The Importance of Transitions

What are three key new things about transitions that you learned from this video?  Why did you find each of these interesting?

Three key things about transitions that I learned from this video are the the possible and effective uses for cutaways and cutting on action for scene transitions and how transitions should be planned prior, not just in post. I found each of these interesting as I hadn't really though about how cutaways or cutting on action would be viable for scene transitions. I only ever viewed them as useful during a scene to make it smoother or show off more ideas. However, it can be utilized effectively as a creative and meaningful transition. Planning transitions prior is something that I hadn't previously considered all that deeply. But after watching the video, I realized how important it is to plan for these things in order to make a film flow so much more smoother.

Natural Transitions

What is a natural transition? What are the three different techniques that this video mentions? What would each of them add to a scene?

    A natural transition is one that utilizes elements in the shot to create a wipe, usually to change location or time, while looking more natural than a computer wipe. The most common example of this would be having a car pass and the scene changes as it passes the camera. Some different techniques used by the video are match dissolves, camera movements, and filling the entire frame with the wipe object. Many of the examples used in the video are match dissolves, such as using two objects of the same shape and dissolving from one to the other. Camera movements can be used to move what changes out of the frame, which can be done by tilting up to the sky then down onto a new location, or hiding a cut in a swish pan. The last technique is the most used in the video. For instance, the car fills the whole frame when it wipes and they also zoom in until a subject fills the entire frame, e.g., the walls, bushes, and sky. Each transition is able to add a smoother change in time or location or they can create an idea or feeling based on what is used to transition, i.e., objects used in a match dissolve can cause the audience to form a connection between them.

Editing with J & L Cuts

What is a J or L cut? What do they do? How can they improve your edit?

    A J cut is when the audio for the next shot starts before the cut and an L cut is when the audio continues into the next shot after the cut. They both get their name from the way they look on the track when editing, creating a J or L shape. The J cut can be used to soften a more abrupt cut or create a sense of urgency by making the first shot feel like it's been cut short or interrupted. The L cut is used to extend a scene, making the scene feel like it's lasting much longer and slower, which can create a sense of importance. These can also be used in dialogue, where you see it happen most often, and with different shots in the same scene. I can use them to improve my edit to elicit emotions from my audience and smooth more abrupt transitions from scene to scene.

Premiere Pro Shortcuts

Summarized three of the shortcuts from this video that you plan on using going forward. What are each one's functions? How can they save you time going forward?

    Three shortcuts from the video that I plan on using going forward is shift and delete, the d key, and control g. Pressing shift and delete will delete the selected clip and the ripple that would have been created in its place. This would save time as you won't have to select every clip ahead and slide them back or right click and select delete ripple. The d key selects whatever clip that the play head is on. This will save time as I wouldn't have to move my mouse and select whichever clip I wanted to. This also works well with the ripple delete as I can more easily select then delete the clip without disrupting everything. The last one is control g, which allows you to group selected clips. This saves time as there are sets of shots that I finished cutting and want to move around as a single unit. This removes the hassle of always having to select each clip every time as selecting one selects all of them.

Exporting Your Project

What are the key factors to keep in mind when exporting your project on Premiere Pro?  What are some mistakes that you've made so far that you can fix?

    Key factors to keep in mind when exporting your project on Premiere Pro are the sequence settings, the format and codec, and fine tuning your settings. The sequence settings are important to think about depending on where you want to deliver your project. This is because uploading on Youtube or Vimeo needs different setting compared to quickly delivering to a client or making a hi-res master. The format and codec is important for playback. The best codec to use is H.264 and the format should be based on the project but 1080p is usually the way to go. Fine tuning your settings is often overlooked and so its something to keep in mind. The article recommends checking the "Render at Maximum Depth", changing the bitrate Encoding Settings to VBR, 2 pass, and setting the max bitrate to double the target bit rate.

    Some mistakes that I've made so far that I can now fix are not fine tuning any settings. Previously, I hadn't even touched bitrate settings or turned on the "Render at Maximum Depth" setting. So taking that into account for my next export may help the quality of my work.

San Jose State Field Trip

After touring California State University San Jose's film production facilities, what aspects of their program or resources stood out to you, and how do you think these could influence your approach to future film projects?

    Some aspects of their facilities that stood out to me was the size and different sections. As we walked along the hallways, I noticed that they had many different areas in the building, such as the costume rooms, a theater, the radio room, the sound room, etc. This means that there are a multitude of students with different skills that can be useful in a future film project and I would be able to rely on them for their specialties. On the other hand, many of the rooms we toured were very small in size and underwhelming, which left a lot to be desired. An aspect of their program that stood out to me was that it wasn't impacted. Mr. Furtado has mentioned that typically film courses are very impacted, especially the better ones, so considering that, I may deduce that this program isn't the best, either in curriculum or technology. Thus it may subtract to the possibilities of future film projects.

