Video Time

Movies are life with the boring parts cut out. You can remove those boring

parts by managing video time

About Video Time

Real-World Speed: Time is always a fixed speed Flow: Real-world time is always continuous Direction: Past-Present-Future Coherence: Everything is exactly the same

“point in time”

Video-World The opposite of real-world time because

nothing about it is constant. All aspects of time are controlled by the filming and editing

Real-World Time vs. Video-World Time

Two ways to change the time speed:1. Alter the actual speed within the shot

2. Alter the apparent speed of the action

Video Time Speed

Record or play a shot at a slower or faster rate than normal◦ Examples:

Slow motion- 2 people slowly run towards each other in a field of flowers

Fast motion- a flower blooms in a few brief seconds

Altering Speed within a Shot

Sets the mood and feeling

◦ Slow-Motion Dreamlike or romantic (running thru a field of

flowers) Nightmarish (falling in slow motion) Nostalgic (remember the 80-yard touchdown pass)

◦ Fast-Motion Funny (old silent films: chases) Time lapse (Sun rising/moon setting or clouds

moving)

Altering Speed within a Shot cont.

It is between shots that time is expanded or condensed. 1. Slow down time by overlapping action2. Speed up time by omitting action◦ Examples:

Overlap Action for Slow-Motion: Fast motion- a flower blooms in a few brief seconds

Altering Speed in Editing

Example:Dramatize the feeling of walking down a flight of stairs- First film from

above, then again from below.

Overlap Action for Slow-Motion

Insert pic. 4-4 pg. 49

To extend the time, the editor shows the actor walking down

steps 1 thru 10, then changes

angles and shows her

walking down steps 5 thru 10.

Example:Enhance the rushed feeling of the scene- Cut out repetitive or

uninteresting action

Omit Action for Fast-Motion

To shorten the time, the editor shows the actor walking down steps 1 thru 3, then changes

angles and shows her walking down steps 9 thru 10.

Serial Time Flow: a stream of events moving forward in a single sequence. ◦ Ex: the actor showers, gets dressed, eats

breakfast, leaves for work

Video Time Flow

Parallel Time Flow: two or more sequences of action that are happening at the same time.◦ Ex: one actor is hanging off the roof, while the

other actor is shown racing up the stairs to get to him. Called Cross Cutting

Video Time Flow cont.

Video Time Flow cont.

Disjointed Time Flow: Shots are recorded out of chronological order and then reorganized into proper sequence during the editing process.

Video Time Flow cont.

Video allows us to jump forward and backward in time.

Time Running Backward: reverse-motion can also be used to simulate actions that would otherwise be impossible◦ Ex: two actors leaping from the ground to a wall

six feet high. They could be filmed jumping off, from the top to the ground, then the editor can reverse it.

Video Time Direction

Video Time Direction

Flashing Backward (& Forward): jumping from present time to the future or past. ◦ Ex: At a 25th high school reunion, classmates

reminisce back to their high school days, we watch it unfold as the film jump backs 25 years.

Video Time Direction

Pull moments apart by splitting their video and audio components and mixing them with other moments.

Voiceover narration

Ex: When a boy on the screen delivers newspapers from his bicycle as an adult voice says, “Little did I know what would happen on the Spring day so long ago…,” the picture is unfolding at one point in time, while the sound is at a point years later.

Video Time Coherence

Split Edit: a transition from one shot to another in which the video and audio portions do not change simultaneously

Image 4-9

Image 4-10

Video Time Coherence cont.