Great Transitions Panel

[thuviaptarth]

Moderator: laurashapiro, whose notes are here.

What do you need transitions for?

• To get from one clip to the next. The usual transition for this is the hard cut, which we don't even register; as Walter Murch memorably said, it seems like a blink of the eye.
  
• To express a change in time
  
• Smooth over the difference between clips
  
• Enhance the music
  
• Emphasize the artificiality/style of the vid
  

Types of transitions

1. cut
   
2. soft cut (a brief dissolve, 1-2s.)
   
3. wipe
   
4. push-wipe
   
5. iris
   
6. 3D effects
   

When do you use a dissolve?

• Flashback (esp. dip to white dissolve)
  
• Softer emotions
  
• Sensual or contemplative mood, especially when used slowly
  

killabeez's "These Two Arms" dissolves from a close-up to a long-shot. The faces are on different sides of the screen, rather than one overlaid on the other; composition is especially important in dissolves. This often works better on the bigger screen and should work with the music.

Additive and nonadditive dissolves: these effects can highlight different aspects of the screen (I have no idea what I meant by this) [eta: Laura says, "Additive and non-additive dissolves change the color and value of the two clips as they interact with one another. They make bright areas brighter or dark areas darker."]

Iris: Focus on one spot, slowly darkening out everything else. This is used for:

• comedy
  
• to highlight a particular shape in a pleasing way. Can be used invisibly (Laura showed a clip from "Mixed Nuts" where the diamond simply emphasized the shape of Chiana's face)
  
• for style or mood. The 20s-style oval iris in "Closer" (Star Trek version) emphasizes the drama and artificiality of the vid.
  

Wipe
Wipes convey:

• travel from one place to another
  
• simultaneity
  
• movement
  
• time
  
• POV change
  
• artifice, like the chapter heading in a book
  

A push wipe wipes the screen by pushing the image on it out of the way.

Cube/spin/cross-zoom
Effects which break out of the two-dimensional frame. The cross-zoom in gwyn_r's Angel/Lindsey vid fits the music and is used specifically and selectively during the choruses.

Rolling your own transitions
Laura showed a bit from "Not Only Human": the glowing demon with wings to Scully opening the doors. This is a dissolve plus a levels adjustment on Scully. Some transitions can have the effect of shifting your gaze in a particular direction. charmax's "Hey Mambo" (Alias) uses a glow filter + key frame + hard cut on a crashing drum section.

The more subtle the transition, the more effects you can use. The fade-to-black is usually the end of a scene: it can be used to emphasize an emotional pause, to allow the audience to react.

Use a transitin to resolve the differences between clips only as a last resort.