How do you learn the Art of Editing???

[Grinner Hester]

The best editors have always been rule breakers. In other words, if everyone did exaclty what they learned in their junior college edit class, adhearing to all the DOs and donts they were tought, everything we see would be the same flavor and thats not marketable at all.
You mentioned going by feel and thats all there isa to it, brother. I mean, one does have to knwo what the buttons do but after that, it’s just a matter of makin it look cool, matching the pieces personality and being able to follow that vibe, noe lead it sometimes. Painters utilize brush strokes and tools handed down by the wise ones then they do what you said… go by feeling.
The single best thing about non-linear editing is having undos. Second best is being able to duplicate your sequence and try something off the wall knowing you can’t mess anything up. You can always go back to the first one. There are no templates for editing any type of project. A dissolve here, a cut there, using the swish pan here, covering it with a cutawy there. Ya gotta chop some lettuce to make a salad. Chop away, man. Throw in all kinds of wacky ingredients then just remove the ones that dont taiste so good. Keep watching reels and the MTV. Mimic the things you dig then make em your own flavor.
If you have the same style in every piece, I’d say thats a bad thing.
Most of all, have fun. When your having fun your more open minded. So open minded you could see a mistake as cool and it may end up being the sweetest thing in the show. Don’t rush anything. Timing is key. It’s just answeroing the question “what would look best here?” over and over again.

[Milton Hockman]

i did some research and i found the types of thing i was referring to.

pacing
invisible cutting
cutting on the action
building tension

those are the two types of things i am looking to learn more about. i am only able to find snippets of what they mean online but want to read detailed explanations of what works in regards to them. maybe even theory books that break down a shot sequence.

[Scott Bethel]

If you must have books try this –

https://www.amazon.com/Film-Editing-EDWARD-DMYTRYK/dp/0240517385/digitalmomentumr

BUT the way I learned the most (after not learning that much in film school or TV Production classes) was studying TV and film and paying attention to my primal and emotional responses to what I was watching and breaking it down. Don’t get me wrong, school was a great start and helped me to learn what to look for, but was only a shallow introduction to the actual craft of editing.

Have a COW, man.

[Oakmozart]

MAN, Grinner just gave some of the best advice I think anyone could get!

To sum up what’s already been said, you learn to edit by studying. I watch TV to simply watch commercials. I also really study movie trailers. Sure, I watch TV shows, movies, and other long-form programming, but I think commercials are where it’s at for learning: you have to tell a complete story in 15-30 seconds. Master the art of cutting commercials and I think you can pretty much cut anything.

Read books, sure, but I think watching is more important.

Then, the next most important step: you edit yourself! Get hands on with it. The more you do it, the better you’re going to get, especially as you pick up tricks you’ve learned from watching other people’s work.

Lastly, you have to realize that talent is a huge part of editing, too. Some people are just better editors than others. Some people just “have it” when it comes to editing. Does that mean the lesser-talented editors suck? Not at all! But talent plays a big part in editing, too…in the same way that it does with music, dance, singing, etc.

Study. Read, watch, and edit on your own. Give it lots of time, and put in lots of time. You WILL get better eventually!

Good luck.

[Jon Zanone]

My .02 cents to some outstanding advice – learn to shoot. I think knowing how to shoot makes you a better editor. If noting else, you have a greater appreciation for the effort that went into acquiring truly great imagery.

Jon

“The Almighty tells me He can get me out of this mess. But He’s pretty sure you’re F%$#*D!”

[Milton Hockman]

i have that book on order. thanks.

yeah that is what i am doing to now. i found some really hot spots that i think are awsome and i am going through them frame by frame to see how they matched them to the music, as well as the shots the used and the motion in each invididual shot.

i figure its like a musician who wants to be good…….study the works of others that are awsome and you will eventually find common threads that lead to great works.

[Duane Fulk]

Great advice from all. I don’t know if such jobs exist anymore, but the first editing job I had right out of college, many years ago, was cutting time out of features for a local TV station. It was a great education. Taking features apart while trying to keep the story intact taught me a lot about visual story telling and editing technique. Of course the best films are the hardest to cut down. I once had to get almost 30 min. out of “Citizen Kane”! After complaining to the production manager and throwing up, I was able to get the time out, but it did destroy the film for anyone who knew it. I’m sure Wells was spinning…

And like everyone has said, watch what’s being done. Here’s a link to some audition reels of top end commercial directors and editors: https://www.ukshowreels.tv/index.php. You can check out many spots here and stop and rewind to see the techniques they used.

Like everything in life, just do what feels good.