Film Editing Fundamentals Virtual Workshop

Theory and concepts of film editing

• A brief history of film editing
• Continuity
• Alternatives to continuity
• Understanding narrative and various types of storytelling
• Time and Space in cinema
• Editing various types of sequences:
  • Dialogue
  • Action
  • Montages
• Rhythm, timing, pacing
• Basics of using sound in cinema
• Editing documentaries and other forms of non-fiction
• Understanding film style; maintaining the film’s style while editing it
• A look at editing ads, promos and corporate films
• Understanding the basics of colour and colour theory (If time permits)
• Technical topics:
  • The film image, how it is formed
  • The analog video image
  • Digital video
  • Analog versus digital
  • Sampling
  • Formats, files, containers
  • Compression

Film clips relating to the topic at hand will be shared and discussed. Sir will also share films to watch and plenty of reference books.

Apart from all the theory , Niraj will also share anecdotes and learnings from his life as an editor which we hope will inform you of the various challenges, ups and downs, important habits etc. of the film editing profession.

Practical exercises

As the workshops advances through the various developments of editing concepts and practices, students will attempt to apply what they have learned by editing actual footage.
The footage (rushes) will be provided by the mentor and starting from the first week every student will be expected to start working on the exercise material.
After completing and submitting their first attempt (first cut), the mentor will give individual feedback and instructions for the next cut and so on.
This exercise will be repeated for multiple sets of rushes with an increasing level of complexity as the workshop progresses.

Working with Video Editing software tools

Please remember that the focus of the workshop is on the fundamentals of film editing and it is not just another software tutorial. There is plenty of resource material that is freely available to start learning the software; we have linked some of them in this section. That being said, this workshop will cover:

• Basics of video editing software

• How to start a project

• Import and organize files

• Making an assembly

• Rough cut

• Final cut with basic leveling of sound

• Basic transitions and effects

• Mastering and Final export

The above mentioned topics will be covered as live demonstrations by the mentor along with tips, “do’s and don’ts” and Q&As regarding the same. Specific problems or queries can be requested anytime during the course and will be addressed if time permits.
Niraj will also demonstrate how he works on professional projects, the challenges one may face when working on such projects, and some basic rules he follows to ensure the project remains secure and manageable.

Which software will we be using?

While Niraj will be demonstrating using Final Cut Pro 7, we recommend you install either DaVinci Resolve or Adobe’s Premiere Pro. The editing part of DaVinci Resolve is available for free (the color grading functions require payment), while Premier Pro is available on a monthly subscription. All these professional editing software have common functions and workflows, so you will easily find substitute functions in your software for what Niraj shows in class.

Click here for training material for Resolve from their official website
Please finish the first tutorial “Introduction to Editing”. This will cover certain basic functions and familiarize you with the interface. The “Studio” version of the software is the paid one, so download the version without the Studio tag.

Click here for training material for Premiere Pro

For this workshop we highly recommend you install either of the above software and start familiarizing yourself with the interface and basic functions before the start of the workshop.

What if my system can’t support a professional software/ I have already invested in another software?

We recommend the above mentioned software because those are the ones that are being widely used in the industry and are therefore software that the mentor is familiar with.
As mentioned before the basic functions in these software are common, so you will find substitutes in whichever software you use, but learning the industry standard software will always be more advantageous if you want to make a career out of editing and they will also have more features/functions.

Important Notes and Requirements

• Please be ready with a laptop/computer with a video editing software installed. If you are new to the software, please watch a tutorial and familiarize yourself with the interface.
• Ensure that the device you are attending from has a working webcam and microphone.
• This being a hands-on and interactive workshop, it may not always end on the given time. Please be prepared burn that midnight oil.
• Workshop will consist of many homework assignments and students will be expected to complete the same within the given time. This will require you to commit time outside the duration of the workshop, so kindly plan for the same.
• Please mention what you expect to gain out of this workshop and why you are attending in the registration form.