Editing Styles- Miss Georgiou

Editing is the process of bring different clips together using different techniques, including cutting. re-sequencing clips, adding transmissions and other effects which are done to affect the audience.

I have decided to analyse, scream 3 - The Cutting Room:

A straight cut is a type of transition that is a change of shot from one viewpoint or change of location to another.  The purpose of a straight cut is to show a change in location.  This is done to change the scene or to show the audience the characters movement from location to location.  The change in location shows a change in the setting. This takes place when the victim is running through the corridor and then it cuts to when she has got into another room as she has closed the door.  This helps the audience understand where specific events may happen. This is conventional to the thriller genre as it changes location to show what a character is doing and shows where they have gone, which indicates to the audience a change in setting.







Slow editing is when clips are juxtaposed together at slower pace to create suspense.  In the clip, at first it is slow paced which has the effects on the audience of creating suspense and tension making it seem scary. This slow editing allows the action to take time to be revealed to the audience, which leaves the audience in suspense for longer than time would normally would go. Slow paced editing is conventional to the thriller genre as builds suspense and tension for the audience, which will keep the audience hooked and keep watching.  The purpose of slow editing to add suspense for the audience watching, which will make them keep watching.

In editing, shots are either edited slower or quicker to add emotional impact or to create suspense this is known as timing of shots.  In the clip, it is noticeably at a slower pace when the victim is walking through the rooms and when she is hiding.  The speed is then picked up when the antagonist starts moving amongst the other costumes and picks up the knife when the action starts happening as the victim tries to kill the antagonist with knife, in order for her to survive.  This is conventional to the thriller genre as the shots which are edited slower, normally at the beginning is to build suspense, so that the audience are on edge wondering when the action is going to happen.  Then the speed of the shot seemed to have got quicker, indicating to the audience that action is happening and creates tension as they don't know who is going to survive or not, which would keep the audience watching.




Jump cuts is when the film suddenly turns to focus on something.  This is to show the audience an importance in a object, which will signify to the audience that it is important within the film.  In the clip of the cutting room from Scream 3, a jump cut is used when the knife is revealed, this is gives the audience a sense of danger, as knives give ideas of danger and murder.  Jump cuts are conventional to a thriller because a sudden picture of a weapon or something which is be important sends ideas to the audience and sends signals to them indicating that something will happen which in turn also creates suspense as the audience start to wonder what will happen.


In conclusion, there are certain editing techniques which are used for the thriller genre, in order to generate and indicate certain qualities to the audience to trigger off an idea.  For my own thriller sequence, I have taken inspiration from the scream clip including the jump cuts to show significance in an object like a weapon for example.  The slow editing and timing of shots as these are a main contribute to the thriller genre as they build tension and suspense.