What is a codec? What is the difference between a codec and a container?

What is a codec? What is the difference between a codec and a container?

    According to the article, a codec is the order used to layout the data of an audio or video file in such a way that it can be used for playing, editing, or transcoding. This process is coding and decoding, which is where the word "codec" comes from. The purpose is to make the file sizes much more manageable to allow you to do what was previously listed by compressing the information before decompressing for usage. While a codec organizes the data, a container is what holds the information, such as audio, video, and other information, together. Containers have file extensions such as .mov or .mp3. Some containers only work with specific codecs, like the .mpg with MPEG files, and some work with a variety, such as the .mov container.

Understanding Timecode

In your own words, explain what timecode is to someone who has no idea. What is it? Why is it so important for editing video?

    Timecode is the way that the time of a video project is defined so you know where you are. The timecode looks like 00:00:00:00 and it is broken up by 4 units: hours, minutes, seconds, and frames. Timecode is so important for video editing as it is vital for navigating the footage and finding what is needed. For more professional settings, it's used for them to tell you what shots are good and for a shot-list. It is also used by the sound department to sync up the audio to the visuals, which is insanely important as being even a little off at one point will be detrimental to the whole project.

Resolutions

What is resolution? What is the difference between each of the different resolutions mentioned in this video? What is the presenter's advice for using different resolutions?

    Resolution is the number of pixels on the screen vertically and horizontally. The format of the names are "horizontal number x vertical number" followed by an i or p depending on whether the footage is interlaced or progressive. Interlaced footage renders the odd rows then the even rows from top to bottom, this is the older method that doesn't look very good on the now more common progressive screens. Progressive footage renders just from top to bottom and creates a smoother motion compared to its older predecessor. There are typically two aspect ratios used, 3:4 and 9:16. The names of the different resolutions are the vertical number, such as 480i or 1080p, except for 4k and beyond. Each resolution also has their own name: Standard Definition, High Definition, Full High Definition, 4K Ultra High Definition, and 8k Ultra High Definition. The higher the definition, the more quality and detailed the image is.

    The presenter's advice regarding the use of different resolutions is basically just "don't worry about it" and to not get caught up in getting the latest technology. He says that the most important part is just the video making and that the experience that you gain from making new things greatly outweigh any benefits of getting the new tech.

Analog vs. Digital

What is the difference between analog and digital? What are the benefits of digital?

    The difference between analog and digital that analog uses analog signals, or constantly changing waves, that can be decoded by devices to make sound or for television and digital uses strings of 1s and 0s that represent whether an electrical signal is on or off in order to transmit the information in a definite way. These two work in tandem in the modern day, with digital methods being used for storage, transmissions, and alterations and analog being converted to and from digital, such as in recording and in playing sounds and videos.

    The benefits of digital are that the way that digital information is transmitted is definitive, using strings of ones and zeros that only mean 1 thing respectively, which prevents interference that is common with analog waves. Another benefit is also because of the same reason, the way that the information is stored makes it incredibly easy to copy that information however many times you'd like, something that wouldn't be entirely possible with analog do to generation loss and the degradation of the information the more times it's copied. Relating to interference, the length of the cords you use when using analog matters because of the interference that can be caused by it. However, the length of digital cords don't matter, outside of reaching things, because of the lack of interference.

Editing First Steps

You've just begun your journey into editing!  How does it feel to take your first baby steps?  What are three things that surprise you?  What are you finding difficult?

    After taking my first steps into editing, I feel pretty excited to edit and learn more. Some things that surprise me are the amount of tools and shortcuts there are, how easy Premiere Pro is to use after learning how, and the organizing capabilities.

    Going in, we learned a whole boat-load of shortcuts that was in a pretty intimidating list. But there was a shortcut for practically everything you could imagine. That being said, I still haven't learned all of them but the ones that I have gotten used to make the process much easier. This works in tandem with how easy Premiere Pro is once I've learned how to use it. The shortcuts make it a lot quicker but this also applies to other functions. At first, I was very intimidated by everything that was on the screen. But now, I have a basic understanding of how edit on the software. Another thing that surprised me was the organizing capabilities that were available in the project files. I never knew how much you were able to organize the files that you had. Before we started this unit, I thought the most you could do was change the name and put them into bins. But now, I know that you are able to write descriptions, labels, mark whether the shot was good, see if it's audio, etc. All this makes finding the right shots considerably easier and faster.

