The Technique of Film Editing Second Edition This page intentionally left blank The Technique of Film Editing Second Edition Written and compiled by Karel Reisz and Gavin Millar with the guidance of the following Committee appointed by The British Film Academy Thorold Dickinson (Chairman), Reginald Beck, Roy Boulting, Sidney Cole, Robert Hamer, Jack Harris, David Lean, Ernest Lindgren, Harry Miller, Basil Wright Introduced by THOROLD DICKINSON AMSTERDAM • BOSTON • HEIDELBERG • LONDON • NEW YORK • OXFORD • PARIS SAN DIEGO • SAN FRANCISCO • SINGAPORE • SYDNEY • TOKYO Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier 30 Corporate Drive, Suite 400, Burlington, MA 01803, USA Linacre House, Jordan Hill, Oxford OX2 8DP, UK Copyright © 2010 British Academy of Film and Television Arts. All rights reserved. This book was originally published in The Technique of Film Editing by Karel Reisz and Gavin Millar. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Permissions may be sought directly from Elsevier’s Science & Technology Rights Department in Oxford, UK: phone (⫹44) 1865 843830; fax: (⫹44) 1865 853333, E-mail:
[email protected] You may also complete your request on-line via the Elsevier homepage (http://elsevier.com), by selecting “Support & Contact,” then “Copyright and Permission,” and then “Obtaining Permissions.” Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Application submitted British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN: 978-0-240-52185-5 For information on all Focal Press publications visit our website at www.elsevierdirect.com 10 11 12 13 5 4 3 2 1 Printed in the United States of America Contents Publisher’s Note Introduction Acknowledgements Foreword ix xi xv xix PART I SECTION 1 THE HISTORY OF EDITING Chapter 1 Editing and the Silent Film 1 3 The Beginnings of Film Continuity Griffith: Dramatic Emphasis Pudovkin: Constructive Editing Eisenstein: Intellectual Montage 4 7 12 17 Chapter 2 Editing and the Sound Film General Who Edits a Film? The Order of Shots Selection of Camera Set-ups: Emphasis Timing Presentation: Smoothness The Contribution of Editing Special Styles of Editing 25 25 28 28 29 29 30 38 41 SECTION 2 THE PRACTISE OF E