Media Glossary : Editing...

Editing is a stage that often begins as soon as the film has been shot, and is the process whether all the sound and images that have been shot are organised into a narrative order, the transitions of shots are also planned. Before the final film is developed, a rough cut is created just by the editor, it is during the production of the final cut that the sound effects and musical score is added. Editors use computers and nonlinear digital systems to compile a film. There are a number of different editing techniques that can be applied during this process

Cut : This is where a visual transition is created in editing, in which one shot is instantaneously replaced on screen by another
Continuity Editing : This is the most common type of edit and helps to create a sense of reality and time moving forward. It is a technique that is also referred to as invisible edititing as it does not draw attention to the process. This process is often Linear Narrative which means events happen in chronological order (example = wake up-get dressed-have breakfast-go to school)
Credits : This is the text that gives detail of the cast and production crew, it comes at the beginning and end of films, typically within a short film however they only come towards the end
Cross-Cutting : This involves cutting back and forth between two or more events or action which is taking place at the same time but in a different location. It therefore interweaves one narrative action with another. It helps to suggest to the audience that the events are happening simultaneously, therefore in parallel with each other and can be used to built suspense within a film or show how different pieces of action are related
Cutaways : Cutaways consist of shots showing the reaction of one character to another, and involves a cut away from the primary subject to something which is seen as equally or more relevant at the time. It is often used in order to compress time in what appears to be seamless manner
Cutting Rate : Frequent cuts may be used as deliberate interruptions to shock, surpise or emphaise
Eye-Line Match : This involves the matching of eye lines between two or more characters to help establish the relationship of proximity and continuity. It can also involve cutting from the character to what the character is looking at (example = the character-the table which they are looking at)
Flash Backs and Flash Forwards : This is a scene or moment within a film where the audience is shown as event that has either happened earlier (flashback) or something that will happen in the future (flash forward). There are many examples where this has been used within film such as 'Amored Perros' and 'Lost', I also applied flashbacks to my AS piece through the use of "home footage"
Montage Editing : This involves scenes where the emotional impact and visual design is achieved through the editing together of many brief shots. Therefore it is where different shots which are sometime unconnected are edited together to create meaning.
Fast Paced Editing : This is the rapid succession of many shots, which are usually less than two seconds each. This type of editing is used to emphasis tension.
Slow Paced Editing : This is opposite of fast pace, it involves long shots which tend to have dialogue. A shot can take from 10 to 15 seconds each.
Fade and Dissolves : These are gradual transitions between shots. In a fade the picture gradually appears from the fade in or it can disappear to fad out onto a blank screen. A slow fade-in is a quiet introductions to a scene and a slow fade-out creates a peaceful ending. Time lapses are often suggested by a slow fade-in or fade-out. A dissolve involves fading out one picture while fading up another on top of it. The impression is of an image merging into and then becoming another. A slow mix usually suggests differences in time and place. De focus or ripple dissolves are somethings used to indicate flashbacks in time.
Split Screen : This involves a division of the screen into parts, which in turn can show the viewer several images at the same time (this can sometimes be the same action from slightly different perspectives or sometimes similar actions at different times). It can help convey the excitement or frequency of certain activities to the audience, but also can overload the viewer which can be what the director is deliberately aiming for.