Vsevolod Pudovkin

Vsevolod Pudovkin: Editing Theory

Vsevolod was born in 1893. He was a Russian actor and director, first inspired to prusue the carrer after watching Griffith's "Intolerance". He believed that editing was more important to the story that the performance of the actors. He recognized that the order of the shots shown to the audience has as much of an impact as the subject matter of the shot. In other words, the organization of the shots in a film can determine the meaning of the sequence and guide the emotions of the audience.

Vsevolod came up with the following five 'methods' of editing or shot sequences.

Editing Types

1: Contrast: Show the audience two different types of scenes, causing the audience to compare the difference in the shots to create meaning.

2: Parallelism: To show the audience certains shot that have certain similar elements, making these elements or ideas stand out. Comparing the similarities between shots.

3: Symbolism: Creating meaning by showing imagary with similar meanings. Using the idea or attached meanings of a symbol or symbols in muiltple shots to create another menaing. ( A match and the rising sun = meaning heat)

4: Simultaneity: Showing two shots that are set at the same time but in different locations. Simultaneously showing two different scenes by cutting between them as events unfold. Creates meaning via contrast, Same time different events.

5: Leit Mofit: A reoccurring shot, theme or symbol. (Jaws underwater POV for the shark showing danger).