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Movie editing techniques –
With pretty pictures!

Hone your understanding

of film editing until you
are dazzlingly brilliant at
it.

The very best directors have a

comprehensive understanding of
film editing. They plan and direct
shots in such a way that they can be
cut together smoothly and
coherently. Ambitious filmmakers would therefore be well advised to learn
film editing.

You should generally cut on action, especially if you are cutting from a wide
shot of a subject to a tighter shot of the same subject on the same visual axis.
Cutting on action means that you cut from one shot to another just as an
action is performed, such as an actor taking his hat off. When you join the
shots, you use the first part of the motion in the wide shot and the second part
of the motion in the tighter shot (you have to experiment to find out exactly
where to cut for the smoothest results – it depends on the shots).

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There are a number of ways to cut from a wide shot to a tighter shot
smoothly:

Please allow the animated GIF images some time to load

properly

1. Cutting on action
The following example is taken from a film I directed and edited:

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2a. Cutting on cross-frame

movement: the reveal shot
The following example is taken from a music video I directed and edited:

2b. Cutting on cross-frame

movement: the reveal shot – A
second example
The following example is taken from a film I directed and edited:

3. Cutting to empty frame and

letting subject come in
The following example is taken from a music video I directed and edited:

4. Cutting to secondary action

followed by tilting/panning to main
subject
The following example is taken from a music video I directed and edited:

5. Cutting on an emphatic part of

dialogue
The following example is taken from a film I directed and edited:

I was able to make the cuts shown above because I knew I was
going to make those cuts long before I shot the projects, and
directed the scenes accordingly. None of it was a lucky accident.

Please note that GIF animations are not as smooth as proper video. My hope
here is that the GIF animations above give you a clear idea of some film
editing techniques – much more effective than explaining with words!

Avoiding jump cuts

If you do not cut on action and the two shots are along the same visual axis,
the result is a jump cut. Jump cuts are jarring and disconcerting, and pretty
much unacceptable, unless that is the effect you want for narrative reasons.
Steven Spielberg sometimes uses jump cuts to punctuate the drama of a
scene, and he always uses the technique masterfully. An example is the scene
in which Carl Hanratty sees Frank Abagnale’s photo in the school yearbook in
“Catch Me If You Can.” Another example is the gas station scene in “Duel.”

Jump cuts can also be used to compress time (Spielberg used this technique
in “Schindler’s List,” in the scene in which Schindler is choosing his future
secretary while his new office is being painted), but again, it is a very specific
look and the director must plan the scene very deliberately to make it work.

There will not be a jump cut if you:

a) cut on action, as in examples 1 and 4 above, or

b) cut to an empty frame and let the subject come in, as in example 3 above,
or

c) cut from one shot to the tighter shot while something is moving across the
frame, as in examples 2a and 2b above, or

d) cut from one angle to another angle that is rotationally at least 20 degrees
away from the first one, or

e) cut to another shot and then back to the first shot, or a shot of something
else.

The middle shot in (e) is known as a cutaway. You should shoot plenty of
cutaways, especially for interviews and documentaries, where you are not
able to direct things precisely and need more insurance shots for post-
production. Cutaways can be a shot of the interviewer nodding, or a shot of a
glass of water; anything that you can cut to. Cutaways are also known as B-
roll shots.

More on jump cuts: bear in mind that they don’t only happen when cutting
along a visual axis without action; if you cut from one shot to another shot
that is perpendicular to it and in which the subject is framed in exactly the
same way, that’s a jump cut – perhaps an even more irritating one than when
you cut from a wide shot to a close-up with no action. For example, if you cut
from a frontal medium shot to a medium shot that is framed from the actor’s
side, that’s a jump cut, even though there is an angular difference of more
than 20 degrees between the two shots (see [b] above). Avoid it like the
plague unless you are seeking a specific effect and are sure of how the
audience will perceive it, which is not always easy to predict.

Remember that jump cuts are perfectly acceptable in music videos. The
human brain seems not to find jump cuts disconcerting in music videos,
which is pretty interesting.

