The Technique of Film and Video Editing, 5th Edition

 

 

CHAPTER 17

Editing for Narrative Clarity

 

Complete narratives have been an editing challenge since D. W. Griffith’s Intolerance (1916). But narrative clarity is a more complicated challenge than leading the audience through complex narratives. Stories can have complicated characters or multiple characters. Who is important to the narrative outcome: one or all of the characters, or multiple characters? Who is important to the narrative outcome: one or all of the characters? Is the antagonist as important as the main character? Is it important to understand which secondary character is transformative for the main character as the narrative begins and he or she changes from the character in crisis to the changed character we leave as the narrative ...