What does director's cut mean? How does the director's cut of a film differ from the regular version?

The production of documentary or feature films is a long, technologically complex and costly process that not only realizes the creative ideas of the director and screenwriters, but also prepares the footage for further commercial use. The film product that is released on wide screens does not always correspond even to the original idea of ​​its creation.

What versions of the film are there?

During filming and further development, any movie changes many times and adapts to needs target audience. The final version of the film is the most adapted for a wide audience and often does not coincide with the product that the authors planned at the beginning of work on the film.

Some paintings exist in several versions: theatrical version, director's cut, and sometimes extended (complete). Each of them realizes its own goals, not always exclusively commercial ones. At film festivals, for example, they show unadapted versions of sensational films that have not been shown to the average viewer.

Theatrical version. What is it for?

The theatrical version of a film is the product that in most cases is released to cinemas. It has the ability to attract mass audiences and ensure maximum revenue from the show. The commercial version of the film is adapted for viewing by a wide audience: it takes into account the requirements of censorship and has the artistic value of mass art.

The main goal of the theatrical version is to gather the largest possible audience and keep their attention throughout the entire film. Comfortable session duration and a dynamic, non-trivial plot ensure maximum viewer involvement in the viewing process.

In the theatrical version of the film, due to its mass appeal, scenes of an overtly erotic nature, shocking images and phrases that directly or indirectly call for violence or national hatred are excluded.

Director's cut. Features and tasks

The director's cut of the film is a true creation of the filmmakers, reflecting the original idea of ​​the authors. Such a product is rarely commercial; it reveals the meaning and emotional component of the plot. As a rule, the author's version of a film is longer than its theatrical version. It shows much more clearly the director's style, his worldview and vision of the problem that underlies the plot.

Films based on literary works, are more consistent with the original in the director's reading. They are distinguished by a large number of meaningful dialogues, a more detailed plot and an abundance of close-ups.

Director's versions of films are much more often nominated for prestigious film awards than their commercial counterparts, but the average viewer rarely gets to see exactly the picture that has gained recognition from world experts.

Theatrical and director's versions - differences

1. The director's cut is the true intention of the filmmakers; it reflects the author's vision of the film. The theatrical version guarantees a wide release; it is adapted for wide release, without always preserving the original idea.
2. The director's cut is rarely released, being non-commercial. Theatrical - designed to ensure the return on investment for the film.
3. The director's cut, as a rule, is extended, and may contain plot twists that do not appear in the box office. The theatrical version is more dynamic, it is distinguished by simplified content and short, succinct dialogues.
4. The artistic value of the director's cut is determined by the assessments of professionals at competitions and film festivals. An indicator of the level of value of the theatrical version is the number of visitors to the premiere screenings and the final box office receipts.

Sometimes the finished product, released in theaters, turns out to be so popular that the creators additionally release the director's cut of the film. Numerous fans who have the opportunity to view the author’s version will be in for surprises and discoveries that can change the viewer’s understanding of the idea of ​​the film as a whole.

Nowadays, the term “director’s cut” significantly distorts the original meaning, because at first it meant video versions of those films that were mutilated by censorship, producers, and distributors, contrary to the great author’s intention. Many years later, if the director's authority and reputation, as well as the cult status of the film, grew, it was already possible to afford to redo the editing according to the original sketches.

Sometimes it worked out better, sometimes unexpectedly and controversially. So, it’s unlikely that it’s definitely worse, although the fans “ Star Wars“People are often indignant about the constant changes made to the original trilogy (1977-1983), and we can agree with the fans.

Aliens, 1986

Director: James Cameron

All four parts of “Aliens” received specialized editions with a significantly extended runtime. But in most cases, the added scenes were of a cosmetic nature, and only the second “Aliens” actually survived the rebirth. Out of nowhere, a full-fledged piece of the plot appeared in them, which was completely absent in the rental and video cassette versions: the life of a colony on the planet LV-426 is shown and how a family of colonists discovers the notorious predatory eggs.

Everything was filmed by Cameron at one time, but the movie was already too long, so the director didn’t even finish the special effects for these scenes. He did this later, when preparing the first edition on laser discs. And then there were automatic turrets, Ripley’s gatherings in a virtual garden, and more, and more...

Guardians, 2009

Director: Zack Snyder

The original version of the most epic comic book film of all time lasted 162 minutes, then there was a director’s version for 186 minutes and an “ultimate” version for a generous 215! In fact, there’s really no need to guess what exactly they put on this already incredibly rich film: of course, what was in the original graphic novel, but did not fit into the movie.

