Analyzing the Art of Film
By Haley Tausinger
Editing
This basic term is the post filming
production that consists of trimming and
placing all of the shots together to form a
movie.
 Before digital technology was used for
editing, film producers use to cut the film
with scissors and
manually attach multiple
strips of film.

The Great Train Robbery
-Thomas Edison
This film was mainly known for being
the first narrative silent film that
reached up to 12 minutes. This film
was also very known for it’s new
editing techniques that were brought
into the film industry. One major film
technique that was used was
crosscutting.
http://history1900s.about.com/od/1900
s/qt/trainrobbery.htm
Gravity
-Alfonso Cuarón
This film won last years (86th annual
Academy Awards) Oscar for best film
editing. It was most defiantly deserved
considering most of the film was filmed on
a green screen.
Texting and Driving PSA
-Haley Tausinger
Editing is a key factor
when it comes to
making a successful
film. This film was
originally about 11
minutes worth of film
that was condensed
down into a 5 second
PSA.
Parallel
Parallel editing is used when trying to
refer to two or more scenes that are in
different locations yet happening
simultaneously. This is made possible by
alternating between the different scenes
constantly.
 This term can also be referred to as cross
cutting.

The Godfather
-Francis Ford Coppola
This scene is so contradicting and parallel editing
is the best way to shoot this scene. As you see in
one scene a child is in being baptized in a church
but is contrasted by the killing the other scene.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_I82117oAw
The Silence of the Lamb
This contradicting scene makes you believe that the two actions
are happening at the same place and the when in reality the FBI
agents went to the wrong house, while the main character was at
the right house.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ts1x6uADFtM
Drunk Driving PSA (PROM)
This PSA is a lot like the Silence of the lambs. It showed
two different scenes happening in two different places but
made you believe that it was happening in one.
Cutaway

This is the shot that is away from the
main scene. It’s mainly a shot that cuts
into a shot that is continuous in order to
keep the viewers attention.
The Bad and the Beautiful
-Vincente Minnelli
A great use of an insert shot is
during the car crash scene in The
Bad and the Beautiful. This scene
includes an hysterical Lana Turner.
The Godfather
-Francis Ford Coppola
In this scene of The Godfather, a big rise in tension occurs and
causes a dramatic pause. Unfortunately the pause was too long
and didn’t look right so the director called for a cutaway. And
from their it was fixed and looked natural.
http://peelslowlynsee.wordpress.com/2010/05/13/thegodfather-the-big-chill-the-cutaway/
Texting and Driving PSA
-Haley Tausinger
This insert shot used in this film not
only kept the viewers attention, but
let viewer know that the light had
changed and the driver was coming
to a stop.
Texting and Driving PSA
-Haley Tausinger
In this scene the close up of
Michael was inserted into
the shot to show emotion
and draw attention to the
detail on his face.
Graphic Match
Also known as match cut.
 This technique is used as a transition in
which there's a cut between two shots
but are joined by another objective that
links the two shots together.

2001: A Space Odyssey
-Stanley Kubrick
In this film an ape finds that bones can be used
as a tool and a weapon. As he throws the bone
into the air, a match cut appears and it changes
to an orbiting nuclear weapons satellite. This
makes a connection between the two objects as
advance tools in each period of time and show
the advancement in technology.
Pulp Fiction
-Quentin Tarantino

In this film two shots are linked together by the
sound of a bell. The grabbing of the watch to
the boxing ring is a symbolic link to his dad’s
experience in a Vietnamese POW camp and
future events where Butch gets trapped by the
rapists in the Mason-Dixon Pawnshop.
Action Match

This editing technique is used to cut
between different shots while the same
action in the scene is being done.
Psycho
- Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock is famous for the action match especially in his
famous film psycho. During the stabbing (action) the shots
consistently create more of a killing effect and helped make it
seem more believable.
Anchorman
- Adam McKay
This shot in Anchorman is a
perfect example of an action
match. The cut is made
perfectly right in the middle of
the action and the angle of the
shot is changed.
Two-Shot

A shot filmed of two people in it and
usually consist of contrasting emotions.
Casablanca
-Michael Curtiz
This two-shot was one of the most
famous shots in this movie. As the two
are saying goodbye tension and
emotions rise and are shown in this
shot.
http://nitratediva.wordpress.com/2012/
11/26/casablanca/
Twilight
-Catherine Hardwicke
A famous two-shot was used in this suspenseful scene of
twilight. You get to see both contrasting personalities and
emotions in this shot which is great for uncovering the secret
that Edward was trying to hide.
How to Pick Up Girls
-Haley Tausinger
This shot is a perfect example of a two-shot. It
has two characters in it yet show the their
contrasting differences.
Master Shot

A continuous take that consist of the
main action or setting of an entire scene.
It can be compared to en establishing
shot but instead of setting the scene it
introduces the characters and where they
are.
Welcome Mr. Marshall!
-Luis García Berlanga
In this scene a master shot is
shown of all the characters.
After this master shot the
director cuts in on close ups
to every character.
Little Miss Sunshine
-Jonathan Dayton,Valerie Faris
This shot in Little Miss Sunshine sets the scene but
also includes all the characters that are included in
the family. This example of a master shot helps set
the scene and gives insight on the family.
http://davidduewiger.wordpress.com/2013/01/24/ter
m-2-the-master-shot/
Deep Focus

This technique uses a large depth of field
and causes all ranges (foreground, middleground and background) to be in focus
Citizen Kane
-Orson Welles
Citizen Kane was very known
for the deep focus shot but
this particular shot is famous
for the deep focus technique.
In the background you can
see that the boy is still in
focus along with the
foreground. This keeps your
attention on the boy and the
fun he is having as his parents
are signing the papers to give
him up.
https://www.youtube.com/wat
ch?v=xbGbqRWwC_Q
12 Years a Slave
-Steve McQueen
This shot is a great example of present day deep focuses. It
keeps the foreground (two guys in front), Middle-ground
(the slave), and the background (two musicians). With the
shot the main attention is actually on the middle-ground.
http://www.deepfocusreview.com/reviews/12yearsaslave.asp
Shallow Focus

This technique uses a small depth of field
and causes one main object to be in focus
while everything else is out of focus.
Open City
-Rossellini’s Rome
In this shot the focus
is on his face which
shows emotion. This
shallow shot shows
Don Pietro waiting
for his execution and
signals a pivotal
moment in the
character’s life.
The Proposal
-Anne Fletcher
Today in film the shallow focus is a little
over done in movies and is starting to
lose it’s dramatic effect that it used to
have. These shallow focuses were all from
the same film, The Proposal.
Busch Gardens 2013
-Haley Tausinger
Focus Pulls

This is a camera technique that let’s you
change the focus from one object to
another during a shot.
Rushmore
-Wes Anderson
In the shoot the focus
switches from sad
Herman Blume to his
wife with another man.
This shows the bad
relationship that the
two have.
Bibliography
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ts1x6uADFtM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjwbwxUX2hY
http://www.filmsite.org/filmterms11.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4316BUEVYkE
http://oscar.go.com/nominees
http://collegefilmandmediastudies.com/cinematography/