How To Shoot & Edit Dialog Scenes - Part 1
Summary
TLDRIn this video, Jason Tumeric explores the art of editing dialogue scenes in filmmaking. He emphasizes the importance of shooting scenes with ample coverage to provide editors with options, including establishing shots and over-the-shoulder angles. Tumeric advises against overlapping dialogue during close-ups to maintain clean edits and suggests varying emotional intensity in takes for more post-production flexibility. He also discusses the technique of minimizing ambient sound on set to allow for controlled addition in post-production. The video concludes with a promotion for Tumeric's comprehensive filmmaking course, which offers in-depth training and resources for aspiring filmmakers.
Takeaways
- 🎬 Editing dialogue scenes can significantly influence the emotional tone and audience engagement in a movie.
- 📹 Providing editors with various shot options during filming is crucial for enhancing the final performance in post-production.
- 📽 Coverage is key: Filming entire takes ensures that editors have all the material needed to make informed decisions during editing.
- 🤝 Over-the-shoulder shots and clean single shots are essential for capturing each actor's performance without overlapping dialogue.
- 🚫 Avoiding dialogue overlap during filming allows for more creative control in editing, enabling the manipulation of emotional intensity.
- 🎞 The way actors deliver their lines on set can greatly affect the technical feasibility and quality of the scene in post-production.
- 🔊 Minimizing ambient sound on set is important as it allows for greater control over the audio in post-production.
- 🎥 Shooting clean dialogues without interruptions ensures that each line can be clearly heard and used effectively in the editing process.
- 🎦 The editing process can transform the nature of a scene, even if the on-set performance was improvised or different from take to take.
- 🎥 Experimenting with different emotional intensities during filming provides editors with a range of options to choose from in post-production.
Q & A
What is the significance of dialogue scenes in a movie?
-Dialogue scenes make up a significant portion of a movie and when done right, they draw an audience into the moment between characters, shaping the emotional tone of the scene.
How can an actor's performance in a dialogue scene be manipulated?
-An actor's performance can be manipulated through the use of editing, including choices of when to cut, how long to hold on a reaction shot, and the pacing of the edits.
Why is it important to shoot a dialogue scene in a way that gives the editor many options?
-Shooting a dialogue scene with many options allows the director and editor to craft the performances in post-production, providing flexibility in the final editing process.
What is meant by 'coverage' in the context of filming a dialogue scene?
-Coverage refers to shooting an entire take from beginning to end, ensuring the entire scene is covered and providing the editor with complete material to work with.
Why is it crucial to avoid overlapping dialogue when shooting close-ups and reverses?
-Avoiding overlapping dialogue in close-ups and reverses allows the editor to control the emotional intensity of the scene by manipulating the overlap, pauses, and inserts without continuity issues.
What is the proper way to shoot a dialogue scene to facilitate easier editing?
-The proper way is to ensure each actor's lines are recorded separately without overlap, and to shoot clean singles or tight over-the-shoulder shots to avoid seeing the other actor's mouth.
Why should ambient sound be removed as much as possible during the filming of dialogue scenes?
-Ambient sound should be minimized to give the editor control over the type, volume, and tone of the sound in post-production, as it's always added later and can be difficult to change once recorded.
What is the impact of recording ambient sound naturally on set during a dialogue scene?
-Recording ambient sound naturally can make it hard to remove or change it later, and can cause a shift in ambience when editing different shots together, drawing attention to the edit.
How can the emotional intensity of a dialogue scene be controlled in the editing room?
-The emotional intensity can be controlled by adjusting the overlap of dialogue, adding pauses, cutting to insert shots, and manipulating the timing between actors' lines.
What additional advice is given for shooting dialogue scenes to enhance the editing process?
-To enhance the editing process, try different takes of varying emotional intensity, and consider shooting clean singles or tight shots to avoid continuity issues.
Outlines
🎬 Effective Dialogue Scene Editing Techniques
Jason Tumeric introduces the importance of editing in shaping the emotional tone of dialogue scenes in films. He emphasizes the need for providing editors with as many options as possible during the shooting process to enhance the final performance in post-production. Techniques such as shooting wide shots, over-the-shoulder shots, and ensuring clean recording of each actor's lines without stepping on each other's dialogue are discussed. The importance of rolling through entire takes for coverage and avoiding overlapping dialogue in close-ups is highlighted to give editors the flexibility to manipulate the emotional intensity of a scene.
🎥 Shooting Techniques for Dialogue Scenes
This section delves into the specifics of shooting dialogue scenes effectively. It advises on capturing clean singles or tight shots to prevent continuity issues and suggests varying the emotional intensity in different takes to provide more editing options. The paragraph also addresses the issue of ambient sound, suggesting that it should be minimized on set since it's typically added in post-production. This allows editors to control the type, volume, and tone of the ambience, avoiding the problem of inconsistent ambient sounds between shots which can be distracting in the final edit.
