Film bearbeiten: Working with
Film (A)
This handout will accompany you through the basic elements of film
editing. The important parts of this process are using the camera (Kameraführung) and
editing (Schnitt).
I.
See the following brief internet videos for an introduction to shooting film (Drehen)
and to editing (Bearbeitung oder Schnitt). These videos come from the website “Das
kleine Einmaleins der Filmproduktion“:
 On Shooting (Zum Drehen):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13ok9NebPfc
 On Editing (Zur Bearbeitung):
Teil 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-pxU5SjZ14&NR=1
Teil 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMbyVclT_TA&feature=related
II.
Shot-Reverse Shot in a Dialogue (Schuss-Gegenschuss im Dialog):
Person A and person B are standing face-to-face in conversation. The shot-reverse shot
technique first shows a close-up of person A speaking, then immediately a close-up of
person B reacting to what person A just said. Here’s an example in pictures:
Beispiel: Max und Susanne sind Freunde. Max verkauft (is selling) Limonade und
erzählt Susanne von seinem Erfolg (success). Sie hüpft (jumps) vor Freude:
Schuss: Hallo Susanne! Guck mal,
wieviel ich schon verkauft habe!
A
© Kalamazoo College Department of German Studies
Gegenschuss: Mann, das ist super!
B
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 Further example: See the first five seconds of this
sequence in the movie Run, Lola Run:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaCDuYwcPvo
III.
Continuity Editing (Die Überwachung von Details im Film)
When editing a film it’s important not to destroy the illusion of reality by leaving
jarring transitions between individual shots in a sequence.
Details that preserve the sense of reality and the logical flow of time are consistency
of costuming and lighting from one scene to the next. For example, young Max from
the example above should wear the same clothes in the second shot as he did in the
first; he should also carry the lemonade glasses home to preserve the story about
his lemonade sales, etc. If these details don’t fit together, it confuses the film viewer!
 The following YouTube clip gives a clear and concise explanation of this principle:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xauSCz1mEk
IV.
Some Basic Elements of Editing (Ein paar Grundelemente vom Schnitt):
1) The Fade (Die Ein- und Ausblende):
The picture in the shot becomes gradually darker until it disappears into a black
screen (fade out = die Ausblende), or it becomes gradually brighter until it’s clear
and sharply defined (fade in = die Einblende).
Fade out:
Fade in:
© Kalamazoo College Department of German Studies
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2) Cuts (Der Schnitt):
A cut in a film is the connecting point (or point of separation) between one shot and
the next. Most cuts are continuity cuts (described above). However some cuts are
designed not to create a smooth flow between shots, in order to create a specific
effect.
One example of an abrupt cut is the jump cut (Sprungblende):
The transition from one shot to the next is abrupt and jarring. For
example, the body position of the person being depicted might be
radically different in the second shot. (In the first shot Susanne is
jumping; in the next she could be pictured walking out the door.)
 Radical shift in location from one shot to the next, without prior warning.
(Max is standing on a stage giving a speech in shot 1; in shot 2 he is suddenly
at home in front of his computer—does it signify that he was thinking about
his speech?)
 ???
Bild 1
Bild 2
V. Advanced Film Techniques (Film Bearbeitung für Fortgeschrittene)
1) Crossing the line (Der Achsensprung):
The so-called 180˚rule also helps preserve the sense of reality in film.
 180˚rule –Its purpose is to stabilize the space of playing area so the viewer
isn’t confused. →An imaginary “axis of fiction” line is drawn through the middle
of a scene; the camera must stay on the same side of the 180˚ line to keep the
same background –continuity aid for the spectator.
On the website “Understanding Film” you’ll find a succinct explanation of this
rule, as well as examples of the reverse angle shot:
http://understandingfilm.wetpaint.com/page/2.+D.W.+Griffith+and+Classical+C
utting
© Kalamazoo College Department of German Studies
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Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/be/180_degree_rule.svg
2) Reverse angle shot exchanges –common for dialogue sequences –the director fixes
the placement of the character from shot to shot. (i.e., if character A is on the left and
character B is on the right, they must remain that way in the reverse angle taken
from over the shoulder of B.)
Source: http://understandingfilm.wetpaint.com


Filmmakers rarely take the camera behind the imaginary line, unless their intention
is to confuse the spectator, such as in fight scenes when the filmmaker wants the
spectator to feel threatened, disoriented, and anxious.
Early filmmaker D.W. Griffith perfected the conventions of the chase scene.
3) Parallel editing –the alternation of shots of one scene with another at a different
location. Gives the illusion of simultaneous action in two different places.
 By cross-cutting back and forth between the two scenes, Griffith effectively
conveyed the idea of simultaneous time.
Source: http://understandingfilm.wetpaint.com/page/2.+D.W.+Griffith+and+Classical+Cutting
© Kalamazoo College Department of German Studies
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