An axial cut is a type of jump cut, where the camera suddenly moves closer to or further away from its subject, along an invisible line drawn straight between the camera and the subject. While a plain jump cut typically involves a temporal discontinuity, an axial cut is a way of maintaining the illusion of continuity.
Generally, an Axial Cut is often called ‘jump cut’, where the viewer feels a jump in the visual. Although there is a difference, Axial cut is a more specifically designed shot, in this, the camera doesn’t cross the Axis, instead, the camera moves forward or backwards in regard with the subject on an imaginary straight line or axis. Jump cut is a wider term and a jump can easily be felt because of several reasons:
1. Crossing the Axis of 180-degree.
2. Not applying the 30-degree rule.
3. Showing time span.
4. Some other glitch like continuity, etc.
Axial cut is a predefined relation between camera and subject on the same line of action by managing continuity. Most of the people also get confused between Cut on action and Axial cut but there’s absolutely no need to be confused as – in Cut on Action- the cut is applied from a different angle, but in Axial cut, the cut is applied on a single line between camera and subject.
An axial cut can be made with the use of a zoom lens, or by manually moving the camera with the help of a crane or camera dolly. The interceding footage (as the camera moves or zooms) is then removed while editing the film. Since footage is discarded, this technique works better for static shots. If action is involved, multiple takes will be required to get the necessary footage.
On the other hand, a multiple-camera setup can also be used, with the cameras showing the subject positioned at different location resulting in different sizes. The footage from both cameras is then edited together to create the effect. As the cameras cannot occupy the same space, there will always be a slight deviation from the axis. Moving the cameras further away from the subject and using telephoto lenses can reduce the deviation.
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