In January of 2002, I took Editing 1 from one of my favorite professors, Mark Gerstein.  I was enrolled at the University of Central Florida in Orlando.  During that semester, I learned the basics of what I would go on to use for the rest of my life.  It was one of the best and most practical classes I ever took in film school.

Recently I dug up my notes from that class and I’ve decided to share those with all of you.  This is the first in a series of short posts on Film Editing.

Here’s what I wrote down on the first day of class.

Editing = Storytelling.  There must be a beginning, middle, and end.

It sounds pretty basic and it is.  It’s the foundation.  As editors, we are storytellers.  I’m sure you’ve heard that a film is written 3 times.  Once by the writer, once by the director (on set), and the final time by the editor.  One must not approach editing lightly.  We have the power to make or break the story.  (Insert maniacal laugh here.)

Regardless of whether your project is a feature film or just your vacation videos, it is so important to think of it in terms of story with a defined beginning, middle, and end.  It helps you to organize what you are cutting together and it’ll make it so much more engaging.

For example -  Say I’m cutting footage of our recent trip to Disney world.  I might just jump right in and start cutting.  But, if I were to remember that I’m crafting a story, I first look for the main elements.

The beginning: I’d cut together some shots of us packing the car, inside the car, pulling up to the hotel, inside the hotel room, etc…

The middle: I’d cut together footage of our favorite rides, us hanging out in the parks, dinners at the restaurants, etc…

The end: I’d cut together shots of us standing as a family watching the fireworks and then a big THE END would fade in across the sky.

It is that simple.  Craft your story.

Do you have any practical tips on film editing?