Negative Cutting
Created on : January 9, 2024 12:17
Denotation
Negative Cutting is the process of cutting motion picture negative to match precisely the final edit as specified by the film editor. Original camera negative (OCN) is cut with scissors and joined using a film splicer and film cement. Negative cutting is part of the post-production process and occurs after editing and prior to striking internegatives and release prints. The process of negative cutting has changed little since the beginning of cinema in the early 20th century. In the early 1980s computer software was first used to aid the cutting process. Kodak introduced barcode on motion picture negative in the mid-1990s. This enabled negative cutters to more easily track shots and identify film sections based on keykode.
Description
Negative cutting in the film industry refers to the process of physically cutting and splicing together the original camera negatives to create a final film edited version of a film. This process is a crucial step in traditional film editing particularly when working with celluloid film stock.
Here's a more detailed explanation of the negative cutting process:
After film shooting, the raw footage is developed to create camera negatives. These negatives contain the recorded images in a negative form with light and dark values reversed.
Editing Decision:
The film director and film editor make decisions about the final sequence of film scenes and shots that will be included in the film. This decision is often made by assembling a rough cut of the film.
Workprint:
A workprint is created from the selected film shots serving as a reference for the negative cutter. The workprint is a copy of the selected scenes and is used to guide the cutting and splicing process.
Timecode:
Timecode numbers are used to precisely mark each frame of the film. This coding system ensures accurate synchronization between the workprint and the original negatives during the negative cutting process.
Negative Cutting:
The negative cutter, who is a highly skilled technician follows the instructions from the editing decisions and physically cuts and splices the original camera negatives. This process involves carefully removing sections of the negative and joining the desired segments together.
Conforming:
The cut negative is then conformed to match the film edited workprint. This involves ensuring that the negative corresponds exactly to the edited sequence, taking into account any added or removed frames.
Printing:
Once the negative cutting is complete and conforms to the edited version, it is used to create a new master positive, which serves as the source for making release prints. Release prints are the copies of the film distributed to theaters for public exhibition.
It's important to note that with the advent of digital filmmaking and non-linear film editing systems the traditional negative cutting process has become less common. In digital workflows film editing is often done electronically and the final version is exported directly from the digital files without the need for physical cutting and splicing of film negatives. However, negative cutting remains an essential part of the history of filmmaking, especially in the context of celluloid film production.