    One thing that I'm finding difficult is the learning curve. Because there is so much to learn and so many functions and processes that all have a role in editing efficiently, it'll take time to fully grasp what Premiere Pro is capable of and what I'm able to do when editing. I struggled a lot when learning things and how to find certain functions, such as transitions, and that left me stumped until I learned where to find them. There are still so much that I have no clue how to do on Premiere that I need to take the time to learn and then use to solidify my understanding.

Editing Tools

Pick three of the different tools covered in this video and explain how they work in detail. Why are these tools important to learn to edit video in premiere?

    Three editing tools that were covered in the video were the cutting tool, ripple tool, and slip tool. The cutting tool is the most basic tool in editing, cutting videos and deleting or moving parts of it. However, most people stop at just using the cutting tool for everything, making the process much slower than it has to be. This is where the ripple tool comes in; the ripple tool allows you to extend or shorten the in and out of a clip while also filling in the gap that would be created, moving the clips further or closer. Most people (like myself) had started off doing this same function with just the cutting tool. This is considerably slower as you'd have to cut the clip, delete the part you didn't want, then select and slide every clip to fill in the gap. The next tool is the slip tool. This tool allows you to change when a clip starts and ends, without changing the time the clip takes. It essentially allows you to show a different part of the clip and maintain the timing. Without this tool, you would have to manually move the in and out of a clip and try to match the time it takes to what it was before. All of these tools are important to learn to edit videos in premiere as they expedite the process, making it much faster and more efficient, and also (in the case of the cutting tool) are an integral part of editing.

Montage Techniques

What are three concepts from this article that you can incorporate into your future montage edit?  Why did you pick these three?  How can you apply them in the edit?

    Three concepts from the article that I can incorporate into my future montage edit is cutting on action, linking scenes, and the L Cut. I chose these three as cutting on action is a very effective way to seamlessly link scenes and also works in tandem with the other techniques, linking scenes can create an idea without showing it while also transitioning to a different scene, and the L Cut is a way to allow the viewer to expect a more abrupt cut to a different scene.

    Cutting on action effectively makes a cut seamless as people are drawn into the movement, focusing on that instead of the cut. This works well with linking scenes as there are instances where an action is started then ended in a different situation, much like their example of a battle to a kitchen where the character starts off swinging down a sword and ends with cutting an apple. That created the idea of what happened to the person at the other end of the sword, without showing it, and also moved us to a new scene, keeping the story going. I feel that the L Cut can be good when, as an editor, you're lacking the shots needed to do other techniques and so this one can help you still get a less jarring cut. I feel like this is most often used when transitioning to a scene with a car driving. I can use all of these to create more seamless cuts that aren't as noticed by the viewer and to elicit certain emotions from them.

Pudovkin and Montage

Summarize one of Pudovkin's techniques outlined in this video essay that interests you.  How does it contribute to the storytelling in the modern movie clip that the narrator talks about?  Why do you find this interesting?

    One of Pudovkin's techniques outlined in the video essay that interests me is contrast, which is cutting from one shot to a very different shot that forces the viewer to compare both scenes. The movie clip that the used to explain this technique was from the Godfather where Michael Corleone is at his nephew's christening and is renouncing the devil while his men, that he ordered, are murdering the other crime bosses of New York. This use of contrast exposes the hypocrisy of Michael and shows how far he's willing to go and how deep his deceit runs. With the juxtaposition of holy music layered on top of the murders, it creates this chilling effect where the viewers can feel horrified by what's happening. I find this incredibly interesting because of the emotional response felt by the audience (the chilling comparison) and just how much story is told through such a technique.

Cutting on Action

What is cutting on action? How does it seamlessly blend two shots together? What are two things that you must keep in mind when cutting on action in your films?

    Cutting on action is an editing technique that makes cuts and transitions seamless and smoother, sometimes almost invisible, to the audience. It's able to seamlessly blends two shots because our eyes are drawn to movement, so when there's a continuous motion through a cut, we focus on that instead of the change. Two things that you must keep in mind when cutting on action is the speed and matching the action. The speed that the motion is needs to be consistent to properly give the sense that it's the same thing that we're looking at. The example used by the article was a door being opened. You have to maintain the same speed from the door opening initially to the door opening from another angle or else it won't look like it's the same door. As for matching the action, it will look a lot worse and more clunky if the actions don't match up. The article's example was with a head turn. You have to match the action or else it will stutter and look like the character's head turns twice.

Mise-en-Scène

What is mise-en-scène? How is the term used in the film industry? What are two reasons that it is so important?

