How We Edit Quickly

One of the things we do best is edit great documentaries quickly—making the cost of finishing a film within reach for many producers.

What’s our secret sauce?

First, we get you to sift the chaff. By helping you see the narrative arc and major themes, we guide you or your assistants to cull the best 30 hours from your footage. This saves our editor time.

Second, we drive fast because we know the terrain. With our Accelerated Post schedule, we’ll fast-track the industry’s conventional journey through Assembly Cut, Rough Cut(s), Fine Cut and Locked Picture. Normally these cuts can take months to edit, but we know how to navigate the inevitable bumps in the road.

To shift metaphors, editing an Assembly Cut is like collecting the prettiest pebbles on the beach. From your 30 hours, we’ll collect the best 2 hours of footage.

Editing the Rough Cut then involves arranging the pebbles into a preliminary design, or structure. We know not to over-cut, thus saving time. There’s no sense in making a scene look pretty until Fine Cut stage, when we’ve all decided to keep the scene in the film.

Third, we keep lists. Before we enter each cut, we’ll work with you to prioritize the 5-15 specific, editorial tasks needed to complete that cut.

For example, during Rough Cut, our top three priorities might include outlining the protagonist’s arc, constructing the inciting incident, and roughing out exposition with text on screen. Using this protocol, we streamline our workflow without excess experimentation.

Finally, we’re good. Our editors are deeply experienced, further trained in storytelling by me, and can coax out your vision with compassion and kindness.

Email me if you are interested in learning more.