You should also bear in mind that it takes approximately 2 film frames
(1/12th of a second) for the human gaze to switch from one side of the screen
to the other. You should allow for this when cutting your project.

When editing sound and picture, you should stagger the cuts. This means
NOT aligning the video and audio cuts – they should be separated by at least
a second. If the cuts are aligned, the change in background noise when you
cut from one sound clip to the other will be simultaneous with the visual cut;
this breaks the illusion of continuity and will make your project look
amateurish.

The following diagram illustrates this technique:

Shooting a variety of angles and editing them together smoothly enhances the
cinematic illusion, an effect known as “superior continuity.”

The big implication here is that you must take all of these editing issues into
account when you produce your shot list. A director’s weaknesses become
painfully obvious when the time comes to cut the movie together smoothly.

Preparing for the edit by studying

and analyzing every take you shot
The editing process always begins in the same way for me: I sit down with a
notepad and pen and I watch every single take filmed during principal
photography.

As I watch the takes, I make notes for each take, making brief notes on the
camerawork, performance and other relevant details, such as extraneous
noises.

For example, one take of a given shot might have a perfect camera move but
weak performances, or vice versa.

Of course in principle you want to find the take that is the best in every
respect, but this is not always possible.

Particularly for very long shots, the performance might vary in quality, or
there might be a camerawork weakness at some point in the take.

Usually none of this as a problem, and for the purpose of assembling the best
possible sequence, I typically use different parts of different takes for any
given shot. It works very well.

This only becomes impossible when a shot is supposed to be left uncut: in

that case you really have to ensure that it is perfect from beginning to end
during principal photography.

In any case, ensuring that you have at least one take in which both the
performances and the camerawork are good is one of the essential directing
skills that you should master.

By the end of this process of reviewing the footage, I have a set of very helpful
notes that I use in the actual editing.

For example, when I get to a particular shot in a sequence, by referring to my

notes, I know which take has the best camera move, which take has the best
performance, and ideally which take has a good compromise of both. This
makes the editing process more efficient, because I thoroughly investigated
and analyzed all takes beforehand.

If the project you are editing was directed by someone else, studying all the
takes and familiarizing with them thoroughly is even more important. You
won’t have a clue of what the director did or what the project is about until
you watch all the raw footage at least once.

In principle these notes could be made during the shoot, but in practice there
isn’t enough time or perspective to do this in the pressure cooker that is
principal photography. This analysis of the footage can only be done with
peace and quiet, and the perfect time to do it is before you actually start
assembling the project on the timeline.

How to learn movie editing and

become a highly competent editor:
a question from a reader
“What does it take to be a good editor, bearing in mind that editing should
not be taken for granted?”

My answer:

Ah, one of my favorite topics!

I agree with the vital importance of editing — it is the very heart of movie
making. This is why every serious director must also become a master film
editor. I am a director who always edits his own work, and I learned the art of
film editing concomitantly with learning how to direct. I recommend this path
to every filmmaker, because understanding editing makes you a much
better director, and editing the stuff you direct does produce significantly
better results in the completed project. It simply gives you a much more
comprehensive and coherent vision.

It is not enough to understand film editing: you must also practice, just as you
cannot become a good violin player just by reading about it.

Here is how I learned film editing:

1. I read Grammar of the Film Language

multiple times – the most useful filmmaking book I have ever read!

2. I watched my favorite films and spotted the techniques I read about in

“Grammar of the film language.” Watching a film with the sound
turned off is exceptionally instructive, because you will notice a lot
more about the editing when you are not distracted by the dialogue. I
strongly recommend this!

3. I went back to “Grammar of the film language” and, having studied the
editing of my favorite films, I learned even more from the book.

4. I then watched my favorite films again, and spotted editing techniques that
I had not spotted the first time. I repeated this process several times.

