Week 5’s reading consisted of 3 exerts from Tim Bernard’s book Decoupage. Bernard analyses Luis Bunuel’s article Decoupage, or Cinematic Segmentation; rarely agreeing with him and often critiquing him. Bernard provides a basic yet sound definition of decoupage- “…the decoupage is the shooting script or continuity, the final written (and visualised) text in the scriptwriting process.” I find this incredibly refreshing as I longed for a definitive answer of what exactly decoupage was in the Bunuel reading.

Furthermore, Bernard describes the confusion that centres around the term ‘decoupage’ and how it has been lost in translation. The was in part due to the adoption of the term ‘decoupage technique.’ Whilst this was a variation on the meaning of the original term, ‘decoupage technique’ was often shortened by French commentators to just ‘decoupage’. Additionally, the American version of decoupage was yet another variation on a theme. America’s version recognises the treatment of the shots as they appear in the final cut, not just as they appear on paper.

Bernard is particularly scathing of Bunuel’s view on editing- that it is “mere manual labour.” I find it immensely satisfying that my view is shared. The intricate process of editing cannot be so easily discredited. However he doesn’t consider editing as a part of decoupage, which is where our opinions differ. I feel as though editing must share a role in decoupage, even if it is a small one. To me, the creative expression of a director’s decoupage must be reflected in the editing. This can only be achieved if an editor has an understanding of the creative direction that has been chosen.

After reading the exerts from Bernard’s book and Bunuel’s article, I have given much thought to decoupage. I have attempted in class exercises to visualise shots and give them some order and meaning. However this is no simple task and I often found that my thoughts were disorganised, even when written down. I must pursue decoupage as it is a welcome challenge that I feel will benefit me in the future. One particular quote that encourages me in this endeavour, is from the Bernard reading- “…cinema’s means of reproduction is the moving image, but its means of expression is the sequence of shots.”