Cross-Cut (Parallel Edit)
Two scenes intercut to imply simultaneity. The chase / the bomb / the rescue.
- COINED
- 1910s
- TAXONOMY
- EDITING
- RELATED
- 4
- TEMPLATES
- 0
A cross-cut, or parallel edit, intercuts between two scenes happening simultaneously. The chase / the bomb. The wedding / the funeral. The heroes / the villains. The audience reads them as occurring in the same window of time, building tension by alternating.
D. W. Griffith codified the move in the 1910s and it has barely changed. The Godfather baptism - cross-cutting the religious ritual with the assassinations - is still the textbook example.
When you cross-cut, your rhythm has to accelerate. Start with longer chunks of each scene, then trim them down as the climax approaches. The cuts get tighter as the tension does. End on whichever scene resolves first; the other follows.
Simultaneous tension. Building toward a shared climax across two locations. The chase, the heist, the deadline.
When the two scenes don't reinforce each other thematically - you're just stalling. When you can't intercut without confusing geography.
Terms next to this one.
A compressed sequence of short shots, usually scored. The training scene, the city wakes up, the relationship in 90 seconds.
Edit that preserves spatial and temporal coherence. The grammar of mainstream filmmaking.
A cut between two similar-but-not-identical positions. Reads as time skipping. YouTube made it pop again.
First cuts of a scene that orient the viewer in space.