5. I shot rough practice sequences with my camcorder and then edited them.

6. I directed, shot AND edited my first project, which was a 30-minute film.
Directing and editing your own projects will teach you so much about
filmmaking that you will absolutely vaporize other filmmakers who don’t
understand editing – guaranteed! By the time I completed my first project, I
knew 90% of the film editing I know now, because I prepared a lot and took it
VERY seriously. Once it clicks, you’re sorted for life (but don’t stop growing!).

That’s how I did it – there is no magic to it, just lots of thought, study and
practice. The practical experience really is essential – studying the theory is
not enough.

I hope this helps, and do keep me posted on your progress!

Movie editing resources

American Cinema Editors
Canadian Cinema Editors

Australian Screen Editors Guild

Guild of British Film and Television Editors

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27 thoughts on “Movie editing techniques – With pretty

pictures!”

Laykou July 26, 2010 at 1:57 pm

This is great, thank you.. I’ve got just one question: You said, sound and
picture must be separated by at least a second… Which one has to come
first? Picture and than sound?

Greetings from Slovakia.

videofilmmaker July 31, 2010 at 12:41 pm

There is no hard-and-fast rule: you need to experiment and use your

judgement.

Best wishes!

Shadi Best March 18, 2011 at 4:30 pm

Your pointers are so good. I’m a pro still-photog, and I know stills &
lighting back and forth. I appreciate the way you take technical aspects that
are only subconsciously noted and explain the reasoning behind it.

I could never technically understand why video looked like video, but now
I know!

videofilmmaker March 19, 2011 at 10:40 am

Many thanks for the kind words, Shadi — I’m delighted to hear that
my work has been of assistance to you!

stan May 28, 2012 at 6:49 pm

killer tips.

videofilmmaker July 9, 2012 at 1:22 pm

Thank you, Stan!

Popescu July 21, 2012 at 12:00 am

Very good film editing tips! Thank You very much for the precious advice!

videofilmmaker July 21, 2012 at 7:31 am

You are very welcome! I’m glad you found it useful

Prasenjit singh August 14, 2012 at 12:37 pm

I am a video editor. I studied a few books on editing including IN THE

BLINK OF AN EYE, THE ART and SCIENCE OF FILM EDITING. But I
often realized that I have still not got the answer for which I kept
purchasing these good books. Now when I finished your notes I have
realized that these are the things I really wanted to know. Thank you very
much. Your notes are really worthy.

Prasenjit singh August 14, 2012 at 12:46 pm

Please elaborate on this if possible: “It takes approximately 2 film frames

(1/12th of a second) for the human gaze to switch from one side of the
screen to the other.”

Thank you.

videofilmmaker August 14, 2012 at 3:04 pm

Hi Prasenjit,

I’m glad you found this post so useful!

With regard to your question, what I meant is this: if you are looking
at the left of the screen in one shot and it cuts to another shot in
which the main subject is on the right of the frame, it takes the
human eye approximately two frames’ worth of time to switch the
gaze from the left to the right.

Why does this matter? Well, it means that when we are looking
at one side of the frame — which of course happens all the time in
well-framed shots — and it then cuts to a shot in which the action is
happening on the other side, the editor must bear in mind that we
have a 2-frame “blind time window” in which we do not see what is
happening on the other side of the frame.

This may or may not require a 2-frame adjustment to the cut, but it
is worth bearing in mind. For any given cut, the only way to find out
if it works is to test it. If it’s not smooth enough, adjust by one or
two frames and see if it’s better. This is the joy of editing!

Obviously the 2-frame delay described above tends to be more

critical when the project was shot in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio
(Cinemascope).

I hope this clarifies the issue!

srikanth raju bitling August 21, 2012 at 5:43 am

You are my film school. I am very grateful to you. I learn a lot of things
daily from your emails. I used to feel low that I am not able to leave my job
to start working as an assistant director or go to a film school. But now I
learn many things and practice with short films.
Thanks a lot.

videofilmmaker August 21, 2012 at 7:43 am

Thanks for the kind words, Srikanth.

Do not be sorry that you are unable to attend film school: it is an

appalling waste of time.

