Mad Max: Fury Road has earned considerable acclaim since its release, and over on his blog, commentator and editor Vashi Nedomansky highlights how George Miller and his team composed the film to make the most visual sense.
Miller shot over 480 hours of footage over the course of the production, which the film’s editor, Margaret Sixel, distilled down into a mere 120 minutes. Her work was aided by Miller’s direction and a particular approach to how the film was composed.
The action takes place in the center of every frame, which allows for the editors and viewers to quickly understand what was happening in any given scene. The result is a film that works against the shaky-cam and rough cinematography that has been popular in the last decade.
One of the many reasons MAD MAX: FURY ROAD is so successful as an action film is the editing style. By using “Eye Trace” and “Crosshair Framing” techniques during the shooting, the editor could keep the important visual information vital in one spot…the Center of the Frame. Because almost every shot was center framed, comprehending the action requires no hunting of each new shot for the point of interest. The viewer doesn’t need 3 or 4 frames to figure out where to look. It’s like watching an old hand-drawn flip book whiz by. The focus is always in the same spot!
Read the entire post over on his site.