🎓 Advancing Filmmaking Skills with Film Skills Unlimited
Jason Tumeric concludes by promoting his comprehensive online training program, Film Skills Unlimited, which partners with industry leaders to provide an extensive curriculum used by over 115 film schools and universities. The course covers a wide range of filmmaking topics, from screenwriting and directing to cinematography and post-production. He also mentions exclusive discounts for software and gear, access to projects and exercises, and personal mentoring opportunities. Lastly, he invites viewers to a free one-hour filmmaking course, offering top secrets for achieving a professional look in film production.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Dialogue Scene
💡Editing
💡Coverage
💡Over-the-Shoulder Shot
💡Ambient Sound
💡Continuity
💡Emotional Intensity
💡Overlap
💡Pacing
💡Post-Production
💡Film Skills
Highlights
Dialogue scenes are crucial for drawing audiences into the moment between characters.
An actor's performance can be manipulated through editing choices such as when to cut and the pacing of edits.
To effectively edit a dialogue scene, it's important to shoot it in a way that provides the editor with many options.
Shooting a scene with full coverage allows for more editorial flexibility in post-production.
Establishing shots are essential to set the scene's location and context.
Over-the-shoulder shots on each actor provide crucial angles for editing.
Avoiding dialogue overlap in close-ups is key for maintaining continuity and emotional impact.
Recording clean lines separately ensures the editor has the material to manipulate the scene's emotional tone.
Improvised dialogue can make editing difficult due to inconsistent takes.
Properly shot scenes allow editors to control the emotional intensity through dialogue overlap and pauses.
Shooting scenes with clean singles or tight shots helps with continuity and editing.
Experimenting with different emotional intensities in takes provides more editing options.
Minimizing ambient sound on set allows for greater control over the sound design in post-production.
Changes in ambient sound can draw attention to edits, so controlling it on set is beneficial.
Reducing ambient noise on set helps in achieving a cleaner audio recording for the dialogue.
Film Skills Unlimited offers a comprehensive online training curriculum for filmmakers.
The course includes insights from award-winning filmmakers and special discounts on software and gear.
A free one-hour filmmaking course is available, sharing top secrets for achieving a professional look.
Transcripts
[Music]
hello i'm jason tumeric
dialogue scenes make up a significant
portion of a movie and when they're done
right they draw an audience into the
moment between the characters
well the actor's performance in the
scene can be manipulated through the use
of editing
your choices of when to cut from one
person to another how long to hold on a
reaction shot and the pacing of the
edits all help shape the emotional tone
of the scene
so in this lesson we're going to explore
techniques for effectively editing a
dialogue scene
before we can get into the
technicalities of editing a dialogue
scene i'd like to share a few pointers
on how to properly shoot a dialogue
scene first
every scene should be shot in a way that
gives the editor as many options as
possible in the editing room
the reason for this is because you want
to be able to provide options
in the final editing process and so if
you're making editorial decisions on how
long to shoot for example one angle on
one performer
and then you cut away from that
well they're still talking
they're still emoting
and if the director chooses to cut away
from that that material is no longer
available in in the edit bay and you can
lose very valuable
material you can significantly alter the
emotional impact of a scene simply by
the way you edit it and by giving the
editor as many options as possible the
director and editor can help craft the
performances of each scene in
post-production so how do we do this
well it all starts on set when a
dialogue scene is being filmed
if you have a couple eating dinner
you would want to start off with a wide
shot an establishing shot and you can
see both of them and you can see the
restaurant or elements of the restaurant
around them this establishes their
location and you want to be able to roll
through an entire take that way you have
the entire scene covered which is why we
call it coverage
the next shots that are generally
considered in in a standard shoot would
be the over-the-shoulder shot
most importantly
on each actor and each performance you
want to roll through all the way through
again from beginning of action to the
end of action
then you want to reverse the angle and
you want to get the female performer
from beginning of action to the end of
the action
make sure the actors do not step on each
other's lines when you're shooting the
scene on set even if the scene calls for
the characters to cut each other off in
say an argument scene
make sure each actor's lines are
recorded separately for example
in this scene the actor's dialogue was
recorded incorrectly
julia
what what what do you know what time it
is no you know what time it is right now
you're four hours late i'm not four
hours late i am not foreign
manager's dialogue steps all over the
waitress's dialogue in her medium shot
and she steps all over his lines in his
medium shot and there's no way to remove
the overlapping dialogue in the scene
we're basically stuck with the way the
footage was shot
and because it was partially improvised
each take is slightly different from the
next making it even more difficult to
edit between the actors medium shots
well the overlapping dialog makes it
nearly impossible for the editor to
assemble the scene
