As of March 18, Ipseity has wrapped on production and I am now moving on to post production where I will spend the next eleven weeks editing. All the footage is transferred, organized with metadata and ready to be assembled. The assembly edit, which is a layout of the best shots in each scene and is typically longer than the final version is to be finished April 18. The assembly edit is not a commitment -much of the cut is going to be shaved down and finessed as I near the final cut. As I begin to wrap my brain around this and piece together my film, I need to hone in on my editing techniques and the things that influence my editing style. One of those influences are from 2011's Water For Elephants.

Editor Alan Edward Bell was the editor of Water For Elephants. Bell has worked on other films such as The Green Mile, A Few Good Men and one of summer's most anticipated film The Amazing Spider-Man. Bell achieved beautiful pacing in 2011's Water for Elephants, which is what I will strive to do. He specifically understood the character's motives and used this knowledge to hold on certain shots, and cut on other shots. His choices in the editing room as far as which shots to use and when to cut were instinctually wonderful as it complimented the acting so well and the mood of each scene.
In Quentin Tarantino's 1994 Crime Thriller Pulp Fiction, editor Sally Menke incorporated  a technique called a sound bridge in a cut when Captain Koons talks to young Butch about his watch (Refer to the clip below -moment happens a little after the 1:50 mark). When he hands him the watch, the sound of a bell rings and cuts to Butch as an adult waking up from a dream. I would like to play with this idea of a sound bridge because it is effective visually and audibly. I already have an idea of where in the film I am going to give this a try, so we'll see if this will work in my film.
There was a scene in Drake Doremus' 2011 film Like Crazy that inspired me to try out in my editing. Editor Jonathan Alberts used dialogue to transition one scene into the next, which I thought was brilliant because it is such a minute detail, but it effectively enhanced the experience by allowing me to ease into the scene smoothly rather than using a technique known as a "smash cut." A smash cut is merely one scene ending abruptly and enters the next scene without transition. Although I will use the smash cut in my editing, I would like to use the dialogue to carry into the scene that follows another scene.
As far as the opening titles go, I think it is appropriate to be simple (Example: 2011 film 50/50). I do not envision graphics being a huge part of this film. I would like the titles and any graphics to be simple and merely a crack on a wood's surface. What I mean by this is that when the film starts, I want all focus on the characters. The first scene is a very important scene for Cameron (the main character). A big shebang of a title sequence, such as the opening sequence to The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2012) seen here, or in the 2006 Romantic Comedy The Break-Up, I feel would shatter the feel and mood of the first scene that I am aiming for, and the film as a whole. This may change as I begin editing, but this is how I envisioned the film playing out in my mind as I wrote the film and when I think about it now.

The biggest challenge I am going to have during post production is using a new forum to edit in. I have chosen to edit in Adobe Premiere because it is more accessible to me than Final Cut Pro, which has been the exclusive editing program The Art Institutes International in MN teaches. The main difference between the two programs is the interface. For me, it just takes a little getting used to. Otherwise, much of Premiere seems to be comparable to Final Cut Pro. I am excited to learn Premiere and come out of AI with knowledge of how to use both Final Cut Pro and Adobe Premiere as editing tools.

Another challenge I am going to face while editing is separating myself from the film. This may sound strange, but all the hours on set and working closely with the actors can be an obstacle in the editing room because I may become attached to a certain shot, or unable to see the bigger picture for example. Some things that will help with this is simply a break. A break from the footage, from the story -from everything. That way, when I return to work I will be approaching the film with fresh eyes. This I was able to do over our one week break in between quarters. Also, working in a new or different environment can be effective. After working in the same work station for so long, it is easy to fall into the same editing styles. However, a new place can influence my mood and make a powerful impact on my editing. This I have also tried and will continue doing throughout the editing process, and I can already feel the difference in myself and see the difference in my editing.



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