Jump cuts and match cuts can be used to move us through time, change our understanding of continuity between two disparate scenes, and create rhythm within an edit.
What is a Jump Cut?
A jump cut is an edit that moves between two similar views (or identical views) of the same subject – for example, someone shaving. Giving the effect of a jump in time.
What is a Matching Cut?
A matching cut is an edit between either two different objects, two different spaces, or two different compositions in which objects in the two shots graphically match. This can often create a sense of continuity of action and often a connection or contrast in the meaning of the two shots.
These kinds of cuts should generally be used sparingly or the impact can get lost. Imagine a movie that jump cuts endlessly, it would become NORMAL rather than carry any meaning or emphasis.
Here are some examples:
(1) The Royal Tenenbaums by Wes Anderson – Jump Cuts
(2) Breathless by Jean Luc Goddard – Jump Cuts
(3) Erin Brokovitch by Steven Soderberg – Jump Cuts
(4) Frost Nixon by Ron Howard (Match Cut)
(5) 2001 Space Odyssey by Stanley Kubrick (match Cut)
(6) A variety of Match Cuts from different films
