Planning: Editing

Editing is a technique which helps to assemble many images together to complete a sequence. Editing is an important part of a moving image because it helps to fluently move from one image top another. It is also used to set up the mood of the scene; allowing the audience to react in a certain way depending on the narrative. Editing can help to make and emphasis on the action by working with other micro-elements, such as sound. Some of the main editing techniques we plan to include in our music video are:

Slow jump cut: We plan to use slow jump cuts when the main character is walking in the alleyway. Jump cuts are not part of continuous editing techniques and will be recognised and stand out to the human eye. This will be used to represent the disruptive lifestyle of the artist as her behaviour is not healthy and will be recognised as unstable. This technique was influenced and developed from Amy Winehouse’s music video, ‘Back to Black’ where a shot is repeated twice from different angles. We believe that this shot will make our music video look professional and unique because is not an editing technique typically used in music videos.

Overlay: We plan to use an overlay in our music video towards the end when the artist lays on the ground and the shot is topped with an image of a ticking clock to show that her ‘time is running out’. This will create possible connotations of death which will make further suspense for the audience but can also engage them into the video more as they will try to guess what it means. We were inspired by Adele’s music video Send My Love which uses multiple overlay effects in order to enhance the visuals and show the concept behind the video. It was successful and gained mass popularity therefore we hope our technique will find an appeal.

Dissolve: We also plan to use a dissolve effect. This will be utilized at the end when the singer walks away from the camera and at last slowly disappears through the dissolve technique. This will leave the audience with apprehension as they are unaware of what happened to the artist and will be left to wonder. This was inspired by Ed Sheeran’s video Small Bump where the characters slowly appear and then dissolve to show passing time which matches Ed’s narrative. It is a unique and original technique therefore we hope that it will appeal to our audience as it’s less common.

Fade to black: We intend to use a fade to black technique at the end of our music video and after portray some text which will read ‘I AM not as FINE as I seem’. This will represent the emotional state of the main artist and possibly touch upon the theme of mental health and address the stigma surrounding it. This was influenced by Lana Del Rey music video ‘Blue Jeans’ where the scene ends with a fade to black shot. The shot looked professional and clean as the audience understand that the music video has ended. Similarly, in our music video we will finish the video with a fade to black leaving the text to allow the audience reflect on the quote.

Duplica: Another key editing technique we want to utilize in our music video is a duplica of our artist. This can confuse the audience as it’s an unusual edit and can be quite bizarre. However due to its originality it makes the music video interesting. This was inspired by Gondry’s diverse music video with Kylie Minogue Come into my World. We wanted to have an aspect of diversity in our video as the genre of our product is niche so we are able to experiment with unique editing styles.

Slow pace editing: We will use slow editing when the artist is performing to emphasise her importance, and to allow the audience to connect with her through her body language and facial expressions. It will also match the song’s pace and allow the audience to absorb the narrative and the concept behind the visuals. We were influenced by Adele’s music video ‘Someone like you’ which also uses slow editing throughout the video to reinforce the artist’s importance and role within the music video. This was edited in an effective manner, which is how we want to edit our scenes.