08. Edit for story
Bring: Selected takes and the story brief. Make: A complete rough cut and one tested editorial improvement.
A rough cut is the first working version of your film. It is useful before the pictures are perfect: it shows whether your shots actually form a story.
Assemble the whole film early
Place selected clips in story order with Add and reorder clips. Trim obvious unusable material, but do not spend the whole session polishing the opening while the ending is still missing.
Watch from start to finish without pausing or reading the prompts. Can you tell that the traveler notices the umbrella, chooses to help, and leaves without it?
Write where understanding breaks. "The ending is weak" is hard to act on. "I cannot see whether the traveler took the umbrella" points to missing information.
Find what is missing or repeated
Review each shot's contribution:
| What the cut feels like | What to inspect |
|---|---|
| The traveler acts without a reason | Is the discovery or reaction missing? |
| The umbrella seems to teleport | Do the reach, object design, and final location connect? |
| The film stalls | Do several shots repeat the same information? |
| The ending is ambiguous | Can we see both the departing traveler and the umbrella left behind, together or in a clear sequence? |
Try a different trim, order, or existing take before requesting a new shot. If you need additional material, name its exact job. One clear insert of the hook may help more than another wide platform view.
Give information enough time to register
A generated clip's length is not the time the film must use. Find the moment the viewer needs, then keep enough time to recognize it and its consequence.
For S03, compare a quick glance with a glance followed by a small pause. Does the pause reveal a decision, or simply slow the scene? For S05, let the hand leave so the audience can see the umbrella hanging by itself.
Use Trim and split. Cut redundant time before trying Speed. A speed change can alter performance, physical weight, and audio timing; replay the full moment with sound. It does not fix a broken hand or an unclear intention.
Make transitions mean something
A straight cut is enough when the next view continues the same event. Use Transitions when the change itself needs a different feeling or suggests time passing, not to hide incompatible object states.
Watch the frames around each cut. Is the umbrella in the same hand? Does movement appear to reverse? Does the change in angle reveal useful information? A dissolve can soften a change without making the geography clearer.
Compare one editorial choice
Record the current clip order and trim points before changing them. Compare two versions using the same material where possible:
- Version A: End as the traveler moves away.
- Version B: Hold long enough to register that the umbrella remains on the hook.
Show the sequence to someone who has not read the brief. Ask, "What happened to the umbrella?" Do not explain the intended answer first.
Keep the version that communicates your ending. It may be shorter or longer. Do not preserve a shot only because it was difficult or expensive to make.
Sound may change this judgment in the next chapter. Keep a provisional sound idea, but do not rely on dramatic music to explain an action the pictures leave unclear.
Before you continue
- I watched a complete rough cut without relying on the prompts.
- I identified missing or repeated information and made one targeted change.
- I compared two editorial choices and recorded why the selected version works.
Next: 09. Build the sound.