    The literally definition of mise-en-scène is "placing on stage," which encompasses everything in a shot and the things that movies share with plays: props, lighting, wardrobe, blocking, and the layers (foreground, middle ground, and back ground). It also includes camera details such as angles, aspect ratio, focus, and lens focus length as well as editing aspects like color grading. In the film industry, the term is used for framing (i.e. everything in the shot, like previously mentioned) and continuity. The reasons why this is so important is because if this is broken, it breaks the audience out of their immersion and can make a scene confusing to watch. Having continuity breaks knocks the people watching out of their suspension of disbelief because they notice that it doesn't make sense. Confusing the audience in this way makes the viewing experience worse and can completely ruin a film for someone.

Griffith and Continuity Editing

What was the significance of Birth of a Nation?  What was its terrible legacy?

    Birth of a Nation was very significant for the advancement of film because of its innovations in cinematography and movie making.

    First of all, Birth of a Nation was uniquely artistic and innovative for the movie making scene. It had a variety of shots with great impact such as long shots, panoramic shots, close ups, cutaways and tracking shots. It utilized parallel story editing to present a multitude of complex stories and plotlines; such as a the two families, the Stonemans from the North and the Camerons from the South, and the multitude of characters. It also created the illusion of a large war with thousands of soldiers despite only having hundreds of extras through its staging and camera shots. 

    Additionally, Birth of a Nation was the first film to be sharing an idea. Previously, films had been to light hearted, sharing an entertaining story without much purpose besides that and possibly innovation. However, Griffith had created this film to spread his racist beliefs and it had worked. The movie had incited protests, riots, violence against Black people, and the KKK had used it as a way to recruit more members. This was the first ever time that a movie had done this and it had set a new precedent for how movies can influence people and what intentions a movie can have.

    The legacy of Birth of a Nation was terrible because of the racist and bigoted message of white supremacy and the idolization of the the Ku Klux Klan. This alone was enough to taint the legacy of the artistic film. As previously mentioned, it had encouraged violence against Black people and the KKK used it to recruit well into the 70s, spreading disgusting ideas and beliefs through a false depiction of reality.

Editing Your Rough Cut

What are the steps in editing a rough cut?  Why is a rough cut so important?

    The steps in editing a rough cut are to put the whole story together, cut down on parts to enhance others or get rid of unnecessary detail, and then start refining frames and audio. Doing this is so important for 4 reasons brought up by the video; the first is being able to see the whole story. Being able to see the entire thing gives you a better picture of what's needed and what requires more attention for a cohesive and effective story. The second reason is that it gives you a "just in case" version. This is important to have because there is a likelihood of deadlines being shortened and the process being accelerated, so having a version that is usable is vital in the case this happens. The next reason is that it's much easier to cut footage than to restore it, so you can "err on the side of cutting longer."  This also gives you the ability to see everything at your disposal, which goes hand in hand with the first reason. The last reason that the video mentioned was that it's easier to choose which scene should be refined first. This is important because it gives you a place to start and also a chance to finish one scene to show off to your team and or to test audiences to know the tone and get feedback.

Early Editing

What was significant about the Great Train Robbery in editing?

    The editing of the Great Train Robbery was significant in its use of parallel action, creating a more cinematic experience. Previously, films had taken on many characteristics of a stage play with the first films consisting of a single static shot. Once editing and cuts began to be used, staging and camerawork was still done in a style similar to a theatrical production. However, the Great Train Robbery had broken past the confines of the stage and the fourth wall and had utilized photographic techniques in its staging and camerawork while also bring in a new cinematic editing technique. Parallel action had yet to be done before, especially when filmmakers were creating works with the limitations of a stage play. By cutting back and forth between scenes, it created a sense that they were happening at the same time. This was revolutionary and gave the audiences room to let their imagination flow whilst watching the film.

Organizing Your Footage

Why is organizing your footage so important to editing? What are two things you found really helpful that you learned in this video?

    Organizing your footage is so important to editing because doing so makes the process easier and faster, making large amounts of shots much more manageable and more convenient to track. Two things that I found really helpful in the video was to use "bins" or rather folders within the project files to sort shots by audio, location, person interviewed, or scene. This is a quick way to sort clips but also makes finding specific ones much easier than it would be without it. Another thing that I learned from the video is to use labels and things like comments to tell additional information without watching the clip. This means, during the organizing process, while watching the clips you pick up information about it and put key things into a comment column on the file. You can also color code with labels to signify specific types of shots, like b-roll, audio, cut-aways, etc. These all are big time savers during the editing process as different clips and information about them can be found easily without having to watch and rewatch them constantly.