You have to have a macro and a micro view of your work at all times.
When I’m cutting a scene, I’m focused on the scene & in the back of my head I’m thinking:
How is this scene playing in the story compared to everything that’s happening before or after?
I know that every single edit affects the whole film.
It is critical to think both micro and macro as a film editor.
When I’m focusing on 2 shots then adding a 3rd shot and 4th shot, I’m making sure they work for me and asking:
- Is the tone of this scene totally out of whack with the rest of the film?
- Is the tone of this sequence, the pacing of this sequence, completely foreign to the rest film?
- Am I adhering to the tenets that we set out to achieve from the beginning?
It’s bird’s eye view of the film, and also a zoomed in view, all the way down to the microscopic level.
I often like to zoom out of my timeline so I can see everything – I like to see patterns, colors. You can tell where a scene is fast paced or slow paced. You can spot where there is something off and you have to find a creative way to amp it up.
Edit the entire scene. Completely focus on the scene, but always be able to pull back and say:
What I’m choosing to do now…how does this play looking back and looking forward into the next scene?
You have to do this at all times. It is taxing. It is tedious. It will make or break the film.
It is the one way I have found to keep the train going down the track & keep everyone happy on that train.
Until next time…
