Montage – A Level Media Studies Eduqas Revision

Definition of Montage

Montage is a fundamental aspect of film editing that involves combining various short shots into one sequence.
It was founded by Soviet filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein, and it functioned primarily as a method of advancing a narrative/message in a non-linear fashion.
Montage challenges the traditional sequential arrangement of shots, instead choosing to juxtapose these shots to create new meanings.

Montage plays a crucial role in creating meaning beyond the scope of individual shots.
Through juxtaposition and raw storytelling, it works to construct emotion, associations, and complex ideas.
Essentially, it is a technique to guide the audience’s perception and comprehension of a narrative beyond the seen action.

Metric Montage: This method is based strictly on the duration of the shots. Rhythm is driven by the temporal length of each shot.
Rhythmic Montage: Involves cutting shots based on visual continuity. It deals with an inherent rhythm within the shot’s content.
Tonal Montage: Associations and meanings are derived from the emotional tone or mood of the shots being cut together.
Thematic Montage: This method emphasises the correlation between different shots of various objects to express a specific theme or abstract idea.
Intellectual Montage: This form of montage involves combining shots that, together, deliver a more sophisticated idea that wouldn’t be grasped from the individual shots.

In films, montage can be used as a storytelling tool, such as the Rocky training montages, which convey time, progression, and achievement without detailing every workout.
In news broadcasts, a montage can be used to compact longer events into shorter broadcast timeframe.
Music videos often utilise montage to create symbolic associations or narratives beyond the lyrics of the song.
Advertisements frequently employ thematic and intellectual montages to create associations between the product and certain feelings or ideas.

Montage can profoundly shape the audience’s interpretation and emotional engagement with a media text.
It can provide rapid exposition or suggest passage of time, compacting complex narratives into digestible sequences.
Montage can create or intensify emotional or intellectual responses, using symbolic or thematic juxtapositions to enhance the interpretation.

The montage editing technique can sometimes be perceived as manipulative as it leads the audience towards a specific emotional or intellectual response.
Some critics argue that it can oversimplify narratives or ideas, leading to a reduction in authenticity or depth.
The speed at which information is conveyed in a montage can sometimes overwhelm the audience, causing them to miss crucial details or nuances.