The Technique of Film and Video Editing: History, Theory, and Practice

The Technique of Film & Video Editing is the best training for aspiring directors, providing a detailed, precise look at the artistic and aesthetic principles and practices of editing for both picture and sound. Analysis of photographs from dozens of classic and contemporary films and videos provide a sound basis for the professional filmmaker and student editor. Practical skills are grounded by an exposition of the ideas and styles of editing through which the director can understand the visual tools at his or her disposal. This book puts into context the storytelling choices an editor will have to make against a background of theory, history, and practice.


The current edition brought this book to the cutting edge with such topics as new technology and its influence on the art of editing, MTV style, psychoanalytic ideas, and the appropriation of style over content. The new edition furthers these discussions by highlighting the "stylistic extremes" brought about by the clash of imitative style and innovative filmmaking. It continues the examination of MTV style via a study of the full spectrum of its uses in recent years. Additionally, it examines the editing characteristics of nonlinear storytelling as evidenced in such recent films as The Ice Storm and Thin Red Line. A new chapter addresses new trends in documentary.