Editing film to make links with film theory

Vital Stats

Who: Jane Stadler
Where: Centre for Film and Media Studies, UCT
What: Online tutorial in which student assembles film clips and analyses choices made.
Why: To link film theory to the 'practice' of film editing.

Introductory film theory courses at UCT expose students to conventions of cinematography and the language of film studies. Despite hours of movie watching, many students struggle to appreciate these concepts. Lecturer, Jane Stadler, believes this is because they have little understanding of film making processes. “Perhaps they need to master basic production skills before they are able to step back and make the links to theory,” she says.

To address this problem CET in partnership with Jane developed Director’s Cut – a challenging computer based exercise that puts the student in the role of film director. Participants are required to tell their own story by assembling a short sequence of video clips, shot from different camera angles and points of view. This forces students to draw on their knowledge of film theory, while automated feedback indicates when some of their choices violate cinematographic conventions. Students also have to write an accompanying script, respond to reflective questions and answer a final quiz.

To date, the task has been met with enthusiasm and has produced interesting work. Staff have also been pleased with the results, commenting that the intervention complements other forms of assessment in the course.