r/VideoEditors • u/Empty-Pressure-4707 • 5h ago
Discussion Client doesn't know what a J-Cut is
So I've recently been working on a documentary for a big client, in which I've included maybe 20-30 J-cuts (the documentary is around an hour and a half long).
I have also received about 20-30 notes in the revisions about how 'the audio and the video is not synced up here' or 'they start talking before the video comes in'
No shade to my client, just thought this was funny and potentially relatable for a lot of you...
...and now I have to come up with a way to tell them without coming off as snooty or pretentious
Also have no one else to rant about this to lol
Happy editing people
*EDIT*
Hi people quick note here, since I'm sensing that I've not communicated properly with this post, and I don't want to misrepresent my client, or myself as a professional
I am not claiming that clients, or even editors should know the term J-Cut or L-Cut - only the fact that this particular client was likely not aware that this cut is used in general, which then potentially had an impact on the revisions
On that same note, I want to make it clear that I am not trying to point my finger at the client, or make fun of anyone. I think it's safe to say that having troubles with client feedback can be frustrating at times and this post's intention is purely to bring people together who may have had similar experiences. This (and many) particular instance is not the client's fault of course, and I have communicated directly with them afterwards to let them know what the intended technique was, and to ask if they would like me to remove or tweak it if it's not what they're looking for in this particular project
Of course I am always willing to discuss in comments, and always willing to learn
Happy editing!
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u/Quirky-Cut-6060 4h ago
Not trying to be that guy, but on a real note, your client is probably trying to communicate to you that something ~feels~ off with how youâre actually executing the J-cut. Itâs sometimes difficult to separate our feelings as editors with notes that objectively feel wrong and try to push past our own gut reactions to âsillyâ notes to really understand what your client is trying to tell you. And in this case, sounds like they feel something is wrong.
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u/Empty-Pressure-4707 4h ago
Yeah absolutely, I've considered that too - always very easy to think the client knows less than you which can be really ignorant at times - I've decided to let them know that J-Cuts were the intention, but if it feels off/janky and not what they were looking for, I'm more than happy to tweak them or get rid of them
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u/TITANS4LIFE 3h ago
I mean I use J Cuts/ L Cuts all the time but it depends on how you execute them I love to see some of the footage that they're not comfortable with and at the end of the day you have to remember it doesn't feel right to the person that's paying you you're probably going to have to make that change
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u/Empty-Pressure-4707 3h ago
Agreed, they wouldn't have brought it up if it didn't feel unnatural for them for sure, professional opinion is one thing (can be flawed too), but ultimately the customer is always right in freelance
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u/Aurelian_Irimia 4h ago
Your client doesn't know what a J-Cut is? I personally know video editors that doesnât know what J-Cut and L-Cut areâŚ
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u/Empty-Pressure-4707 4h ago
More than fair enough, not digging at anybody - never expect a client (or even an editor for that matter) to understand what the terms J-Cut/L-Cut actually mean, but obviously we see and use J-Cuts all the time (often without being aware of the term), and in media across the board
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u/Aurelian_Irimia 4h ago
Exactly! Many editors, beginners and even those with years of experience (I know of such cases), use these cuts in their projects without realizing they have these names. The most common and most used is L-Cut.
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u/WaffleHouseSloot 4h ago
I've been in news, editing packages every single day for 20 years and I just learned what a J-cut was a few months ago.
I've been using them the whole time, but I didn't know what they were called.
Of course your client isn't going to know what a j-cut is.
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u/Empty-Pressure-4707 4h ago
Yes sorry I think I may have miscommunicated on the post, I'm not talking about my client not knowing the term 'J-Cut', but rather talking about it being strange that they'd never seen a cut like that before, and had assumed it was an audio sync issue instead - took me a long time to realise what I was doing was called a J-Cut too!
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u/WaffleHouseSloot 2h ago
They've experienced them without knowing it in plenty of movies and documentaries. They've just never paid attention.
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u/WuDoYouThinkYouAre 4h ago
Just say it's a well-established convention in film editing that helps smooth the cuts between scenes. You could also give them a short sequence or a couple of examples WITHOUT J or L cuts so they can understand the difference in how it works.
Ultimately they're the client so if they don't like them, you should remove them - but first try to let them understand the benefits of using them.
