Fast Cutting

Fast cutting is a film editing technique that refers to the linking of multiple consecutive shots in a short period of time (for example, 3 seconds or less). It can be used to quickly convey a large amount of information or to suggest chaos. Fast cutting is also often used when shooting dialogue between two or more characters, changing the viewer’s perspective to focus on another character’s reaction to the dialogue, or to draw attention to the speaking character’s nonverbal actions.

One famous example of fast cutting is the shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s film Psycho (1960). More recent examples include the musical sequences in Baz Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge!.

The film A Beautiful Mind makes extensive use of fast cutting, conveying hundreds of short scenes within fifteen minutes. In Run Lola Run, fast cutting is used to quickly tell the stories of minor characters, showing how the protagonist’s seemingly casual actions have a profound impact on what happens to them. In various moments of the Saw films, fast cutting is frequently used in the trap scenes to depict the frantic struggles of characters trying to escape. Director Michael Bay uses fast cutting heavily in many of his feature films. He employs it most prominently in action sequences, where it is used to make the action more energetic and intense.

Fast cutting encompasses two stylized forms of editing: fragmentary editing and hip hop montage.

Fragmentary Editing:

Fragmentary editing is a modern editing style that differs from traditional editing. It can ignore the conventional rules of shot transitions in traditional editing, cutting freely to create montage. The narrative becomes more free and fluid. Some uses break convention, some are highly individualistic, and this can make the visual style appear cooler.

For more details, see: Fragmentary Editing

Hip Hop Montage:

Hip hop montage uses a series of rapid, simple actions accompanied by sound effects to depict complex actions. The technique was originally named by Darren Aronofsky, who used it in Pi and Requiem for a Dream to depict drug use. According to the director’s commentary on Requiem for a Dream, the hip hop montages in the film, like the samples used in hip hop music, repeatedly insert certain film or video clips throughout the work to achieve an effect. The technique originates from 1990s hip hop culture and incorporates jump cuts first pioneered by the French New Wave. It was used earlier in Bob Fosse’s All That Jazz and Paul Thomas Anderson’s Boogie Nights. Guy Ritchie also used this technique in Snatch. Edgar Wright’s works—most notably his collaborations with Simon Pegg (Spaced, Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The World’s End)—use this technique to produce comedic effects. Joseph Gordon-Levitt made extensive use of it in Don Jon (2013) to depict the protagonist’s habits.