Jane Dilworth Cuts to the Chase About Editors

There are two kinds of great edit. The one where the cuts are evident and integral to the overall feel and style of the ad and the ones where you can't see the editors work at all. Let’s face it, we all know what a bad edit looks like but do we always appreciate a good one? 

Take Bill Smedley's work for Visa Running Man [above] where the viewer almost forgets that they are watching an advert because the edit flows so fluently, then there’s Rich Orrick’s Honda ad [below] where the edit is very visible and built in to the overall creative of the piece. 

The skill is keeping the heart of a story in the edit, whether it’s a 90’, 60’ or 30’ cut, you’re cheating time. That’s the true skill of the editor; they help find the best possible story thread to avoid it feeling like a series of shots with a clear item to sell. For example you know in a car ad they’re going to want to include car shots but how can you keep those elements in whilst adding some magic? We hope that in applying our craft (not just the editor but everyone in the chain), we transform a sales pitch into a story of integrity and beauty.

Neil Smith was doing a job and needed something extra, so from ploughing through the rushes he found an off-camera moment that had been shot unintentionally, it gave the cut that final touch. An editor knows that any story needs that essential note - that vibe that turns it into magic. If that note is missing, it will fail to inspire and it will fail to impress.

Sometimes you can see a really good cut that doesn’t get acknowledged by awards bodies or press because the edit itself is taken for granted. I guess it’s swan syndrome! We’re the crazy legs under the water making the swan seem to smoothly glide across the lake

The way we interact, the way we share and the way in which we create have all evolved due to technology. It’s important to remember, however, that just because you’ve got the software it doesn’t mean you have the skills. Anyone can have a camera, but it doesn’t necessarily make you Henri Cartier-Bresson.

While the software now exists to make editing a faster, more streamlined process, there is no programme that can replicate the narrative created by intuitive editors with years of experience behind them. The collaboration process between director and editor remains fundamentally intact, namely that the director’s faith in the way an editor cuts or what footage they select.

Faith on the part of both the director and agency is essential in elevating a good cut into a great one. Great work is, after all, built on great relationships. The editor needs to understand the overall feel that the director and the creative team are after and then apply it to the edit.

An editor is like the drummer in the band, at the back, out of the spotlight but an integral part of the process. They’re responsible for the pace of the story, the rhythm and, more literally, making sure the music and image work perfectly to create something that bit extra. 

Technology has, however, become integral in making the editor a mobile commodity.  Sometimes it can be vital to have the editor on set, especially with complicated shoots. It allows the director to check they have the footage they may need or if certain shots are going to work together for more SFX-driven jobs. Technology has allowed the collaborative relationship to move forward in this way.

Editors don’t just help in the realisation of a creative concept either, they often help to relate the artistic vision between the production team and the agency. A good editor is able to maintain the concepts put forth by the director and have strong understanding of what the agency creative team want and to get it passed the client. You need to have a  strength of vision and an opinion in the craft, so you are both able to create something aesthetically pleasing but still provide an effective working environment for all parties.

To young editors I'd say; stay true to what you think is right, that way you gain respect for having an opinion. Learn to be nice; charm, don’t bulldoze, and don’t get despondent. Everyone has down days and dry spells. You can end up confused if you don’t have your own style and

it can make people feel they aren’t in safe hands. My hope is that the editing remains to be respected as a craft and that people becoming increasingly aware of it’s value.