Cinematography and Continuity Editing in the Short Film Batasan: A Production-Based Analysis

Abstract

Maintaining visual and narrative continuity is an important challenge in short-film production, where cinematographic choices and editing decisions must communicate story information within a limited duration. This study examines the application of cinematographic techniques and continuity editing in the short film Batasan and evaluates audience responses to the completed film. A descriptive, production-oriented case study was conducted using the Multimedia Development Life Cycle (MDLC), comprising six stages: concept, design, material collection, assembly, testing, and distribution. The analysis documented six cinematographic shot types and six continuity-editing techniques in selected scenes. Audience evaluation involved 25 respondents who completed an eight-item questionnaire addressing narrative clarity, cinematographic quality, editing continuity, visual variety, and communication of the film’s moral message. The overall questionnaire score was 91%, with item-level scores ranging from 88% to 94%. The reported Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.771, indicating acceptable internal consistency under the criterion adopted in the original study. These findings provide a production-based account of how cinematographic framing and continuity-editing conventions were applied in a short film, supported by descriptive audience feedback. The study offers practical reference material for short-film production and multimedia education. However, the single-film design, limited respondent sample, and absence of experimental comparisons restrict the generalizability of the findings and do not establish a causal relationship between specific editing techniques and audience responses.