Class Blog 1/22

We started class today by going back to the Assembly with Alfred slides.
The class looked at a slide by one of the other periods that questioned the surrealism of the
Eyeline Match. After that we watched a video about editing, specifically cuts and transitions.
The video explained the cuts and transitions and explained their purpose and how the effect
the movie. Here is the list of terms discussed in the video. Glossary of Cuts

• Cutting on action : cutting while there is movement on-screen
• Cutaway : cutting to an insert shot and then back (eyeline match)
• Cross-cutting : back and forth between locations, ex: phone call
• Jump cuts : disjointed edits in the same shot or action
• Match cut : cut from one shot to a similar shot by either matching the action or composition

Glossary of Transitions

• Fade in/out : to/from black
• Dissolve : blend shots
• Smash cut : abrupt transition
• Iris : old-fashioned, circle that opens and closes in camera
• Wipes : screen wipes from one side to the other
• Invisible cuts : impression of a single take
• L-cut : audio transition

J-cut : audio of the next scene starts before you get to it
 After watching and discussing the video we talked about how editing can impact a movie in a narrative, thematic, and practical. Here are those notes, Editing choices→ what is the purpose?

• Narrative Purpose: Plot, to further the story, giving scene of conflict
• Thematic Purpose; Fitting to the tone of the story, genre, style
• Practical Purpose:  creating a sense of illusion, continuity (action scene where someone is getting punched)

We watched the shower scene a clip from the movie Physco and tried to count the number of cuts. As the scene progressed we learned it became harder to count the cuts as the scene progressed. We began watching a scene of GoodFellas (that was all shot in one take), but the period ended before we could finish and discus it.

What we learned in class can translate to watching movies outside of class, having a better understanding of the craft can help us form more complex opinions on them. It could also help our writing skills. We learned from Physco that many quick cuts created tension and urgency, by being quick and precise without words when writing maybe we can get the same effect.