Thursday 31 May 2012

Montage Editing Technique

Montage is a technique in which a series of shots are edited into a sequence to condense space, time and information. From the 1930s to the 1950s, montage sequences often combined numerous shots with special optical effects (fades, dissolves, split screens and double or triple exposures) dance and music. Usually they are assembled by someone other than the editor or director of the movie.

Two common montage sequence devices of the period  are the newspaper one and the railroad one. The newspaper sequence there are multiple shots of newspapers being printed and headlines zooming onto the screen telling the audience specific information. This is shown as multiple layered shots of papers moving between rollers, paper coming off the end of the press or a pressmen looking at the paper. There are modern examples of this on YouTube.
The railroad sequence the shots include engines racing towards the camera, giant engines moving across the screen and long trains racing past the camera as destination signs zoom into the screen. A recent edit of this form can also be found on YouTube.

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