PGCE Art & Design

Moving Image Arts Module

Day 3 A.M. Session

Camera & Editing

Continuity Film-making

Robert Thompson

Who were the first film editors?

Video Study: Editing History

Note: Film history in MIA is about context (students are tested on creative technique, not history)

Editing History

•Early film-makers pessimistic about future

•Edison’s assistant, Edwin Porter, experiments with cutting film

•DW Griffith establishes a grammar of film

•Initially a technical role, Editors now partner creatively with directors

The Hollywood Factory System

What is continuity style (classical Hollywood style) film-making?

What was classical hollywood?

Video Study: Classical Hollywood

What are the elements of Classical Hollywood or Continuity film-making

•Invisible storytelling: Camera and sound never draw attention to themselves

•Match-on-action

•Time is continuous (except for Flashback)

•OTS (Over-the-shoulder shots)

•Eyeline match

•Visual Storytelling

•Cross-cutting

•POV (point-of-view)

Short Video Studies:

Visual Storytelling (Rear Window)

Cross-cutting: 1 (Strangers on a Train)

Cross-cutting: 2 (Silence of the lambs)

POV (Silence of the lambs)

Camera

1. Framing

2. Position

3. Movement

Camera Framing: Key Terms

Shot Type (ELS, LS, MS, MCU, CU, ECU)

Establishing Shot

Silhouette

Camera Movement: Key Terms

Tracking (Dolly)

Trombone shot (Dolly Zoom)

Steadicam Hand-held

Panning

Whip Cut: Uses whip motion as a transition

Subjective (Snorricam)

Camera Position – Key Terms

Low Angle OTS

Crane (God) Shot

High Angle

POV

Dutch Angle

Video Study 1: Zooming and Handheld Camera

•Barry Lyndon – Zoom

•Handheld 1 – Blair witch hunt

•Golden Rule – Camera should be on a tripod unless there is a reason for it not to be

•Editing – Great Expectations

Video Study 2: Goodfellas in production

Slomo

Freezeframe

Handheld camera

Some improvisation around script

Epic steadicam tracking shot (Entrance to nightclub)

Slow motion tracking shot (Jimmy Conway decides to murder)

Jump-cutting at wedding

Panning at wedding

Creating drug-induced confusion

Video Study 3: The Trombone Shot (dolly zoom)

•Zooming in from a distance will ‘flatten’ the field of view

•Zooming while tracking will keep the foreground subject a uniform size while the background subject will appear to grow

Video Study 4:

Camera FramingCamera MovementTrackingCrane Shot

Camera framing in The Third Man

Camera Movement in The Untouchables (Panning|Crane)

Tracking Shot (Klute)

Crane Shot/God Shot (Citizen Kane|Halloween|Raising Arizona|Highlander|Origins)

Video Study 5: The Steadicam

Summary: The most important camera & editingTechniques

FreezeframeTimelapseReverse shotFast/slow motionJump-cuttingKen Burns effectVideo ScratchTrackingJump-cutTrombone shotPanning/TiltingPOVOTSSteadicamCrane ShotLow Angle/High Angle