+ March 14, 2017
A film student recently interviewed me for an assignment and I thought my answers might be interesting to others. They also give a window into my process and philosophies of documentary and editing.
What got you into Film Editing?
My first experience with film editing in its most crude form was playing around with my parents' VHS camera when I was nine years old. I edited "in-camera"- starting and stopping recording to make little "magical" sequences where my sister would throw a ball into the air and it would disappear. This was in the early 90s, so there were no consumer non-linear editing programs available. I literally dreamed of having a non-linear editing system. In high school, I got a mac powerbook with Final Cut Pro (v1) and shot / edited short films with my friends and family. I liked shooting and directing, but felt the most freedom with my computer in my room editing. I attended USC for film production where I mostly focused on editing, writing, and lighting.
What editing programs did you start out with? Do you have a favorite program you use to edit now?
I started out with Final Cut Pro (v1), used an obscure program called "screenplay" in high school, and now my favorite program is AVID.
How would you describe your style of editing?
This is a loaded question for me because good editors, by their nature, are adaptive, almost chameleons in a way. We can change our style for the project, to whatever style serves the film in the best way. People don't always realize this and think that an editor who has edited a bunch of horror movies can only edit things that are frightening, or that someone with feature documentary credits would have no idea how to edit a narrative film. As a result , editors can easily become pigeonholed into a genre or style.
That being said, I would describe my "style" of editing as charged, bold, and emotion-first, explanation-later. I like to "lean-into" the edit, making strong editorial choices driven by the scene's emotional content and/or the ideas the film is exploring. In my documentary work, I especially enjoy re-contextualizing moments of pop culture to reveal a deeper truth within the story of the film. For example, in a scene I edited for "Cobain: Montage of Heck" the raw footage for the "Smells Like Teen Spirit" music video is recut to a children's choir version of the song while we see the making of the video, ending with Kurt being consumed into a mosh pit of teenagers. I wanted to play against the audience's expectation of the video footage being paired with the bombastic rock of the actual song to make the viewer contemplate the dark side of this moment for Kurt; how fascinating and prescient that at this pivotal turning point in his career, even in the video that he shot before the band blew up, he is seen quite literally being crushed by his fans, by his future fame. The first time screening the dailies from the video, the director and I noted the incredible prescience of this, but it wasn't until I paired the footage with the children's choir cover of the song did I fully realize the direction of that scene.
How frequently do you write?
Every day when I'm editing documentaries. Editing non-fiction material is writing. It's no different, in basic concept, than writing a research paper, only instead of print sources, I'm using the footage I have. Whether its an espionage-thriller verite documentary about doping in sports or a 95% archival documentary about Pearl Jam, my process is basically the same; a deep assessment of the material to find the truth within it, then a structuring of that material into a form that an audience can recognize as a story. And as a whole, this story structure should function to reveal that deeper truth. To answer the question more bluntly, I don't write (using words) very often beyond emails and an occasional note to myself about some idea I have.
Favorite film?
Impossible question! I'll list a few in no particular order. . . "The Act of Killing," "Welfare," "Mulholland Drive," "The Dekalogue," "The Apartment," "Some Like it Hot," "Almost Famous," "The Cook The Thief His Wife and Her Lover," "2001 A Space Odyssey," "The Shining," "Stroszek," "Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans," "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," "Blue Velvet," "Contempt," "F is For Fake," "The Third Man," "Wings of Desire," "The Last Detail," "Harold and Maude," "Gates of Heaven," "Badlands."
Words of Wisdom to Editors?
Films are like children. Treat them with love and they will blossom, love you back, and spread more love to others. I've found my key to good editing is to strive for a deep understanding of my subjects by fostering a sensitive objectivity. Another important skill is to practice watching a cut as though you know nothing. When screening cuts, don't watch your film. You've seen it way too many times by that point anyways, so watch the audience. Study their reactions. Practice the sensitivity necessary to feel the vibe in the room. Don't think about yourself, your ego, or making your editing look good. Always always ALWAYS serve the FILM. That is your job.
_____________________________________
+ February 23, 2017
I collaborated with RocketJump Film School on a video essay about Embracing Accidents in filmmaking. Check it out below!
