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Thursday, February 04, 2010
A Second Look at Film Editing
There are many categories for which Academy Awards are given. One of the least appreciated and understood is editing. Of all of the categories of work that go into a film—directing, acting, special effects and music—few are as important as editing.
But how often have you watched a film and thought, “That was really well-edited?” That’s because, more often than not, editing is an invisible art. When it’s done well, you don’t notice. But when it’s done poorly it can be very obvious.
In his book “In the Blink of an Eye,” Oscar-winning editor Walter Murch (“Apocalypse Now,” “The English Patient” and “Cold Mountain”) suggests that edits are a representation of the eye as it blinks. Think about it: we close our eyes briefly as we turn from one thing to another, effectively “making an edit.” Of course, some movies are put together to intentionally draw attention to the edits. Faster edits create a sense of unease or excitement. Slower edits can affect you in a different way, often creating tension or suspense. Holding an actor’s gaze just a few frames longer can make a huge difference in how it makes you feel about the character.
Editing is about visual manipulation. As we look around our world, we edit in our mind with our glances. Great film editing does the same by taking control away from the viewer, and putting it in the hands of the director and editor.
Until the 1990s, film editing was a long, laborious process that involved physically cutting pieces of film and splicing them together. These days most films are edited digitally. In some ways, this makes the process much easier, but it also gives an editor almost countless ways to manipulate the images a viewer sees to convey a character or a story in a very specific way.
The next time you watch a film, take a minute to think about the editing and you’ll gain a whole new appreciation for the art of filmmaking.
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