Phase 2: Narrative Craft
Week 20 of 52 · Day 134–140
Music Editing — Choosing and Cutting Music
Learning Objective
Learn how to choose music that serves the story and how to edit it to fit your scene.
This Week
Music is the most powerful emotional tool available to the editor. The right piece of music can transform a good scene into a transcendent one. The wrong piece of music can undermine even the best footage. This week, you will learn the principles of choosing music for a scene: how to match the emotional tone, how to use music to create irony or counterpoint, and how to edit a piece of music to fit the exact duration and emotional arc of your scene.
Daily Practice
Take a 2-minute scene and try three completely different pieces of music under it. Observe how each piece of music changes the meaning and emotional quality of the scene. (45–60 min)
Weekly Challenge
Edit a 3-minute scene with a carefully chosen piece of music. The music should not simply accompany the scene — it should add a layer of meaning that the picture alone cannot convey.