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Are short black screens a good thing to use in editing

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Not if you do it with some style. Just short black screens is a cheap independent film way to replace subtitle cards. Watch some TV shows and movies. If a $300 Million movie will use subtitles to show the passing of time, why won't a guy making a $300 movie?
 
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I see you were greatly influenced by The Blair Witch Project. Good luck finding a market for the movie.

I have it on DVD and only watched it once. I have to honestly say there was nothing about The Blair Witch Project that inspired me to watch it a second time.

Miramax spend tens of thousands of dollars to fix it up for theaters. Miramax has been financially struggling in recent years.

Guys, correct me if I'm wrong. But, wasn't Miramax bought out by another production company?

You did succed in capturing the flavor of The Blair Witch Project.
 
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dpopa said:
I put short black screens to show time passing and to help my film flow better. Do you think it was enough, I tried a very minimalistic approach in my editing on this short film below.

http://youtu.be/AIKpUCv4iuU
Click to expand...

Since you are doing the whole person behind the camera is there thing, I would add an effect as if they are switching off, then back on the camera. If you play it as that, then as a viewer we know time has passed.
 
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A good way to show passing time is filming a clock and speeding up the footage! Really stylish way to show passing time but might not be the thing for this project.
 
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It is completely unnecessary, and kinda confusing. I suppose there might be some occasions when a fade-to-black or a dip-to-black are what you need, but rarely. In this movie, you don't need it.

It makes sense when the lens-cap is still on the camera. Otherwise, I think a jump-cut would make so much more sense. Modern audiences have grown accustomed to jump-cuts, and when they're used properly, they signify a passage of time. I use jump-cuts all the damn time.
 
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Sure you can use black video as long as it fits the concept and the story.
Did you ever watch 'The Shield'?
There it works.

But there are always different solutions to a question like this.
Using titles saying '45 minutes later/earlier' is a proven solution, but does it fit a 'found footage project like the Blair Witch' concept like yours?

Using timelapse is another solution, but does it fit your handheld project?
(Could be used if the camera fell down or was put down.)

Crossfading or speeding up a clock... does it fit the concept?

Shooting footage by accident can also work: walking with the camera pointing to the ground (my dad did this a few times with his vacation-videos: he thought he turned it off).
Use the passing time to build your characters with short scenes is a way to make time pass, but it takes some real time from the viewer as well.

Black video can be used in a few ways:
cut to black and cut back to image.
Fade to black and back.
Really ending the shot, pointing to the ground (maybe even put the lensthing (to protect the lens) on it). Start next shot with sound only, removing the 'lensthing' and search and focus.

How long the black video has to stay, depends on the flow and how much tension you try to build.

But sometimes (or even most times) you don't need it at all.
We all know time can and will pass between scenes: we aren't watching '24', right? ;)

Off-topic:

Modern Day Myth Prod. LLC said:
......................
Miramax spend tens of thousands of dollars to fix it up for theaters. Miramax has been financially struggling in recent years.
........................
Click to expand...

:rolleyes:
There is no relation between these two facts.
They made a lot of profit with The Blair Witch Project.

It's like saying that MGM spent millions on Ben Hur and went broke last year. :P
 
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Cracker Funk said:
It is completely unnecessary, and kinda confusing. I suppose there might be some occasions when a fade-to-black or a dip-to-black are what you need, but rarely. In this movie, you don't need it.

It makes sense when the lens-cap is still on the camera. Otherwise, I think a jump-cut would make so much more sense. Modern audiences have grown accustomed to jump-cuts, and when they're used properly, they signify a passage of time. I use jump-cuts all the damn time.
Click to expand...

I went round and round with my editor on 109 on this subject. He would straight cut everything even if we were changing time/place and I would have to go back and make him fade through black or dissolve. It's just a stylistic thing.
 
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Short black screens are not cheap. They can be used for many different reasons and effects.

The question you have to ask yourself when using one is what is the reason behind it. If you have a good reason which gives the right effect for the story and the moment in the story, then that is exactly what you should use.

Same goes for every other kind of transition you may use.

I know you said your reason is time passing but what i mean here is, what was the note you ended the previous scene on and what note are you starting the next one off with. Those two things will have you decide on the appropriate transition among the various choices/ways to do it.
 
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