible as a spatial relations, to cut
across it to another neutral position near the action line on the other side. Thus, the neutral posi-
near the line on the other side can be used
tion near the line on one side and a neutral position
the audience's sense of the ce or presenting
to move around the line without confusing
of the characters to each other. As with all itm tech-
conflicting signals as to the relationship can be

niques, it is important to
remember that these three methods of crossing the
action
ii:::
can contain moving cameras,
followi moving
scene
used in combination. For example,
a
on or near the action line.
performers, using editing that cuts
across a neutral angle,
This scene from Stagecoach uses a very common, but tairly simple, camera set-u 7d clear,
in many films. Howev can be
These kinds of appear
scenes
conventional editing techniques. and
seen in the multi-character s c e n e s
ot
in the stagecoach, there are more complex ways staging
clear spatial relations so
in motion. These scenes also maintain
editing between various characters and
of the various characters, while the characters
that the audience can understand the positions
the camera move through the space in more complex patterns.

The ideological significance of continuity editing

the that has left it open
continuity system
It is the very clarity of spatial relations constructed by
to deconstruct the ideological
and stylistic
tocriticism from filmmakers and theorists looking
system is a cornerstone of Classical
dominance of Classical Hollywood cinema. The continuity
style and it is important to understand it in order to critique how it constructs its narrative tor
AS we saw first in Chapter 1, a key feature of the Classical style is the invisibility of technique, te
that binds the film spectator into the narrative, concealing the tools of productiO
convention
that the viewer forgets that they are watching a film. Continuity editing does not call attc
o selt as a technique in comparison to the alternative forms of editing such as tne Soviet
 EDITING 193

montage style (aiscussed at the end of

this
chapter and in Chapter 12). The Soviet style editing
self-conscious, and snows an
awareness of
technique, allowing the viewer to break witn the seai
identification with the story and appreciate the workings of the
Continuity editing constructs a particular cinematic production.
in which the
a specific position in relation to the action space
of the scene. This is
spectator is bound into
how conventional Classical
tive draws the audience into the world of the
film. Thus when, for narrd
directors break witn example, the French New
continuity conventions, they disrupt the audience's wave
identification witn tne
characters. In Chapter 12, we will place of uncontesteu
see how a film such as Breathless unaer
mines these conventions and
It is
so
critiques the
ideological effects of the
continuity system.
important to
understand the
conventions of continuity when viewing a film, to
how the editing makes meaning. It is also recogniac
useful for the student filmmaker to explore and
rules can be utilized, abandoned, modified or prac
tise these conventions, to know how these
structed. with our
understanding of the decon
mind, we will continue this principles of
continuity editing and its alternatives in
discussion by considering the
their cuts effective in the overall techniques that editors use to mdNE
construction of a scene.

The aesthetic
techniques of editing
In addition to folowing or
breaking the conventions of narrative editing, editors also make a
series of aesthetic choices to ensure
that the final film is as effective as
will examine three possible. In this section *E
techniques: graphic matching. cutting on movement, and the pacitng
editing. In conventional narrative
filmmaking. these choices often work in conjunction
rules of continuity editing.
Editing aesthetics support the continuity system: these ar "i:
that contribute to the
invisibility of the editing style. These techniques are also usecd i
style editing. r

Graphic matching
When cutting a sequence of shots together, editorS use particular techniques to äccentia.
ent components in the scene. One
of these techniques is the
graphic match. Grapihic iu
directs attention by linking shots together that have
points ot interest in the same part ol rite
frame. If you remember in the discussion of
composition in Chapter 6, we studied the importance
of placing subjects within the frame to create the
strongest effect. In particular, we saw how differ-
ent elements could be
positioned for compositional balance to draw the audience's attention
towards certain areas of the frame. This is an important consideration in
editing also, as an editor
often links different shots through the connection between the
compositional features. As we
watch a film, our gaze is drawn to a particular area of the trame through the
compositional tech-
niques and editing.
For example, subject is framed screen right with her eyes at the intersection of the right
when a

and upper thirds line, this is the area of the frame where the audience's principal attention will
be focused. If, in the cut to the following shot, the attention is shifted to the lower left of the
rame it will take the audience a moment to search the new shot to find the area of interest. It is
more common, however, for an editor to cut between two shots keeping the area of graphic
weight in the same part of the frame, or, alternatively, to draw the audience's attention through
 EDITING 203

flashback or tlasntorward. Another function of inserts is to show the audience the dreams or

fantasiesof the characters.

