Editing and Montage in International Film and Video: Theory and Technique

261 Pages·2017·7.658 MB·English

by  Luís Fernando Morales Morante

EDITING AND
MONTAGE IN
INTERNATIONAL
FILM AND VIDEO
Editing and Montage in International Film and Video presents a theoretical
and practical approach to the art of editing. In this book, Luís Fernando
Morales Morante explores the international history, technology, theory,
practical techniques, psychology, and cognitive effects of editing across
a range of media from around the world, featuring case studies from
film, dramatic television, news media, music videos, commercials, and
mobile-delivered formats, from the films of Sergei Eisenstein and James
Cameron’s Avatar to television series like Game of Thrones, from Michael
Jackson’s video for “Thriller” to coverage of the 2012 US presidential elec-
tions. The book includes self-study exercises throughout to help readers
put theory into practice.
Luís Fernando Morales Morante is Professor at the Autonomous
University of Barcelona, Spain. He is the author of several books, and has
worked as an editor for Panamericana Televisión and Frecuencia Latina, as
well as for the media postproduction company Advanced Video Systems
in Lima, Peru.

EDITING AND
MONTAGE IN
INTERNATIONAL
FILM AND VIDEO
Theory and Technique
Luís Fernando Morales Morante
First published 2017
by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
and by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa
business
© 2017 Taylor & Francis
The right of Luís Fernando Morales Morante to be identified as the
author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with
sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical,
or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks
or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and
explanation without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Names: Morales Morante, Luís Fernando.
Title: Editing and montage in international film and video : theory
and technique / Luís Fernando Morales Morante.
Other titles: Montaje audiovisual. EnglishDescription: New York :
Routledge, 2017. | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016047675 (print) | LCCN 2017007934 (ebook) |
ISBN 9781138244078 (hardback) | ISBN 9781138244085 (pbk.) |
ISBN 9781315277141 (e-book) Subjects: LCSH: Motion pictures--
Editing.
Classification: LCC TR899 .M62513 2017 (print) | LCC TR899
(ebook) | DDC 777/.55--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016047675
ISBN: 978-1-138-24407-8 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-138-24408-5 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-27714-1 (ebk)
Typeset in Palatino and Helvetica by
Servis Filmsetting Ltd, Stockport, Cheshire
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION xiii
Chapter 1 EDITING AND MONTAGE: DEFINITION
AND SCOPE OF PRACTICE 1
The definition of Montage 2
Encyclopedic Definitions 2
Theoretical Definitions 3
Filmmakers’ Definitions 4
Practical Definitions 5
The Definition in Different Countries 5
Does Montage = Editing? 5
Postproduction 6
Proposed Definition 8
Chapter 2 DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNIQUES
AND  THEORIES 11
Discovery and First Empirical Techniques 11
Porter: Continuity 11
Griffith: Dramatic Emphasis 12
Models and Theoretical Classifications of
Montage 14
Chapter 3 SPACES, FUNCTIONS AND
POSSIBILITIES OF EDITING 49
The Narrative Units 49
Editing as a Creative Process 51
Narrative Capacities of Editing 56
Aims of Editing 59
vi Contents
Chapter 4 CUTS, TRANSITIONS AND
AUDIOVISUAL GRAMMAR 65
When to Cut 65
Transitions: Constructing Time and Space 69
Audiovisual Grammar 75
Camera Height 82
Lighting Continuity 83
Breaking Established Rules 83
Chapter 5 A THEORETICAL MODEL OF EDITING 87
First Level: Operational 88
Second Level: Intention 90
Predominant Intention 93
Third Level: Spatio-temporal Perception 93
Narrative Coherence and Plausibility 94
Chapter 6 TECHNOLOGICAL BEGINNINGS AND
EVOLUTION OF EDITING 97
Linear and Non-linear Editing 98
Types of Linear Editing 100
Editing in the Digital Era: Non-linear Editing 101
The Basic differences between Non-linear
and Linear Editing 102
The Interphase 102
Non-linear Editing Operating Procedures 103
Videotape Formats 107
HD 112
Small-screen Formats 113
Chapter 7 FILMING WITH EDITING IN MIND 117
Discontinuous Filming with a Single Camera 117
Continuous Shooting with Several Cameras 122
Chapter 8 EDITING IN PRACTICE 125
Action Sequences 125
Dramatic Scenes 141
Science fiction Scenes 148
Comedy Sequences 156
News Items 164
Advertising 173
Video Clips 178
Contents vii
Small-screen Formats 186
Special Formats 189
Chapter 9 PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PERCEPTUAL
BASES OF EDITING 195
Perception as an Intellectual Process 195
Editing as a Unifying Mechanism of
Projection and Identification 195
Editing and the Construction of a Realistic
Impression 197
The Competent Viewer 198
The Phi Phenomenon, Persistence of Vision
and Flickering 199
Perceptual Approaches to Editing 200
Measuring information Processing Responses 204
A Critical Appraisal of the Cognitive
Models of Editing 207
Chapter 10 RESEARCH ON EDITING AND ITS
EFFECTS 209
Perception of the Cut 209
Visual Continuity 211
Information Order 214
Complexity of Audiovisual Information 215
Redundancy 217
Emotional Effects 219
BIBLIOGRAPHY 227
INDEX 235

FIGURES AND
SEQUENCES
Sequence 2.1 The Great Train Robbery (1902), by Edwin S. Porter 12
Sequence 2.2 The Birth of a Nation (1915), by D. W. Griffith 13
Sequence 2.3 Intolerance (1916), by D. W. Griffith 14
Figure 2.1 Montage models according to the Soviet,
semiotic and psychological models 16
Figure 2.2 Relationships between artistic movements and
montage techniques 16
Sequence 2.4 The Kuleshov effect 17
Figure 2.3 Montage categories according to Rudolf Arnheim 19
Figure 2.4 Montage procedures proposed by Rudolf Arnheim 20
Figure 2.5 Montage schema proposed by Rudolf Arnheim 20
Figure 2.6 V. Pudovkin’s structural montage model 24
Figure 2.7 Audiovisual strip from Alexander Nevsky (1938), by
Sergei Eisenstein 28
Sequence 2.5 Scene from October (1927), by Sergei Eisenstein 29
Sequence 2.6 A battle scene from The Battleship Potemkin (1925),
by Sergei Eisenstein 30
Sequence 2.7 Steamship scenes from The Battleship Potemkin
(1925), by Sergei Eisenstein 31
Sequence 2.8 Intellectual montage in October (1927), by
Sergei Eisenstein 32
Sequence 2.9 The rising lion in The Battleship Potemkin (1925), by
Sergei Eisenstein 34
Figure 2.8 Sources of influence and effect for the creation of
Eisenstein’s Methods of Montage 35
Sequence 2.10 Mother (1926), by V. I. Pudovkin 36
Figure 2.9 Jacques Aumont’s application forms of montage 40
Figure 2.10 Functions of montage according to Jacques Aumont 41
Figure 2.11 Jean Mitry’s perceptive model of montage 43
Figure 2.12 Marcel Martin’s model of film dialects 46
Figure 2.13 Marcel Martin’s montage models 47
Figure 2.14 General map of the theoretical models of montage 47
ix