The main thing: animated inserts with the history of the Black Schooner. If you watch a movie for the first time, they can completely confuse the viewer, but for the second, third and one hundred and forty-fourth review, you should definitely choose these 215-minute “Watchmen”.

Modern Apocalypse, 1979

Director: Francis Ford Coppola

Turn on the extended version of the great psychedelic war trip and you'll immediately stumble upon a minefield of surprises. First of all, there is a massive scene on the estate of French planters, another meeting with the Playboy girls (they are ready to do anything for a couple of barrels of fuel) and the funniest moment of the film - the theft of a surfboard from a crazy lieutenant colonel.

Alexander, 2004

Director: Oliver Stone

An expensive biopic about Alexander the Great failed at the box office and caused such dissatisfaction among critics and the public that the unprecedented happened: cinema patriarch Oliver Stone apologized to honest people and admitted that he allowed himself too much during editing, which ruined the picture. After these words, everyone became wary, because logically there should have been a new director’s version of the film.

And so it happened: three options followed. In the first “director’s cut,” Stone cut out 17 minutes, but added another 9. The film became more complete and cheerful, and that is why those who saw it for the first time on the TV screen often wonder why all the viewers were so indignant back in 2004. m.

Blade Runner, 1982

Director: Ridley Scott

In total, no less than five versions of this cyberpunk dystopia were mounted! The working version (it failed in test screenings), the extended working version, the American release, the international release (more tough than the American version), the television version (on the contrary, with the violence cut off), the director's version and, finally, the final version in 2007. In them, of course, the devil himself will break his leg, but Ridley Scott assures that the final one fully corresponds to his author’s vision. All the lost “international” violence was returned there, all the dreams with the unicorn, as well as suspicious hints about the nature of detective Deckard.

Seal of Evil, 1958

Director: Orson Welles

The canonical and, as is commonly believed in the hardcore community, the latest film noir was barbarously re-edited, partially reshot and released without the director’s approval. Discouraged but unbroken, Welles filled a 58-page notebook with notes on what the thriller should actually be. But only 15 years after his death, in 1998, editing editor Walter Murch restored as much as possible the original version, meticulously following the master's notes.

Leon, 1994

Director: Luc Besson

In the director's cut, Besson allowed himself to let loose a little and made the relationship between Leon and Matilda more ambiguous sexually, not forgetting to add more striking shots of Natalie Portman improving her killer skills.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, 2002

Director: Peter Jackson

The extended version of the first series of Frodo's adventures did not introduce any grandiose changes, although it filled in plot gaps (in particular, the distribution of elf gifts). The third part, already long, became endless in the director's cut.

As a result, the best balance was achieved in the second episode of The Lord of the Rings, where total amount 15 scenes added and 17 expanded. The most memorable bonuses relate to the adventures of Merry and Pippin in Fangorn, as well as smoking trophy tobacco. The parting of the hobbits with Faramir was also not in the theatrical release.

I am legend, 2007

Director: Francis Lawrence

The ending of this post-apocalyptic story in the theatrical version was not that bad, but it smacked too much of Hollywood pathos. In the director's cut, the audience was in for a surprise: all original essence The film was turned upside down, the ending turned out to be radically different, and also ideologically became closer to the original book. Which is always commendable.

Reckoning, 1999

Director: Brian Helgeland

It is known that already at the final stage of work on the film, the studio angrily fired director Helgeland for his passion for particularly dark cinema. A strikebreaker was hired, who reshot almost a third of the film, if not more, completely redrew the plot and even pulled new characters out of his sleeve. As a result, the director's cut of the neo-noir starring Mel Gibson leading role we saw it only in 2006. There, no one kidnaps the son of the head of a crime syndicate, there is no voice-over, the color palette has been changed, a completely different soundtrack, and the ending is unexpectedly more peaceful. Which is better is a purely individual question. The difference in the films is so significant that the movie site imdb treats them as two independent works, giving them separate pages.

Dedicated to all film lovers! Let's understand the basic concepts of the world of cinema. What does the theatrical cut of a film, director's cut and extended cut mean? The phrases are incomprehensible at first glance, but after reading the article you will learn all the differences that exist between them. Let's analyze and find out!

What does a theatrical version of a film mean?

Any film has its own theatrical version - that is, the one that could be seen in the cinema with the same timing and dubbing.

This type of cinema attracts and captivates mass audiences, which ensures large sums of money from distribution. This means that censorship is observed in the film, controversial and highly philosophical scenes that may not be understood by the mass audience and those that can traumatize the psyche are excluded.

The main task of the theatrical version of the film is to interest the viewer and hold his attention until the end of the film.