An innovatve example ot the use of a series of insert shots is found in the 1968 Cuban tilm,
Memorics of ereveopet. In one scene, the main character, Sergio (Sergio Corrieri), fantasizes
about the young woman, Noemi (Eslinda Niúnez), who has come to clean his house. The way that
Sergio's fantasy 15 shown in this scene is through a few short shots, cut quickly in and out of the
scene as the tmain action continues. In the first of Sergio's fantasy shots we see him look in
Noemis directon. in the next shot she enters his bedroom with a broom. Then we see him look
ing towards her again followed by a brief fantasy shot of him kissing her. We then return to the
shot of him siting at his desk, which gives us the clue that the preceding shot was not part of the
real world of the story. His second fantasy follows with two shots, unconnected by continuity. He
is on the bed with Noemi, then she is naked on the bed alone. The next shot returns to him at
his desk again. Then the narrative continues as Noemi leaves. This is an unusual scene in that the
fantasy is introduced with a straight cut; there is no transitional device to indicate the move fron
the regular 1iow ot narrative time and space. The fantasy sequence is introduced with the shot ot
Sergio looking at Noemi.
Sergio's fantasy in Memories of Underdevelopment appears naturalistic because it does not employ
any ExpresSionistic techniques to indicate that it is a fantasy. As this film uses the techniques of

realism (location shooting, rough lighting, black-and-white film stock), it seems ambiguous
about entering the mind of the principal character. (We will explore this further in Chapter t2
In fact, you can watch this scene and not at first be clear that this is fantasy - it is inserted so nati-
rally into the flow of the action. It is the editing, the straight cuts, short takes and use of cutting
on movement that allow this scene to function as fantasy and to integrate it into the film in a
way that makes sense.

Montage
The continuity editing style that we have studied so tar developed as part of the film language of
Classical Hollywood cinema. This system was the dominant method of visual storytelling in
Hollywood from the 1920s on. Other models of filmmaking have used ditferent forms and styles
of editing. Around the same time that Hollywood consolidated its methods, other filmmakers and
theorists were experimenting with different editing styles and theorizing about the importance of
diversity of editing techniques. In the Soviet Union in the 1920s, very important steps were
taken towards the understanding and development of editing as part of filmmaking. One of the
great innovations of film editing comes from this period and is embodied in the work of a group
of filmmakers and theorists that include Kuleshov, Pudovkin and Eisenstein. These theorist
practitioners developed a concept known as montage. To conclude this chapter we will examine
Some of the work and ideas of the montage theorists as they apply to editing practice, consider-
ing how some of their ideas still influence filmmaking today. We will return to examine their
theories more closely in Chapter 12.
The term 'montage' has a number of difterent meaningS and can reter to different aspects of
Ccditing theory, depending on the context. The word 'montage means 'editing' in both French and
ussian, but when it is used in English it has l more speciTic meaning. Montage sequences, when
Used in Classical Hollywood style describe a series of shots in which the shots do not maintain
 204 THE CRITICAL PRACTICE OF FILM

Spatlal and temporal continuity, but link together

related images o v e r time
or
across space. In the
n which it developed in Soviet filmmaking of
the 19205, montage
rererred
to the use of
Context devices of filmmaking.
The montage theorists all
editing as one of the principal meaning-making but they each saw it as fundamental to
aitterent concepts about how editing should be used,
ndd
the process of filmmaking.

Eisenstein and the montage of conflict

in this field was Sergei
Montage uses shots out of spatial temporal order. A leading exponent
or
conflict is a sequence known
as the

EISenstein whose most famous example of the montage of incidents in the failed
Potemkin (1925). This film recounts
Odessa Steps' from the
revolution
film, Battleship
of 1905. In this scene, the Russian authorities attack a group of civilhans who are gath-

If this scene were edited using continuity techniques

and victims would bebattleship.
the arrival of the
the to watch
ereasoldiers edited so that they appear on different sides of the screen from
between shot sizes.
each other. It would also use shot selection that moves progressively
quick cuts, shifts in screen
direction, rapid moves
AS a
montage sequence, however, there are
in various direc-
shots and close-ups and cutting on action that crOsses the Screen
between long all the action is shown.
ons. As the sequence starts, action and throughout not
we see repeated
is
frame. Another feature of montage
The sequence uses conflicting movements across the
in such a way as to
between long shots and close-ups,
evident, which is the movement in space
Classical scene from
disturb the audience and stress the conflict. If you
think back to the
w a s in stages, from long
shot to two-shot too medium
Stagecoach, the movement between shots
m o v e s more drastically between
these camera poOsitions, accen-
close-up. The montage of conflict
on a large group ot people, but alfect-
tuating the feeling that this violence is being perpetuated

ing each person on an individual level. significantly intil-

the practice of montage has now
Despite its politically radical beginnings,
of its original context. Montage is very
trated different areas of media production independent
standard for television ads to use fast edits for a particuiar effect.
in advertising. It is fairly
Itpopular
is also a popular approach in music videos, when the editing style can appear driven by the
conti-
music and beat, with the effect, rather than following spatial or temporal
images shot for
in their turn intlu-
music-video editing, using montage techniques, have
nuity. Television ads and
elements of montage are used in certain films: quick
enced feature-film production, so that
movements and the a b a n d o n m e n t of the practices of clear spatial
cutting, shots using conflicting
continuity (180° space).

Summary and key questions

The editing of a film is key in how meaning is created. When analyzing a scene, it is important
to
to lookhow the editing brings everything together into a coherent whole. When
at preparing
shoot or edit a scene, directors and editors keep these questions in mind:

What transitional devices does the editing use?

Does it use cuts, dissolves or wipes?
o How are the transitional devices used? Do they signal shifts in time or space?