Let’s look at the best ways to incorporate J-cuts and L-cuts into your next production. To do this, we’ll look at some of the very best uses of these\u00a0techniques in film history.<\/p>\n
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A History of J & L-Cuts<\/h3>\n
Even before the days of cinema, artists developed stories through a combination of images. This early form of storytelling and editing can be seen on the walls of the pyramids or in the\u00a0triptych paintings<\/a>\u00a0of the Middle Ages. With the 20th century development of the film camera and the subsequent addition of sound to filmmaking, the editing techniques of the J-cut and L-cut appeared<\/strong>.<\/p>\n The image above is from 1927’s The Jazz Singer<\/em>. Heralded as the first “talkie,” the film introduced audiences to fully synced sound and imagery<\/strong>. Another thing it introduced to audiences: the first use of the L-cut<\/strong>. While we see and hear actor Al Jolson<\/a> talking to his bandmates, the camera cuts to audience members taking their seats.\u00a0In the video below (via WarnerBrosOnline<\/a>),\u00a0<\/em>we can see one of the very first L-cuts play out in real time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n![\"Video](\"https:\/\/pbblogassets.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Jazz-Singer-L-Cut.jpg\" "\\"Video")
Image: Scene from The Jazz Singer<\/a> via Warner Bros.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n