J-cuts and L-cuts
Cutting isn't just switching from one shot to another: it's deciding what the viewer sees and hears at every moment. Knowing the types of cuts, and above all splitting picture and sound, is what makes an edit flow.
The straight cut
Picture and sound change at the same time. It's the most common cut and almost always invisible when it's well motivated. The problem shows up in dialogue: if we cut to each person's face every time they start talking, the edit becomes predictable, like watching a tennis match.
The J-cut
The sound of the next shot starts before its picture. We hear B while we're still seeing A. On the timeline, B's audio track starts early, underneath A's video, and the shape looks like a J.
What it's for:
- Anticipation: we hear the sea before we see the beach, the traffic before we see the city.
- In dialogue: B's reply starts while we watch A listening, just as in real life, where we turn our heads after we hear someone.
- To ease into a new scene smoothly.
The L-cut
The other way around: the picture changes, but the sound of the previous shot carries on. We see B while A finishes speaking. A's audio extends underneath B's video and the shape looks like an L.
What it's for:
- Reaction shots: what matters is how B takes what A is saying.
- Leaving a scene by letting its sound carry over into the next one.
- Interviews: the interviewee's voice continues over the B-roll that illustrates what they're describing.
Try it in the simulator above: split the picture and sound cut points, press play and notice what you see and what you hear at each moment.
How to make them in your editor
- Place a straight cut between the two shots.
- Temporarily unlink picture and sound (in DaVinci Resolve, the link button or Ctrl/Cmd+Alt+L; in other editors, holding Alt while trimming is usually enough).
- With the trim tool, drag only the audio cut point: to the left for a J, to the right for an L.
- Add a very short audio crossfade at the transition if the jump is noticeable.
In dialogue, moving the sound earlier or later by 8 to 20 frames (roughly half a second) already changes the feel. Beyond two seconds the effect becomes obvious, which may also be exactly what you're after.
Jump cut
A cut between two almost identical shots (same framing, same subject) where a chunk of time has been removed. The image “jumps”. For decades it was considered a mistake; the French New Wave turned it into a style and YouTube into the norm: it's the typical cut used by people talking to camera to remove pauses and stumbles.
Don't
Jump cuts every two seconds for ten minutes: it's exhausting.
Do
Jump cuts to add pace, alternated with B-roll, changes in shot size (a 115–130% digital zoom) or detail shots.
Match cut
A cut between two different shots that share a shape, a movement, a color or a sound. A bone spinning in the air becomes a spaceship; a rolling ball becomes the moon; an opening eye becomes a camera lens. It creates a link in meaning between two ideas.
- Graphic: the same shape or position in the frame.
- Movement: the action continues in another place or time.
- Sound: a sound links two scenes (a scream that turns into a train whistle).
Cutaway
A shot that steps away from the main action to show something related: the interviewee's hands, the place they're talking about, an old photo. It's used to illustrate, to give the viewer a breather and, very often, to cover a cut in the audio of an interview. That's why you should always shoot B-roll on every shoot.
Cutting on action
Cutting right in the middle of a movement: someone opens a door in a wide shot and the gesture continues in the close-up. The eye follows the movement and doesn't notice the change. It's one of the most effective tricks for making an edit flow invisibly.
Cut once the movement is already underway, about a third of the way through the gesture, not at the instant it starts or when it's finished. And make sure the action doesn't repeat or skip frames between one shot and the next.
Other cuts worth knowing
| Cut | What it is |
|---|---|
| Smash cut | An abrupt change from an intense scene to its opposite (or vice versa): from a scream to silence, from calm to chaos |
| Cross-cutting (parallel editing) | Alternating between two actions happening at the same time in different places |
| Invisible cut | A cut hidden in a pass through black, a wall or an object crossing the frame, to fake a long take |
| Axial cut (cut-in) | A change in shot size keeping the same angle: from a medium shot to a close-up |
Your turn: the same conversation, three edits
Shoot (or download royalty-free footage of) a short two-camera dialogue and edit it three times.
- With straight cuts only.
- With two J-cuts and two L-cuts.
- Adding a reaction shot with an L-cut. Compare the three versions with someone who hasn't seen them.
Frequently asked questions
What is a J-cut?
It's a cut where the sound of the next shot starts before its picture. On the timeline, the audio starts early, underneath the previous video, and draws a J.
What is an L-cut?
It's a cut where the picture changes but the sound of the previous shot carries on. The audio extends underneath the next video and draws an L.
What's the difference between a jump cut and a match cut?
A jump cut joins two almost identical shots by removing time, so the image jumps; a match cut joins two different shots that share a shape, movement or sound to link two ideas.