Video assignments: Post-production (editing)

6 Principles of film editing

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1. Be sure of your story

Before you put your film together, you need to be sure of your final story.

You could have started with a plan and a storyboard in pre-production, but things often happen that mean you might have to adjust your story (or in academic terms, your argument). For example, if you are interviewing somebody, they might give unexpected answers, or you may find out new information during the production phase. Even world events can mean you have to rethink or re-angle some of your argument.

Just make sure before you start editing that you are clear what you are arguing and how you are going to persuade the audience of your point of view.

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2. Make sure you have enough footage

No matter how good you are at editing, if you don't have enough footage you will not produce a good film. This is because:

• You may have to use footage that isn't really good enough. Perhaps out of focus or a bad angle or just not really that relevant.
• You may not have enough B-roll footage to use to hide all the cuts you need to make your A-roll footage as tight and effective as it could be.

So, take far more footage that you need. More than 80% can end up 'on the cutting room floor' so to speak. That is perfectly normal!

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3. Don't be precious about your footage

This goes hand-in-hand with the previous point - you have to be willing to not use footage you love or are really proud of if it doesn't fit with your final film - the final product is what matters, not what you filmed. Don't delete permanently though - make sure you keep all the original footage just in case.

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4. Vary your footage

Use a mix of different types of footage - long shots, medium shots, close-ups, different angles etc. Be careful to make sure the audience will still be able to follow the narrative though - don't move directly from a long distance shot to a close-up or it can confuse - use a medium shot in between. Your B-roll footage should be used to connect A-roll sequences (see previous page for explanations of these).

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5. Use appropriate transitions

Most video editing packages give you different options for transitioning from one piece of film to the next.

Use these appropriately though, for example, if you fade to black and then fade back in again, it signifies a period of time has passed. Don't use these if you are still in the same time frame. Similarly, if you have a fast paced piece of film, it is usually best not to use transitions at all but just cut straight to each new piece of footage. Don't overdo transitions. It can get really annoying when bits of film spin or close into circles for no reason.

Even if you are not using a specific transition, think about how one thing segues into the next, for example, if you are changing from a moving shot into a still image, try to do that at a point where the movement in the shot has come to an end or is at least as slow as it gets. 

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6. Pay attention to your sound

Try to make sure your sound, be that voice, nat sounds or music (on its own) plays at a similar level - you don't want people having to keep adjusting their volume to hear things (or jumping at sudden loud sounds - unless that is the intention). Music can be used behind voice and nat sounds so you can have it lower when using it that way. 

You don't really want periods of silence (unless they are intentional for effect) so think about how music and nat sounds can cover those up.

A continuous piece of soundtrack can also help join together changing images so don't always change your sound when you change your image.

Using music in your films

Music plays an important part in documentary filmmaking. You will rarely see one that does not use music in some way.

Music adds to the argument in your film by making a connection to the audience and setting the tone for a sequence (or the whole film) and therefore increasing the persuasive aspect of the film.

You can use music tracks on their own or behind other sound in the film - but make sure you source the materials legally and ethically - see below.