So what does the theatrical version of the film mean? To summarize, we can say that the theatrical version is a version for everyone, which contains something that can interest viewers to buy a ticket, come to the cinema, relax and enjoy watching a picture with an exciting plot.

What do you mean by extended cut of a film?

What do theatrical and extended versions of a film mean? What are their differences?

In the extended version of the film, unlike the theatrical version, there are additional scenes. Whether to release it or not depends on the director himself and on how successful the theatrical version was and how much the audience wants to see an additional picture. An extended version may be released for a film that has attracted a huge number of fans interested in additional footage. In addition, the extended version may exist due to age restrictions, it may contain obscene language and sex scenes, unlike the theatrical version.

Director's cut VS producer's cut

What is the theatrical cut of a film and the director's cut? What are their differences? Since the filming process, in addition to the director, is also managed by the producer, whose money is used to carry out the filming process, there may be two different visions of the film. Most often, the one who pays for the action wins the dispute, so in addition to the theatrical version, there is also an independent director’s version of the film.

The director's cut may be completely different from all other versions. The director's cut is the vision of the film by the director himself, who can replace the actors, swap the action within the picture, motivate the characters with other goals, change the visual content, sometimes even make a completely different ending, in addition, the director can show the viewer the footage cut by the producer or shoot new ones that correspond to his personal idea.

But there are films in which the theatrical and director's versions coincide, for example, in the film "Blade Runner".

Director's cuts of films often cannot be seen in cinemas, they can only be purchased. For example, you can buy a disc with the director's cut of the Marvel film "Avengers: Infinity War" with additional 6-minute information about the main villain - Thanos.

The answer to the question of what a theatrical version of a film means, director's cut and extended version, has been found. Now you have become one step closer to an elite viewer who knows the terms and concepts from big world movie!

Director's cuts are rarely released to the public, but are often available for sale.

Reasons for the emergence of director's cuts

There are a number of reasons why director's cuts appear at all. Typically, showing the standard version is aimed at maximizing profits at lower costs. The maximum profit, in turn, depends on the target audience (more precisely, on the number of possible viewers) and on the viewer’s interest in watching the continuation storyline in subsequent films (the so-called “Sequels”). In other words, to create the highest possible theoretical profit:

• there should be some ambiguity in the plot that people will want to clarify when planning a trip to the next part of the film;
• There should be no age/cultural restrictions for viewing the film (or such restrictions should be kept to a minimum).

In addition, in a number of cases pressure is exerted on the film from the publisher, as well as from cinema chains. Many people know that, for example, radio is reluctant to accept compositions that last less than 3 or more than 4 minutes. Compositions from such a list are usually called “non-format” and this is rarely related to the content itself - simply a longer or shorter composition can introduce a pause on the air, or delay a subsequent transmission, which is not economically beneficial for the radio station itself. The situation is exactly the same in the cinema industry: it is necessary to show a film, ventilate/clean the hall, change the projector settings - and it is desirable that in total this time should be about 2 hours, then the cinema will be able to show in one hall (if we take 14- hourly working day of the cinema) 7 sessions during the day. If the film lasts, for example, 1:59:00, then either the audience will sit in a clean theater only if they came for the morning show, or the cinema will have to change the schedule of sessions, which will result in a decrease in profits for it. Of course, in some cases, the film's box office revenue completely covers such costs, but not all films can boast of a famous director or competent PR.

• The film "Underworld" in the director's cut almost completely reveals the legend of werewolves and vampires in just a few extra minutes, but in the standard version there is an artificial understatement, because of which people may well want to go to the third part of the sequel "Underworld: Uprising" Lycans."
• the film "Three X's" in the director's cut contains a huge amount of profanity, which was not even translated through subtitles ( editor's note - but the Russian-speaking public would not need such translations). Exception similar scenes and dialogues, the restrictive rating was relaxed immediately to “PG-13” (, which allowed even children to attend the film (in the presence of parents/guardians).
• The film adaptation trilogy of The Lord of the Rings lasted for original version a full 148 minutes longer than the three parts shown in cinemas, that is, these film adaptations did not fit into the “format” even in double sessions and were reduced by 37, 52 and 59 minutes, respectively. However, since the film is an adaptation of the books, it is quite logical that although these deleted moments were not of paramount importance in the plot, their absence does not allow the viewer to experience the full effect of presence.