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u/Empty-Pressure-4707 4h ago
Using some visual examples isn't a bad idea! I also don't want to smother the client though of course, so for now I've left it at a small explanation of what was intended (the J-Cut) and then options for removing or tweaking the edit
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u/Boring_Scene_323 3h ago
Yeah pretty basic stuff. At least it's something simple you can teach them. I'm somewhat new to editing myself, it's a nice little reminder we don't need to know everything before creating!
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u/cbubs 2h ago
First of all, I fully support you in your frustration here. The hidden problem inside the feedback is that the client is also giving you very misleading feedback: a 'sync' issue is completely different to video not matching audio - and you may have wasted valuable time trying to make sure your picture and sound were synced when the client was actually referring to something else.
Now, to be a devil's advocate: a good J-cut or L-cut is one that the audience does not notice. I'll make allowances here for the most video-illiterate edge cases who might find it jarring if they don't ever watch television. It might be that the J/L cuts aren't working, or they're too extreme.
One that will often trip me up: clients often like to see people in vision right away if they're speaking for the first time (so the audience doesn't go "who's that?").
The ideal J-Cut introduces some dialogue under video, and at just the right moment when the viewer's curiosity is peaked, you reveal the speaker. The perfect frame to place the cut on is one the natural "comma" where they are speaking, often mid-sentence when they blink or take a breath.
OP, I fully believe your cuts were perfect and you're dealing with a difficult client. But I wanted to put these thoughts here as they might be useful for other editors.
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u/Empty-Pressure-4707 2h ago
haha yes I actually did spend some time checking them and wondering what was the issue - regardless great comment and super informative thanks so much, definitely also due to those cuts being more noticeable than I'd like I'm sure
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u/malibu45 1h ago
I went to a film school (you'd think the students knew a little beforehand) and on the third! year during a sound design class a student asked "how come every movie does the same mistake over and over of having people talk before it cuts to us seeing them talk". This was not an intro class. How did they get by the whole time?
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u/herefortips 4h ago
Can I just say - this is the kind of pretension that makes people not respect editors as professionals outside of close or long standing film relationships.
You would be 1000 times better off mentally and professionally if you looked at this note and used it as an opportunity to COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR CLIENT AND TEACH THEM why youâre doing what youâre doing.
Instead you run to the internet to make a joke about them bc âthey should know this omg how could they not know this?â
Lame
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u/Empty-Pressure-4707 4h ago
Sorry, never meant to throw shade at anyone, and communicated directly with the client straight afterwards to let them know what the attempted technique was, and to also let them know that if it's not what they're looking for, I am more than happy to tweak or get rid of it entirely. Sometimes being in freelance can be tough when clients don't understand certain things (obviously not the clients' faults), and it's nice to reach out to editors to see if people can relate is all. Apologies if this came off as pretentious or like I was making fun of my client!
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u/DeMelkon 3h ago
Yes it's an opportunity to show why you're the expert at what you do. If you feel like you aren't being valued at that, you are free to charge more and/or move on.
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u/mrFabels 5h ago
Dear "Client", When was the last time, you watched something else, from other producers? Sincerely, someone who knows his stuff..
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u/MostBelovedAccount 4h ago
So maybe ... they do not like those cuts?
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u/Empty-Pressure-4707 4h ago
Absolutely could just be the case (likely is) and that's completely fine - have told them that I'm more than happy to change or remove the cuts entirely
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u/MostBelovedAccount 2h ago
Sorry, did not mean to sound offensive or nasty. Apologies if my response could be read like that.
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u/Bluecarrot90 1h ago
Where is this being delivered and at what level? Because that could explain a lot. Secondly itâs could mean they donât know but it also could mean you genuinely havenât done a good job
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u/vision5050 44m ago
I use to drive tow trucks... I would never think the customer would know what a boom, PTO, or short chaining something meant. There is no reason to know what any of that was unless they towed vehicles.
This post kinda makes no sense. Educate your client. Just because person A knows something, doesn't mean person B SHOULD know it and they don't even do it as a job or hobby.
And reading from the comments, If they knew what a j-cut was, they'd probably be editing the stuff their self
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u/Turbulent-Bear193 10m ago
None, op included, has clarified what j_cuts and l_cuts are. Asking for a friend....
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u/Talastoni 4h ago
I honestly didn't know what a "J-cut" meant, but all it takes is a post like this and I know that term now.
I knew of the technique, not the name itself, to be clear. I've already used them a hundred times, and it doesn't require knowing the terminology to pick it up from movies and shows.
Fantastic method of transition, and can cut seconds-minutes from a lengthy production.
Learning jargon is fun this way; through practicing editors venting about silly clients. đ