Michael Ondaatje Books
Michael Ondaatje is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian author and poet best known for his Booker Prize–winning novel The English Patient. His works often blend history, memory, and imagination, and he has also written extensively on art and film.
Known for: The Conversations: Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film
Books by Michael Ondaatje
The Conversations: Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film
In this book, novelist Michael Ondaatje engages in a series of in-depth conversations with film editor and sound designer Walter Murch, exploring the art and philosophy of film editing. Through their dialogue, they discuss the creative process behind iconic films such as Apocalypse Now and The English Patient, delving into the intersections of sound, image, rhythm, and storytelling.
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Origins of Film Editing
Walter began by tracing the genealogy of editing back to the dawn of cinema. The earliest films were single, unbroken takes—moments of life preserved without intervention. The edit was born almost accidentally, when filmmakers realized that juxtaposing images could tell a story more powerfully than ...
From The Conversations: Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film
The Philosophy of Editing
For Walter, the editor is a sculptor of invisible rhythm. Each cut, he said, must align with emotional logic, not merely continuity. If a cut feels wrong, it’s often because it violates a pulse the audience doesn’t consciously track but intuitively feels. He described editing as a series of moral de...
From The Conversations: Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film
About Michael Ondaatje
Michael Ondaatje is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian author and poet best known for his Booker Prize–winning novel The English Patient. His works often blend history, memory, and imagination, and he has also written extensively on art and film.
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Michael Ondaatje is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian author and poet best known for his Booker Prize–winning novel The English Patient. His works often blend history, memory, and imagination, and he has also written extensively on art and film.
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