The Kuleshov Effect

This is something I stumbled upon when researching theorists.

 Lev Kuleshov was a Soviet filmmaker and supposedly the first film theorist. He believed strongly that editing in order to juxtapose shots was the core element of filmmaking, an idea that resounded through to his students, most notably the famous Sergei Eisenstein, who created montage as a form of editing. 

Reading about his ideas and the work he did was very interesting, especially his experiments into something now known as "The Kuleshov Effect", which illustrates how editing in film can be used to change the viewers interpretations of events, even when the core element of the footage remains the same. He would film somebody's reaction to something off screen, and by simply switching the thing they have seen, our opinion of the person reacting changes. This is a fascinating theory, as it demonstrates how editing can be used as a manipulative tool over the audience, an idea that has always intrigued me.

Above is an interview with Alfred Hitchcock, as he demonstrates The Kuleshov Effect and how it can be effective.