An edit means to provide a transition between two shots. Transitions are in the form of cuts, dissolve, fade (in and out), and wipes. A number of factors contribute to an edit. How, why, and when these elements are used decides how good or bad an edit is. A good edit is always unobtrusive. There are six elements of the edit-the conditions to be satisfied in order to qualify for a good edit. While these six elements are fundamental to a good edit, it must be remembered that if the rushes (what has been shot) are beyond redemption, any amount of effort cannot result in a good film. The six elements are
Let us briefly look at each one of these elements.
Motivation Why we apply edit gains significance. The reason could be visual or aural. The movement of an actor, the actor's response to a sound, or a combination of visual and aural could be the motivation for an edit.
Information An edit should be able to reveal new information-in this case visual information. A new shot should always add new information. Otherwise, there is no reason why we should be applying an edit. However, care should be taken to ensure that such edits are unobtrusive. For example, a construction worker is shown laying bricks on a construction site. Our cut should add more information such as, the construction worker is laying the last few bricks to complete a wall or he is the only worker on the site.
Composition Because an editor cannot create composition on the edit suite, we should ensure that when we apply an edit, the succeeding shot is not dramatically different from the previous one or cutting into an ugly shot. Bad composition can only make editing more difficult. See the lesson on visual grammar to recollect what is meant by good shot composition. The editor's job is to select and work on the shots with an acceptable composition.
Sound We have already discussed how sound can create an impact on the viewer. Using the right sound at the right moment, an editor can heighten tension or create an emotion. Sound can be one of the most exciting reasons to make the edit. Sound also prepares the audience for a change in scene.
Consider this example. In a long shot of a restaurant interior, we can hear various sounds. Imagine a cut to the CU of a customer without the same sound in the background. This would mean that all other sounds have ceased or we have cut to another location altogether! The viewer can also be guided by advanced sound, which is called overlapping. For example, it is common to edit the sound of a train on the protagonist just before she decides to go on a holiday to Darjeeling, the Indian hill resort commonly accessed by narrow gauge 'toy train', or to overlap the sound of an ambulance on a character actor who has just suffered a bullet injury.
Camera angle Scenes are normally shot from various camera angles. We have already discussed that we should not jump the imaginary 180-degree line. It becomes the editor's responsibility to maintain a difference of a minimum of 45 degrees between two shots and not jump the imaginary line.
Continuity Each time a new camera angle is being shot (in the same sequence) the actor or presenter will have to perform any movement or action in exactly the same way as he or she did in the previous shot. This, of course, also applies to different 'takes'.
Continuity can be of various types:
Continuity of content The action has to remain the same between two cuts. For example, if the subject has picked up a pen with his right hand in an MCU, then it is to be expected that the pen is still in his right hand in the following MLS.
Continuity of movement The editor should strive to maintain continuity of movement. If the actor is moving left to right in the first shot, the actor is expected to move in the same direction in the next shot, unless the change of position takes place within the shot.
Continuity of position Continuity is also important in the position of the actor or subject on screen. If an actor is in the corner of the screen in the first shot, then he must be in the same corner in the next shot also, unless the change in the character's movement is seen.
Continuity of sound Space and time determine the continuity of sound. If the sound of a speeding car is audible in one shot, then it needs to be heard in the following shot too. Even if the car is not shown in the second shot but instead a character is shown watching it speed away, the car has to be heard-until it is out of hearing distance. In addition, similarity of sounds in shots in the same scene and at the same 'time' needs to be maintained. This is known as ambience sound or atmosphere sound. There must be continuity in ambience sound.
Transtitions
As discussed earlier, transitions-changeovers from one shot/scene/sequence to another-are in the form of cuts, dissolves, fade-ins, fade-outs, and wipes. Transitions are changeovers from one shot/scene/sequence to another. They take four forms:
Cut
The cut is an instantaneous change from one shot to another and is the most commonly used transition. It is like blinking our eye when we shift from one object to another. In a good cut, the transition from shot to shot is not perceived by the viewer. The cut is used to show continuous action, provide an impact, or shift from one location to another.
For example, in a scene such as shown in Figs 8.4(a) and (b), the cut moves the viewer directly from ELS of the school yard to an MLS of the school toilet. This cut serves to show more details. Another example is of a CU of a car speeding down the road. A smooth cut might show the same car moving in the same direction in an extreme long shot in a desert. However, if the car were to move in the opposite direction, it would not be a smooth cut.
Fig. 8.4 The cut-an instantaneous change from one shot to another
When the cut is noticeable it is called a jump cut. A jump cut acts as a break to the transition from one shot to the next. Beginners should always strive to obtain a neat cut. The 'know them before you break them' adage applies to all rules of editing.
Dissolve
A dissolve is a transition in which two shots overlap each other, with the first gradually disappearing while the next one appears and then remains on the screen. Thus, one shot blends into the next. Unlike the cut, dissolve takes up time on screen. It is achieved by overlapping the shots, so that towards the end of one shot, the beginning of the next shot becomes more and more visible (Fig. 8.5). As the old shot becomes fainter, the new shot becomes stronger. This transition is clearly visible. In a dissolve, there is a point where both visuals are equally strong.
The dissolve is used to indicate a brief change in time or location and a strong relationship between the outgoing and incoming shots.
Dissolves should strive to show new information, have compositions that blend easily, and avoid visual contradiction. It is always better for the outgoing and incoming shots to have different camera angles. Dissolves can range from 1-3 sec., depending on the requirement. However, when two pictures overlap each other for a long duration, they are likely to confuse the viewer.
The advent of computer based editing has made it possible to insert a colour in a dissolve between two shots. Called the 'white flash', this is a very popular effect used in most music videos and films for flash backs or flash forwards, and is achieved by adding a colour to the dissolve, provided our machine allows it.
Fade
The fade is like the putting on/ off of lights in a theatre. In fact, the concept of fade was adapted from theatre. A fade is a gradual change of the image wherein the image slowly 'emerges' from black or vice versa. Like all the other transitions, a fade is deliberate.
The fade occurs in two forms.
A fade-in, as shown in Figs 8.6{a) and (b), is the transition from black to the image. A fade-in is like taking a nap and opening our eyes slowly to see the world again. A fade-out, as shown in Figs 8.7{a) and (b), is the transition from the image to black. A fade-out is like slowly closing our eyes. A fade in is used at the beginning of a programme or at the beginning of a scene/ sequence that has a change in time or a change in locale. A fade-out is used at the end of a programme or at the end of a sequence that has a scene/ considerable change in time or a change in locale.
It is important to remember that when fading out, sound should also be nearing climax. The reverse holds good for a fade-in.
Wipe
When one shot is replaced by another in a' geometric pattern, it is called a wipe; see Figs 8.8 (a) and (b). Wipes are normally used to show drastic changes in location or time. Depending on the non-linear equipment or digital video effects generator used, there can be wipes ranging from 20 to 2000. Each of these transitions has a completely different meaning and characteristics, and should be used accordingly.
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