Analysing documentary editing phases

Analysing documentary editing phases

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These are the editing stages that all documentary makers experience.


Editing is a vital step of all flicks, because it is the phase when raw footage changes to the final product. This phase is specifically very important to documentary films, however. It is because the majority of narrative movies are going to be edited to fit around the pre-defined script and storyboard. Meanwhile, documentary filmmakers often get into their shoots with just a rough pre-planned concept of what they will make, with the rest of the tale being unidentified until they actually film it. James Rogan will be well aware that this could mean that documentary directors and producers could be sitting on thousands of hours' worth of footage without any established narrative. The initial step is always to back-up the entirety of it because any moment could turn out to be utilised in the final documentary. Following this, all footage needs to be watched with accompanying records being made to pinpoint the greatest moments. This should take place at exactly the same time as going through archive material, photos, and music to choose what is the most useful fit for the documentary.


Editing has improved quite a bit through the span of film history. In reality, the entire reason the medium is named film is due to the material that movies had been filmed on. This material would be edited by hand, with editors chopping and pasting camera shots together. At present most films are actually digital, meaning most of the editing is performed on the computer. Morgan Matthews will know that most documentary filmmakers are well-acquainted with editing software. As soon as all possible components of the film were put into their selected software, it's time to start trying out laying the best shots into a timeline. Moments that show key information and can be the emotional core of the documentary would be the best to work with. Seeing what really works and does not work at this time may help establish the foundation of the documentary.


People are interested in watching documentaries since they desire to learn something. Nonetheless, this does not always mean that documentaries must be dry lectures. Individuals are also seeking to have fun while learning the info via a narrative structure. Tim Parker should be able to tell you that choosing the narrative and locating elements that fit the narrative is one of the most crucial phases within the film editing process. Even the most beautiful shots combined with the most remarkable archive footage is going to be meaningless if connected together without a clear narrative. Many filmmakers will generate a long first cut version of the documentary once they have established the narrative. They'll then go through the process of refining and re-editing it till it becomes a viewable length while accomplishing the objectives that the filmmaker attempted to achieve.