Techniques to retain continuity in editing - Joe Sheldon

Techniques to retain continuity in editing - Joe Sheldon

Film makers use a variety of techniques to keep continuity in their films. Any abrupt change in audio or visuals is breaking technical continuity. A result of breaking it could be that the viewer is taken out of being immersed in the action; it's highly important the film flows well, so these techniques help retain this.

The 180 degrees rule:

This regards how film makers use the placement of the camera to not confuse the audience as to what side of a conversation we are seeing. A conversation usually begins with an establishing shot to show which characters are speaking. A line then should be mentally drawn between the characters and during filming of the conversation, the camera should stay on only one side of the line. Switching the side can be confusing as it looks like the characters are swapping places when they talk. However, breaking the rule can be purposely used to show characters moving in opposite directions.

Match on action:

This technique surrounds when the video is cut during editing. Showing a character moving between shots can be a risky technique, as a major change in their positioning or speed of movement is highly obvious to an audience. However, cutting when the character is moving can make the flow seem more natural. An example is a character sitting down on a chair; if cut at the right time sitting down, it can look like it was all one movement and not two separate shots from two different angles. With this, the audience tend to notice the change in movement less.

Shot- reverse shot:

The third continuity technique is another method of keeping a conversation between two characters concise and clear. You shoot from behind the head of each character that isn't speaking, focusing on the person who is. You swap between them each line of dialogue to get a clear showing of who is speaking.