One frame. Just one frame. I can’t tell you how hard it is to find the right frame to begin and end a shot with. It will tell your movie more than anything else; the essence of cinema is cuts. Thank God music is only appreciated by a single sense—otherwise it would be the superior art form. But no, it is cinema. And in the montage is the answer to the question posed by the filmmaker in the first place. Why…
What, the fuck? This crazy ass note was left on my desk last night. I’ve no idea who wrote it or how they got in here. Da Boss saw it and was even more spooked than me, running around the house trying to find a broom or a baseball bat. “WHATEVER IT’S GONNA TAKE!” I told him, or yelled at him, that anyone sophisticated enough to imitate my writing style, albeit quite badly, and then leave a handwritten note inside my office is probably going to have something more dangerous than a bat. Or a broom. “What about a rollercoaster?” Da Boss found my gigantic toy rollercoaster; I threatened to spur-claw him and he put it down. People really don’t like when I threaten my hen violence on them.
“Monica, what are you doing in my filing cabinet?” Da Boss found my nest. This is no good. No no good very bad. I’m scared. “Can you please get out of there? I think I have the list of phrases I wanted to use in there.” I stalled. “Isn’t that on your desk and behind your laptop and on your printer and—“ but he insisted that this one was different, the original, the one. I could use something as precious as whatever the fuck he’s looking for on this list. I told him all of this as I, once again, stalled for time and tried to uninstall myself from the filing cabinet. Editing a film has made a more plump Monica, I’ll admit that.
“OOOH!” I popped out of that thing like a balloon; I landed in Da Boss’ arms, like… a cat. “I’m glad I caught you and I’m happy you’re okay but this is strange.” I told him to stop looking at me like that. “Like what?” Like you were going to EAT ME. “I couldn’t make another movie without you.” Da Boss avoided yet another confrontation with a compliment… clever strategy… obscure, but innovative… he does surprise me sometimes…
While Da Boss was looking for the perfect phrase, I was still looking for the perfect frame to put between the cello and the marimba sections. These pieces build and lead into each other, and finding the right spot to put something against a hard cut in the sound is proving more difficult than I’d thought it’d be. Technical bullshit aside, I was noticing a lot of shots that went on too long, or not long enough, and realized I had far too many frames left to fix, and if only every one of them could be perfect. You’ll see…
—Follow Monica Quibbits on Twitter: @MonicaQuibbits