Thread: Tutorial: Editing a Music Video

It's interesting watching someone else's workflow. I can't say I agree with all the advice on the creative process ie "try not to cut on the beat". Your choice of shots seemed very random as this system may not work for another type of music video but it kind of worked for the project you were working on. I guess the creative process is what makes us all unique. There isn't really a right way or a wrong way to do things.

Thanks for post it.

Originally Posted by Midnight Blue

I can't say I agree with all the advice on the creative process ie "try not to cut on the beat".

Indeed. Topic for discussion - to cut on the beat or not?

I'd certainly argue against cutting on the same beat in every bar - this would result in a hypnotic effect (of course you may be trying to do this) - but cutting on the beat surely both emphasises the music and draws attention away from the cut (ie makes the film flow more smoothly). The first couple of cuts in the piece you showed demostrated this to me - the fact the custs did not happen on the beat made me feel that something "jumped" a bit.

The beat or not the beat, that is now the question. I use four main reasons to choose my cuts for music videos all highly subjective.
1. On the beat.
2. Deliberately not on the beat.
3. On a special accent of an instrument.
4. The footage just says to me cut here.

Now I've thought about this, there is actually loads of different reasons to choose where to put a cut. The above 4 are just a few. I haven't even got into the worst reason which is cut just before the wobble of the camera of the dog has just walked into the shot.

This could become an interesting thread.

I like the tutorial style - ie you don't bore me, you don't talk about yourself, you don't explain everything twice over, you fly through the info becuase you understand people can pause a video and catch up with what is being shown. In other words you leave your ego behind the cam, so congratulations and thanks for that.

This is the normal way to create video I would imagine, certainly the most logical.

As for the debate, I would also think that this first effort would be a 'rough cut' and would be tampered with further down the line. But you have to have something, anything, before you can start to do that. I think maybe the point you are making here is that the editor can become too attached to every second of video production, whereas an audience sees things in big chunks. To me this is the woman singing and I ask are the cuts and the flow of the track correct etc, but to the audience they are just watching a woman singing sometime within the song as a whole. I liked the way you were almost unconcerned with your cuts, it's a sure time and fatigue saver for the editor.

On the beat for effect and drama only, I think.

I would also think that this first effort would be a 'rough cut' and would be tampered with further down the line

That may very well be the case BUT the OP was making a tutorial, so should have made this point clear.

I've heard it said that the best editing is the sort that isn't noticed by the viewer sometimes known as "the invisible art" which probably relates more to narrative pieces. These days it seems to be the fashion to have the editing as the star of the show in videos. I'm not saying either is right or wrong BUT I think the editing should be sympathetic to the piece being made and above all contribute to the story or message being told. There are many examples of interesting choice of cuts which although may be noticed they were only made to help the story. For example, 2010 A Space Odyssey, the famous cut from the bone in the air that cuts to a space ship.

I do find this a fascinating subject but realise I have totally hijacked Ruan's thread, sorry.

It's a fair hijack I think.

As long as we include the OP in the debate

He did say that 'normaly he would have 5 or 6 takes to work with' so obviously this was a simple run through demo.

However, on top of the 'cut on the beat' debate, you have now added the 'invisible edit' debate.

It's gonna be tricky to keep including the OP at this rate lol.

But what a point you make. Now we have editors with ego's, no longer behind the scenes 'doing a job', but needing to be a star in their own right?

It's a trend I've noticed more and more with our younger members were the editing has become the be all and end all part of a production. Some of them are very talented but I can't help but feel as though we are going down a path were the ability to light a scene or use a camera will be a lost art as, "everything will be fixed in post". OR simply tolerated, "yes the camera was woberly and out of focus but did you see the amazing use of twixter".

Oh, I really am an old fart.