Alternate ending

Director's cuts also include plot changes called alternative endings. These are changes that completely change the outcome of the plot. Often, the publisher/producer obliges the director to film several endings for a film at the same time, and the studio then makes a choice which ending is more suitable for screening and will be better perceived by the audience. Sometimes this choice is completely different from the writers and director’s own opinions. Films that do not plan to have sequels in the future often go on sale, and in the section additional materials you can find these very alternative (not accepted) endings. Although from year to year this trend is losing its popularity. The publisher and distributor need a very specific opinion from the viewer, thus, after watching an alternative ending that really reveals and completes the plot, the viewer may simply not want to go for the sequel, which will negatively affect the box office success of the sequel, and therefore is undesirable for the publisher/producer.

Director's cuts of films

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See what "Director's Cut" is in other dictionaries:

This term has other meanings, see Browning's version. Browning's version The Browning Version Genre ... Wikipedia

Director's cut special edition of the film. Director's cuts contain moments and scenes that were originally planned according to the script, but were cut out by distributors for a convenient time frame for showing the film. Also directors at... ... Wikipedia

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Books

• Samurai Jack. Classic stories, Genndy Tartakovsky, Robbie Bush, Sholly Fish. Jack is back! Meet classic comics based on the super popular animated series. You will find the director's cut of Jack's first appearance, as well as all the stories about the adventures of the samurai from...

Film production is a multifaceted process that covers all stages of film creation from the development of its concept and approval of the project to the organization of rental and distribution of licensed copies on optical discs for home video. In this process the most important aspects are the implementation of the director’s creative plan, the acting, the use of modern technical means for processing the filmed material and the possibility of making a profit from showing the film to a wide audience. Showing a film in a director's cut or theatrical cut can serve a variety of purposes for the production company and its production team.

Definition

Theatrical version of the film is a film product intended for distribution in cinemas and on television. It must meet certain marketing requirements arising from the commercial component of the production of a particular film, and at the same time have artistic value that will attract the viewer and make this film a box office success.

Director's cut fully realizes the creative vision of the filmmakers. On film set The director has the exclusive right to choose the means and methods of expressing the idea of ​​the film, enhancing the dynamics of the plot and attracting specific effects that influence the audience's perception. This choice may not always serve the commercial goals of the project, but it is what determines the quality of the production and the level of directorial skill.

Comparison

The main difference between the theatrical version and the director's version is that it is maximally adapted to the interests of the average viewer. When creating a theatrical version, many factors are taken into account that contribute to its popularization: the optimal viewing time, during which interest in the film does not wane, entertainment, the severity of intrigue, the fascination of the plot, the brightness of the acting.

The theatrical version is created for mass viewing, therefore, as a rule, scenes of violence and explicit eroticism, as well as fragments that provoke conflicts based on national hatred or religious beliefs, are excluded from it.

First screen cinemas have the initial right to show a released film. After a week's viewing, the theatrical version is released to other cinemas, which are accessible to a wider range of viewers. Over the course of two to three weeks, the film undergoes a kind of testing, including monitoring studies, on the basis of which the production team can predict its payback and commercial success. A month after the first show is held detailed analysis initial release and, if necessary, additional adjustments are made to the theatrical version. Taking them into account, the film company grants the right to broadcast the film to TV channels. For television distribution and the production of optical discs used in home video, modern cinema uses the Digital Intermediate digital film production method, which allows you to obtain an unlimited number of copies from hard drives.

The director's cut, unlike the theatrical version, is not released for distribution, but can contribute to the active promotion of the film on the film market. It is the director's versions of films that are most often presented at film festivals and nominated for prestigious film awards.

The director's cut may differ from the theatrical version in some plot twists, contain additional fragments, have a different ending, which generally changes not the content of the film, but its idea. The director’s right to his own vision of the film’s production is not disputed, but what gets into distribution is exactly what attracts the mass audience and meets their needs.

This does not mean that a film made by a talented director is necessarily edited and reshaped to suit the company's commercial goals. The director's cut is often born as an alternative to a film project, in which the author's style is more clearly visible and a certain ideological, social, psychological or political aspect is more expressed.

You can get acquainted with the director’s cut if you purchase a licensed optical disc with a copy of the film you like, the name of which is marked Director’s cut.

Conclusions website

1. The director's version of the film fully corresponds to the director's intentions and reflects his personal vision of the implementation of the idea of ​​the film.
2. The director's cut is not always commercially viable, so it is extremely rarely released.
3. The director's cut of the film may have additional fragments, plot twists and an ending that differs from the theatrical version.
4. A theatrical version of the film is being created for theatrical release.
5. The theatrical versions do not include some scenes and fragments that may cause age restrictions for viewing the film.
6. The theatrical version is intended for wide range spectators and must correspond to a high artistic level.
7. The artistic value of the director's version of a film is determined by the assessments of commissions and juries of film competitions and festivals.