Video editing is an art form. As a filmmaker, it’s your job to make sure that people have a good time watching your film.
The most important part of this job is making sure that your audience feels connected to the story you are telling.
This can be accomplished through a variety of techniques, but one of the most important is video editing.
It’s the Most Important Part of Post Production
Video editing is important because it includes not just the traditional techniques of cutting and splicing, but also sound mixing, color correction, using special effects, sound effects and animation to create meaning for the viewer.
A good video editor will make your story more compelling, add emotional resonance and shape your story into something that works for you and your audience.
Its importance is often overlooked, but if you think about it, most of the content you consume would not be engaging if it were delivered as it was straight out of the camera.
Editing Conveys the Emotion
It’s the key to blending images and sounds to make us feel emotionally connected and sometimes truly there in the film we’re watching.
A good video editor knows how to convey emotion through visual storytelling. A good video editor knows how to tell a story with just images and sound without any words needed at all!
This is why they are so important when it comes to creating compelling videos for websites, television shows, films or any other type of media production project that needs an artist behind it all.
They help bring together all of these elements into one cohesive piece that will not only hold your audience's attention but also keep them invested in what you are trying to say through your video project.
By making sure that everything flows well together in harmony from beginning to end, this allows viewers to get lost in your video content rather than wondering what's going on and why they should care. This allows you to give them a great experience that makes them want to come back for more.
The Story is in the Edit
Simply having a great idea that's filmed beautifully is only half the battle. The story only truly comes together after carefully constructing the narrative in the edit.
For starters, most shoots aren’t done in chronological order, so it takes a keen eye and storyboarding to make sure the pieces are put together in a cohesive way.
There are also many nuances that add to an overarching story. Focusing on a key object in a room, or splicing a flashback in the middle of a scene, or adding the right music to a scene are all important elements that help to tell a story.
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Everyone Does It
Almost all of the best content we consume, from small screen social media, to the biggest blockbusters, has been edited before it hits our eyes. Most of your favorite TikTok videos have been edited, even if only minimally, to make them more impactful.
On a larger scale, one high profile Hollywood film comes to mind. When Warner Bros. released a version of ‘The Justice League’ that had gone through a change of directors towards the end of filming, it received dismal reviews and felt disjointed.
Fans petitioned to release the “Snyder Cut” (the original vision of director Snyder,) and the four hour movie that ensued was immensely more impactful, beautiful, and has a story that gave each character justice and felt complete.
The Sum of the Parts
The seemingly smaller elements like music, lighting, rhythm, and pacing all come together with your footage in the end to complete the full package.
We’ve covered at length how adding music to videos almost always makes the message more impactful.
Even adding a simple violin melody can pull at a viewer’s heartstrings, and adding the right song to an action scene can make your heart pump in a way that the image alone couldn’t achieve.
Lighting only its own can tell its own story, providing moody settings while contributing to setting the right tone.
Furthermore, elements like pacing can make or break a film that seemingly has all the “right parts.” A film can be absolutely stunning, but if scenes drag along or feel rushed or disjointed, it can ruin the viewing experience.
Conclusion
As you can see, video editing is a complex but fun process. It takes patience, a good eye for details, and lots of practice to master. The more you practice, the better you get. So what are you waiting for? Start editing!