Keep developing your skills and building your reel — that’s how it’s
done!

Innocent February 17, 2013 at 11:17 pm

Your points are so good. So tell me, do I have to have more than one
camera on set to make for example “Cutting on action” style possible?

LAvideoFilmmaker February 18, 2013 at 5:08 am

No, you can do it with a single camera, making the smooth cut with
two different shots filmed at different times. The point here is that it
is the director’s responsibility to ensure that the action in the
different shots matches well — this is why I keep saying that if you
want to be a top-notch director, you must master the art of film
editing.

Obviously shooting with multiple cameras makes it easier, but

directors must learn the skills required to achieve the same result
with a single camera. You will not regret developing these skills.

rahul
June 24, 2013 at 3:48 pm

Amazing tips thank u.. a question. . Can we use some sort of wipes or
flashes to shorten a dialogue that might have some boring lines we don’t
want to keep if so kindly explain how. . Also can you guide where I can read
more on the same.

Rajkamal patil July 1, 2013 at 2:41 am

can i get tips how to work in front of camera or how to act in front of
camera ..i want to improve my acting skills so i need ur help ..bro

hadi shafie October 7, 2013 at 11:27 pm

hey i just got interested in film making first i wanted to do army but i
changed my mind and i love editing films and can u help me out. me and
my friends we made a doco and got into this festival and came first so i
wanna do more film making i need a lot of help….
Shankar
October 9, 2013 at 1:34 pm

Wonderful information. Have just started with filmmaking. Thank you

very much for posting this. It really means a lot to many like me. The gif
images are very useful in better understanding. Keep giving us more. Best
wishes.

LAvideoFilmmaker October 11, 2013 at 12:03 pm

Thanks!

Harsh Saraiya October 23, 2013 at 6:14 am

hey really loved your blog. i have worked as an assistant editor for a movie
and i want to become a Film editor. Can you suggest some tips on cutting a
trailer or any intense scene ?

Simon Williams November 1, 2013 at 8:13 pm

What a great resource you have provided here for budding filmmakers. I
teach a basic introduction to filmmaking course at middle school level (10
– 13 year olds), and I found your hints on TV commercial filming
particularly interesting as I am thinking of introducing a unit on this next
year (so far we have been focussed on filming narratives).

We use iMovie to teach the kids editing, and iMovie, of course, has a few
limitations. L-cuts and J-cuts of the sort you referred to in your editing
page are quite tricky for kids to manage for example. We also don’t have a
lot of time to do multiple takes, so we tend to film instead with 3 or 4
cameras focussed on different action or characters (TV style). This gives
the kids sufficient editing material for many of the normal editing
techniques you outlines. It also means that rather than using L or J cuts, I
can have them use the audio shots from one camera throughout, effectively
editing in alternative shots as cutaways.

Thanks for all you work on the site, and the gif animations are perfect for
demonstrating your explanations.

Cheers

Simon

LAvideoFilmmaker November 2, 2013 at 6:10 am

Hi Simon,

Thanks for the kind words and for taking the time to provide
feedback. I’m glad you find my work helpful; there is more in the
pipeline.

As a teacher you might have special interest in watching the

filmmaking practice video posted by a young filmmaker. I’m proud
 of this young man’s work ethic!

Keep me posted on how your TV spot directing unit goes.

Thanks for following my work!

Cheers,

-Ed

Kiran December 1, 2013 at 1:23 pm

This is awesome! You’ve really compiled a great list of pointers and tips
here. I’ve been editing for a number of years and this is still a great
reminder of some of the most important techniques and rules. Hopefully
some budding filmmakers/editors will find this valuable resource as well.
Cheers!

LAvideoFilmmaker December 3, 2013 at 1:01 pm

Thanks, Kiran! Welcome to my website.

-Ed

Jacob March 5, 2014 at 7:09 am

I am doing a school project and I was wondering your name. I need it for
my works cited

Christine August 5, 2014 at 1:06 pm

Great tips presented in a very clear way! Nice article!

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