A film student recently interviewed me for an assignment and I thought my answers might be interesting to others. They also give a window into my process and philosophies of documentary and editing.
What got you into Film Editing?
My first experience with film editing in its most crude form was playing around with my parents' VHS camera when I was nine years old. I edited "in-camera"- starting and stopping recording to make little "magical" sequences where my sister would throw a ball into the air and it would disappear. This was in the early 90s, so there were no consumer non-linear editing programs available. I literally dreamed of having a non-linear editing system. In high school, I got a mac powerbook with Final Cut Pro (v1) and shot / edited short films with my friends and family. I liked shooting and directing, but felt the most freedom with my computer in my room editing. I attended USC for film production where I mostly focused on editing, writing, and lighting.
What editing programs did you start out with? Do you have a favorite program you use to edit now?
I started out with Final Cut Pro (v1), used an obscure program called "screenplay" in high school, and now my favorite program is AVID.
How would you describe your style of editing?
This is a loaded question for me because good editors, by their nature, are adaptive, almost chameleons in a way. We can change our style for the project, to whatever style serves the film in the best way. People don't always realize this and think that an editor who has edited a bunch of horror movies can only edit things that are frightening, or that someone with feature documentary credits would have no idea how to edit a narrative film. As a result , editors can easily become pigeonholed into a genre or style.
That being said, I would describe my "style" of editing as charged, bold, and emotion-first, explanation-later. I like to "lean-into" the edit, making strong editorial choices driven by the scene's emotional content and/or the ideas the film is exploring. In my documentary work, I especially enjoy re-contextualizing moments of pop culture to reveal a deeper truth within the story of the film. For example, in a scene I edited for "Cobain: Montage of Heck" the raw footage for the "Smells Like Teen Spirit" music video is recut to a children's choir version of the song while we see the making of the video, ending with Kurt being consumed into a mosh pit of teenagers. I wanted to play against the audience's expectation of the video footage being paired with the bombastic rock of the actual song to make the viewer contemplate the dark side of this moment for Kurt; how fascinating and prescient that at this pivotal turning point in his career, even in the video that he shot before the band blew up, he is seen quite literally being crushed by his fans, by his future fame. The first time screening the dailies from the video, the director and I noted the incredible prescience of this, but it wasn't until I paired the footage with the children's choir cover of the song did I fully realize the direction of that scene.
How frequently do you write?
Every day when I'm editing documentaries. Editing non-fiction material is writing. It's no different, in basic concept, than writing a research paper, only instead of print sources, I'm using the footage I have. Whether its an espionage-thriller verite documentary about doping in sports or a 95% archival documentary about Pearl Jam, my process is basically the same; a deep assessment of the material to find the truth within it, then a structuring of that material into a form that an audience can recognize as a story. And as a whole, this story structure should function to reveal that deeper truth. To answer the question more bluntly, I don't write (using words) very often beyond emails and an occasional note to myself about some idea I have.
Favorite film?
Impossible question! I'll list a few in no particular order. . . "The Act of Killing," "Welfare," "Mulholland Drive," "The Dekalogue," "The Apartment," "Some Like it Hot," "Almost Famous," "The Cook The Thief His Wife and Her Lover," "2001 A Space Odyssey," "The Shining," "Stroszek," "Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans," "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," "Blue Velvet," "Contempt," "F is For Fake," "The Third Man," "Wings of Desire," "The Last Detail," "Harold and Maude," "Gates of Heaven," "Badlands."
Words of Wisdom to Editors?
Films are like children. Treat them with love and they will blossom, love you back, and spread more love to others. I've found my key to good editing is to strive for a deep understanding of my subjects by fostering a sensitive objectivity. Another important skill is to practice watching a cut as though you know nothing. When screening cuts, don't watch your film. You've seen it way too many times by that point anyways, so watch the audience. Study their reactions. Practice the sensitivity necessary to feel the vibe in the room. Don't think about yourself, your ego, or making your editing look good. Always always ALWAYS serve the FILM. That is your job.
_____________________________________
+ February 23, 2017
I collaborated with RocketJump Film School on a video essay about Embracing Accidents in filmmaking. Check it out below!