Film editing is the post production process of filmmaking. It involves selecting and putting together shots so that they can make sequences. This is then made into a feature film. A long time ago there were no editors so of course that meant no cuts. Filmmakers back then use to take photos of things that caught their eye or amused them. They would hold a shot until they felt the time was right to switch off, the film ran out or they would get bored. After hearing people say that 'cinema was an invention without a future', Edwin Porter proved that this quote was wrong. He found out that by cutting seperate shots together could create a story.
Edwin Porter made 'The Life Of an American Fireman' and 'The Great Train Robbery' showed how by inter cutting two shots that are not related to eachother can still be effective. For example in 'The Life Of an American Fireman', one scene takes place where the fire is whereas the other shows the reactions of people outside. Editing can slow down time or speed it up. Also the timing of a cut can startle people or even amuse them. A major Hollywood production can take up to almost 200 hours of film. An editor can work for months on a film or even years with the outcome being a two hour long feature. The finished film can contains thousands of shots. If you look at the films from the early 1900s and then look at filmmaking in the present day, it really has improved a lot.
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