CH 5

This chapter illustrated the stages in post-production for a feature film. The author suggests that there are four main functions performed during this period: the inclusion of special effects, dubbing, composition and orchestration, and editing. The author also suggests, in terms of Citizen Cane, that most of the film’s original conceptions and creativity came from post-production work rather than during the actual filming. Having seen Citizen Cane, I would agree with this statement. The iconic beginning sequence is heavily edited with fade and wipe effects, which set a certain eerie tone for the rest of the film; specifically the editing of the sequence with the snow globe. Arguably the most powerful sequence in the film is the zoon-out of the snow globe, cut to the mouth saying “rosebud” and then a cut to Cane’s hand dropping the globe on the ground. This powerful moment leaves the audience wondering, “What could ‘rosebud’ mean?” throughout the film and this moment would not have been as powerful without the extraordinary creativity which takes place in the post-production. One interesting tidbit I found particularly intriguing from this article was that Orson Welles was only twenty-five when creating Citizen Cane. What a revolutionary concept and creative use of post-production techniques by someone a couple of years older than us.