Looking for "horror" edting tips and tricks

P

Peter Reynolds

Well-known member
Hi there.

I'm participating in a 24-Hour Short Film Challenge this weekend, and I wanted to get some advice.

The entire 5-minute film has to be shot (on video), scored and edited in 24-hours, so as you might expect we don't have a lot of time for trial and error.

The genre for this Challenge is horror, and I'm looking for editing / production techniques for horror like effects using Adobe Premier 1.5 and Adobe After Effects (though I'm more familiar with Premier). Examples include:

Jittery edits
Ghosts/
Dream/nightmare sequences
POV (descent into madness)

Any tips, tricks or techniques you may have for a no-budget production (with a tight timeline) would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.
Peter
 
Film completed

Film completed

Hi there.

For those who were wondering, the 24-hour film challenge was very successful. I know this is the wrong forum to discuss it, so I'll keep it brief.

I edited our film, Zombie Nerd, with Premier Pro 1.5 and it worked flawlessly. We didn't have a lot of time, so I focused on clean edits and music rather than a lot of horror-type editing trick.

I'd love to get feedback on my editing - taking into account that I only had 5 hours or so.


Pretty crazy, I know. But quite rewarding. Here's the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCRKmTq5K-Y

Cheers!

Peter
 
Hi Peter,

Awesome job!!! Regarding feedback:

Composition - mostly right on, good use of medium/close-up, only a few slips with framing too low.

Lighting - nice, considering difficult night scene (a bit too much hard lighting, could use background lighting to avoid shadows, and filters might be nice to have on hand next time)

Editing - PERFECT, great transitions, timing is right on!

Audio - EXCELLENT job, very clean!

Music/effects - SUPERB, really sets your movie apart from the pack!

Make-up - WOW, unbeliveably good with a tight production schedule!

Story - AWESOME, perfect morality twist akin to "Twilight Zone" storyline

Talent - Very good.

Overall - Two thumbs way up!!!

I couldn't agree more, the editing and audio made all the difference in the world. And lets give cudos to your talent - excellent job by the entire team!

Many thanks, Michael

PS - viewers must not miss the outtake!!!
 
Great feedback

Great feedback

Thanks Michael.

I'm glad you enjoyed the film. It was quite the wild ride.

I agree that some of the composition left a little to be desired. While I was editing I noticed that some of my final shots were sloppy "composition wise", but of course I didn't have a chance to re-shoot anything. Live and learn I guess.

The music and effects were composed from scratch that day by our incredible composer John. It made all the difference. I would finished editing a scene and email him the .wmv file. He would then create a music key and email me an MP3 which I would then insert in the final edit. What a work flow, let me tell you!

Our make-up artist Kelly had worked on Dawn of the Dead, and we couldn't have been happier with the results. If anything, she pushed for "More gore! More gore!" Next time we'll definitely take her up on that.

Thanks again for all your terrific feedback. I'll be sure to keep you updated on the sequel, Zombie Nerd II - The Making of a Legend

Take care,

Peter
 
Good sound sounds good.

Good sound sounds good.

Hi Michael.

No ADR. Just a boom mic and a good soundman.

That book looks terrific, I'm placing my order today. I like the fact that there are full colour pictures illustrations. Too often I find
cinematography books explain how to achieve a particular effect, without showing you what the end result should look like.

Cheers.

Peter
 
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