forcing them instead to cut around the
dialogue instead of editing for the
emotion of the scene
well this is a perfect example of how
not to shoot dialogue
even though the performance seems real
on set in the way the actors interact
with each other it doesn't work
technically and it severely affects the
quality of the scene
now let's take a look at the correct way
to shoot the scene each actor will still
say the same lines but this time on set
they won't walk all over each other's
dialogue so each actor should pause
before replying or the off-screen actors
line should be inaudible now it is
challenging for an actor to perform this
way but as you'll see it's much easier
to edit
no i'm not four hours late what are you
talking about no no no no you know what
you just give me a break i'm never late
no that you're so unfair no you're
unfair don't turn around no hey
four hours late that's absolutely
ridiculous you can't keep doing this to
me and you're a mess when you show up to
work and you serve your customers
terribly i'm doing all your work by
shooting the scene this way the editor
is able to control just how much the
actor's dialogue overlaps they can
manipulate the emotional intensity of
the scene by increasing the overlap or
decreasing the overlap they can add
pauses they can cut to insert shots
essentially changing the nature of the
scene in the editing room for example
take a listen to how the scene sounds
when we assemble it loosely allowing a
little bit of time between each actor's
lines
what four hours late
no i'm not four hours late what are you
talking about four hours late that's
absolutely ridiculous
no no no no you know what
give me a break i'm never late no that
you're so unfair you can't keep doing
this to me and you're a mess when you
show up to work and you serve you may
have noticed that the scene sounds
staged and very staccato well if we
wanted to increase the dramatic tension
in the scene or just make it sound more
realistic we have the option of
increasing the overlap between each
actor's lines so that it sounds like
they're talking over each other
now even though it wasn't shot this way
on set the editor can increase the
intensity of the scene by editing it so
that the actors are talking over each
other
julia
what four hours late no i'm not four
hours late four hours late that's
absolutely ridiculous no you know what
you just give me a break you can't keep
doing this to me
and you're a mess when you show up to
work and you serve your customers
terribly i'm doing all your work for you
every time you serve somebody i gotta
copy them the way you treat them no no
no you know what take your apron off and
go
i quit
i quit you're fired you're gonna miss me
no i don't care okay whatever
the final result sounds natural as if
the actors were actually arguing and
cutting each other off
well this little bit of movie magic
gives the director and the editor more
control of the performances even after
the scene has been shot
so you can see that editing this
dialogue scene isn't just about
assembling the shots but because it was
shot properly the editor can control the
emotional intensity of the scene
allowing the director to make
storytelling decisions in the editing
room instead of on the set
so when you're shooting a dialogue scene
on set the actor's dialogue can overlap
when they're both in the same shot
namely a wide shot or the master
but for close-ups and reverses make sure
you shoot each actor's lines clean with
no overlap
your framing on the close-up also
matters so considering shooting clean
singles or tight the shoulder shots to
avoid seeing the other actor's mouth and
this will help you edit the scene
without having to worry about continuity
and lastly on set don't be afraid to try
a couple different takes of varying
emotional intensity and that way you
have even more options when you're
editing the scene in post
[Music]
the second technique in recording onset
dialogue is to remove as much of the
ambient sound as possible now ambient
sound is the sound of the location it's
the waves at the beach or the cars and
pedestrians on a busy city street
although these sounds add realism to the
scene these ambient sounds are always
added later in the editing room giving
the editor control over not only what
type of ambience to use but also the
volume and the tone of the sound
now were you to record the ambience
naturally on set
it'll be really hard to remove it or
change it once it was recorded
so recording the ambient sunset poses
another problem well it changes
say you have two actors talking to each
other when you shoot one actor's lines
well the microphone placement will not
only record their dialogue but also the
ambient sound
what does this get me
so that when you switch the camera to
shoot the other actors lines
my silence
the tone of the ambience changes because
you change the microphone's position
so when you edit these two shots
together the shift in ambience is what
draws the attention to the edit
and you're going to help us win
and if i don't
bribery's a felony dana so speaking of
this is how things get done
now although you can use noise reduction
filters and eq settings to reduce the
effect of the ambience you can never
fully remove it
so when you're shooting a dialogue seen
on set try to reduce as much of the
ambience as possible so you only record
the actors dialogues and movement
alright guys there you have it a few
techniques to help you improve your film
skills now if you really want to improve
the quality of your productions i'll
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look that helped me grow a career
shooting in over 35 countries for top
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filmmakers for filmmakers
[Music]
you
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