Editing basics

Editing basics 

Standard Cut: 

This is the hard cut which is where two clips are put together with the last and first clip of two frames connected. This is the most common cut, and doesn’t really invoke any meaning or feelings, as others do. It is normally paired with action so the cut seems less abrupt and flows with the film. This type of cut can either engage the audience with the film or completely disconnect them.  

Jump Cut: 

This is a cut that pushes forward in time. It’s normally done within the same frame or composition, and many times it’s used within montages. For example, Rocky uses jump cuts to show the passing of his training sessions. Normally a background will stay the same and the actions and positions of the characters will change, which gives the jumpy cut. However, if the background changed, it would be a plain hard cut. 

Montage: 

A montage is an editing technique that helps show the passing of time easily and quickly. It is normally made with a series of jump cuts and hard cuts. Again, rocky uses many of these to show his training sessions and his months of training for a fight. 

Cross Dissolve: 

A cross dissolve is where a shot dissolves into another shot. They are normally used for two purposes. They can signify a passage of time by fading into a different shot. They can also be used to show multiple stories or scenes happening at once but shot at different times. The cross dissolves, however, is a very easy way to remind the audience they are watching a film. This means that if used wrong, they are disconnected from the story. 

Wipe: 

A wipe is a transition that uses an animation that wipes the first scene away into the next scene. These are very bad transitions to use as they are very abrupt and can rarely make sense into a storyline. 

Fade In/Out: 

A fade transition is where you fade out one clip and fade in the other. This can show the passage of time most often, like a night-to-day switch or someone falling asleep but can be a bit jarring if not used properly. You don’t really want to use this type of cut for standard cuts. 

J or L Cut: 

J and L cuts are very easy to do and are very common. They get their names from how the clips line up in editing. An L cut is used when you want to have audio from clip A continue when clip B comes in. The J cut is the opposite, where the audio from clip B comes in when we’re still seeing clip A. Pretty much every documentary interview you’ve ever seen uses J and L cuts throughout. It is a good way in blending two clips together that are very different as the audience unconsciously blend into the shot. 

Cutting on Action: 

Cutting on action is a good way to make a hard cut seem less out of place and helps it flow with the story. You cut at the point of action, because that’s what our eyes and brains are naturally expecting. When someone kicks open a door, we expect to see the change in angle when the door is kicked, not after it’s flown open and swaying for a moment. If a Cut on action is done at the wrong moment, the audience is took out of the story and it disconnects them from the action and is very visually displeasing.  

Cutaway Shots: 

Cutaways are shots that take viewers away from the main characters or action. They give extra context to the scene and can create more tension and foreshadowing. For example if a stand off has lots of tension building up, a cutaway shot builds more suspense as the audience can no longer see what the characters are doing. 

Cross Cut, aka Parallel Editing: 

This type of editing is when you cut between two different scenes that are happening at the same time in different places. It can be great for adding tension in scenarios. For example, many heist films will use this to show what is happening in the bank but also to show what the police are doing to get into the bank. These shots are also used to help show phone calls. By cutting to each character back and forward we can see the characters' facial expressions and that helps tell a bigger story as we can see the overall emotions and tones in a film. 

Match Cut 

A match cut is an edit where something in the frame stays the same so another clip can be used. You use it to either move between scenes or move around a space, while keeping everything flowing. A very basic version is shooting someone opening a door from behind, and then cutting to the opposite side as they walk through it. Another example is where someone is throwing a ball and before it is caught, it cuts to someone else catching a ball with similar composition. This is a good way of starting a new scene without losing the audience. 

Smash Cut: 

 A smash cut is if you’ve got a loud scene that immediately goes to a quiet scene or vice versa, this is where you’d use the smash cut. You want to use it when you’re transitioning between two completely different scenes, emotions, or narratives and you need to make an abrupt transition. This amplifies the action that is happening in both scenes. 

Invisible Cut: 

An invisible cut is when you don’t want the audience to notice a cut in a film. By using invisible cuts in your video or film, the film seems more like you are there, living with the characters. The goal of these types of cuts is to keep the shot looking like one continuous take.