Cutting cameras
The following are general rules and classic television theory, ft doesn’t mean you can’t break them, but you should know and understand the rules first, and break them for good reasons.
Most cutting is obvious, and there is a danger of over-intellectualising it instead of simply cutting when your gut instinct tells you to. The main point is that cuts should be motivated. This motivation might come visually from inside the frame, from sound or from the dramatic content.
Visual motivation
You have a wide shot of a set at the beginning of a scene (sometimes called the scene setter). A door opens. Cut to the door. This is a clear visual motivation. Who is coming through the door? Is he being inquisitive? Is he sneaking in or is it a flamboyant entrance?
Sound motivation
There is nothing worse than having a noise on television that is unexplained. If it is a background noise, particularly one that interferes with the main sound source, we need to see it to make sense of it. This is less of a problem in a soundproofed studio than on an external shoot, where you might not realise a cottage is next to a railway line and the sudden noise of an express train will not make any sense.
Dramatic motivation
This is a huge subject that could fill a book in its own right. The main point I want to make is that while the viewer usually wants to see the person talking, sometimes it is more important to see a person who is affected by what is being said. For example, if a character in a play is being told of an accident involving their child, the dramatic impact is clearly from the person receiving the news, not the messenger.
Cutting rules (classic)
Aim not to cut to or from a shot that is moving, i.e. cut, pan, stop, cut (this includes tilts and zooms). Within the shot the camera movement itself should be motivated (usually by the action of the performers).
Avoid cutting between two cameras offering similar shots.
If you are cross-cutting, match the camera shots up (similar size, looking room, headroom etc).
If you cut too quickly it can look like a mistake. Let the viewers take in your pictures.
