WEBVTT 00:00:06.140 --> 00:00:08.780 Hi my name is Tony and this is Every Frame a Painting. 00:00:08.980 --> 00:00:11.389 So this channel’s been going well, which means it’s about time 00:00:11.389 --> 00:00:13.340 -Time for a confession? 00:00:13.440 --> 00:00:15.000 Yeah, time for a confession. 00:00:15.000 --> 00:00:17.500 I have stolen more ideas from this film than from any other 00:00:17.779 --> 00:00:20.779 -F for Fake -F for Fake 00:00:21.779 --> 00:00:24.170 -Ladies and gentlemen, by way of introduction 00:00:24.370 --> 00:00:26.580 -this is a film about trickery 00:00:27.870 --> 00:00:29.000 -and fraud 00:00:29.880 --> 00:00:31.240 -about lies. 00:00:32.439 --> 00:00:35.010 Wait sorry I’m doing this wrong. Can we start over? 00:00:38.410 --> 00:00:41.710 This is an essay film by Orson Welles. It’s called F for Fake. 00:00:41.710 --> 00:00:43.739 And it's one of my personal bibles. 00:00:44.200 --> 00:00:46.300 Everything I know about editing, I learned from this film. 00:00:47.000 --> 00:00:49.300 But today, I want to talk about one basic thing: 00:00:51.300 --> 00:00:54.900 -We found out this really simple rule that maybe you have all heard before 00:00:54.900 --> 00:00:57.000 -but it took us a long time to learn it. 00:00:57.500 --> 00:00:59.040 When you’re structuring a video essay 00:00:59.040 --> 00:01:01.000 there’s one thing you really want to avoid. 00:01:01.500 --> 00:01:03.400 -I think that’s about it. -And then? 00:01:03.750 --> 00:01:06.200 -No, that’s it. -And then? 00:01:06.700 --> 00:01:10.300 -Then nothing else cuz I’m done ordering -And then? 00:01:10.500 --> 00:01:12.000 -If you tell a story that’s 00:01:14.000 --> 00:01:15.200 -you’re in big trouble. 00:01:15.420 --> 00:01:19.000 This is the #1 mistake I make in my own work. 00:01:19.000 --> 00:01:21.400 Like here. Watch how repetitive this is. 00:01:22.000 --> 00:01:23.500 -Choosing to take the money. 00:01:23.500 --> 00:01:25.000 -Choosing not to fight back. 00:01:25.000 --> 00:01:26.500 -Choosing to hide their emotions. 00:01:26.500 --> 00:01:28.000 -Choosing not to trust someone. 00:01:28.000 --> 00:01:29.500 -Choosing to wait out the discomfort. 00:01:29.500 --> 00:01:30.300 -Choosing to get-- 00:01:31.700 --> 00:01:35.450 This is a list you could put in any order. That’s why it’s so boring. 00:01:35.750 --> 00:01:39.170 -What should happen between every beat that you’ve written down 00:01:39.170 --> 00:01:42.080 -is either the word THEREFORE or BUT. 00:01:42.080 --> 00:01:46.500 -So what i'm saying is you come up with an idea that's like, this happens 00:01:46.800 --> 00:01:49.500 -What are those? -My pubes. I got em from Scott Tenorman. 00:01:49.600 --> 00:01:51.300 -and THEREFORE this happens. 00:01:51.400 --> 00:01:54.000 -Cartman, you don’t buy pubes. You grow them yourself. 00:01:54.000 --> 00:01:56.300 -You're saying pubes are worth nothing? -Yeah. 00:01:56.400 --> 00:01:58.000 -BUT this happens. 00:01:58.200 --> 00:01:59.800 -And I’ll give you the pubes. -Sweet. 00:01:59.800 --> 00:02:01.300 -THEREFORE this happens. 00:02:01.330 --> 00:02:02.700 -Aw goddamn it! 00:02:03.700 --> 00:02:05.900 So throughout this movie, Orson Welles does the exact same thing. 00:02:05.990 --> 00:02:09.110 Except he doesn’t connect scenes, he connects thoughts. 00:02:09.110 --> 00:02:12.150 -You’re a painter. Why do you want people to do fakes? 00:02:12.850 --> 00:02:17.500 -Because fakes are as good as the real ones and there’s a market and a demand 00:02:18.100 --> 00:02:21.860 -If you didn’t have an art market, then fakers could not exist. 00:02:22.100 --> 00:02:23.500 Even though this movie is an essay 00:02:23.700 --> 00:02:26.620 each moment has the connective logic of a South Park episode. 00:02:27.200 --> 00:02:30.700 The second rule in this movie is to have more than one story, moving in parallel 00:02:30.900 --> 00:02:34.970 -I’ll quote Hitchcock again. He said the name of making movies is 00:02:37.500 --> 00:02:38.950 -He’s absolutely right. 00:02:39.000 --> 00:02:41.400 -You want to have two things going. 00:02:41.500 --> 00:02:44.000 -You reach the peak of one, you go to the other. 00:02:44.300 --> 00:02:45.879 -I hope you know what you’re doing. 00:02:48.879 --> 00:02:53.300 -You pick the other up where you want it When it loses interest, drop it. 00:02:56.500 --> 00:02:58.100 How does this work in an essay film? 00:02:58.200 --> 00:03:01.500 -Well, let’s say you have two stories. Let one of them build up. 00:03:01.500 --> 00:03:06.019 -When it reaches peak interest, switch to the other. Let this one build. 00:03:06.019 --> 00:03:09.470 -And when this gets to the top, go back to the first. Simple, right? 00:03:11.000 --> 00:03:13.190 -Except F for Fake doesn’t just have two things. 00:03:13.190 --> 00:03:16.340 There's also stories about Orson Welles, Howard Hughes 00:03:16.340 --> 00:03:19.160 a woman named Oja, and even the making of this movie. 00:03:19.700 --> 00:03:23.540 And by building each story carefully, Welles can jump between all six of these 00:03:23.540 --> 00:03:25.500 without ever losing the audience. 00:03:25.700 --> 00:03:28.600 So when I’m making a video essay, this is what’s going through my head. 00:03:29.800 --> 00:03:33.300 -And then? -No "and then!" 00:03:33.370 --> 00:03:35.470 And I got all of that from watching this film. 00:03:35.470 --> 00:03:38.870 Which more than anything has taught me: it’s not about what you get. 00:03:38.870 --> 00:03:42.300 It’s how you cut it and what comes out the other end. 00:03:45.170 --> 00:03:49.170 Remember, video essays aren’t essays. They’re films. 00:03:49.170 --> 00:03:52.870 So you want to structure and pace them like a filmmaker would. 00:03:52.870 --> 00:03:55.930 Therefore and But. Meanwhile, back at the ranch. 00:03:55.930 --> 00:03:58.500 And if you don’t believe me, you should at least trust Orson Welles 00:03:58.800 --> 00:04:01.090 who somehow figured this out over 40 years ago. 00:04:01.400 --> 00:04:04.190 -Why not? I’m a charlatan. 00:04:04.190 --> 00:04:06.400 But whatever. Let’s wrap up this essay. 00:04:06.900 --> 00:04:08.300 -Now it’s time for an introduction. 00:04:09.000 --> 00:04:13.600 Hi, my name is Tony and this concludes Year One of Every Frame a Painting. 00:04:14.700 --> 00:04:15.910 I’d like to thank you for watching. 00:04:15.910 --> 00:04:19.110 -and wish you all a very pleasant 00:04:19.110 --> 00:04:20.870 -good evening.