Big Sky Up For Oscar Glory

Big Sky Up For Oscar Glory

Chris Franklin is no stranger to awards ceremonies. One of the most decorated editors in the history of AICE, the Big Sky Edit editor and owner is perhaps best known for his comedic and well-received commercial work with Hungry Man director Bryan Buckley, including the stupendous 'Any Device on Conan' for TBS and 'The Odd Couple'-inspired New Era work with Alec Baldwin and John Krasinski.


However, the latest accolade he's in the running for is perhaps the most prestigious yet. Again teaming up with Buckley, Chris applied his editing skills to the short film 'Asad', one of only five films shortlisted for this year's Academy Award for Best Short Film (Live Action). The story of a boy from a poor Somali village who must decide between piracy and life as a fisherman, the film took its influence from the documentary short 'No Autographs' shot by Buckley for the UN and edited by Big Sky. We spoke to Chris about the difference in tone between his everyday work and the short, the process in editing a foreign tongue and his preparation for the big night!

How did you get involved with the editing of 'Asad'?

I've been working with Bryan Buckley for the past eight years or so, and he mentioned that he was doing this short. The original documentary this came out of, "No Autographs", which he did for the UN, was edited here at Big Sky by Miky Wolf and Valerie Lasser. Everything worked great on that, and then the short came along and Bryan said, 'Would you be willing to cut it,' and I said of course I'd do it. I mean, 'no' wasn't even a consideration. And when it's a short film project like this, it's about dedication and passion. It's a labor of love.

What's the film about?

It's kind of a fable about a 12-year old boy in Somalia and what he has to face in growing up and the choices that he's got to make. Bryan wrote the script and poured his heart into it. When I read it I thought that it was very different and special, and the footage bore that out.

You've worked with Bryan Buckley on a number of commercials. Is it useful to form a strong relationship with a director? Do you find there is more trust if you've worked together before?

It is absolutely good to have a strong relationship with the director, and mutual trust is key. When the director trusts you enough to just take the footage, and maybe you'll have a brief conversation about it, that relationship helps you develop a kind of shorthand. So when I'm looking at the film, I can understand what's going on and what Bryan's going for, because I know him.

'Asad' came from a short documentary that Bryan worked on. When was it mooted that a story could be drawn from it to create a narrative film?

In talking to Bryan, I think it came out of the fact that he saw all these people while working on the UN documentary that were displaced, and he brought a story out of it. It definitely affected him deeply, and while I can't speak for him on where the story came from, I know it came from a very personal place.

The short is quite different in tone to most of the commercial work you've done with Bryan. Is it tough to switch style or is it the editor's job to match the mood of the footage presented to them?

It's not tough to switch styles for me; I kind of enjoy the change of pace. And it's definitely the editor's job to match the mood of the footage that's presented to him or her, and then to enhance it and hopefully elevate it. You have to kind of step into the film and understand what that world is all about.
 

I'm guessing that you don't speak Somalian. Is it tough to edit dialogue in a language you're unfamiliar with? Do you have to consciously alter your rhythms?

In a sense you do. In listening to the people during their performances, I can kind of get an idea of how quickly they speak and what their rhythms are. I did have a phonetic script that wrote out what they were actually saying in their language and an accompanying translation so I could understand where syllables fell and how they would kind of ride their syllables when they spoke. I had to be really careful that I wasn't clipping anybody off. So I'd follow their dialogue phonetically, and then also watch it for an understanding of what their performance was and their offhand gestures and things like that. The nice thing is that everybody, in terms of gestures and facial expressions, still kind of conveyed the same thing, so that was helpful. And once I got the rhythms down of the dialogue, then it was just following their eyes, their expressions and their gestures.

You've worked in both narrative and documentary short-form, as well as commercials. Do you have a favourite form to edit?

I don't have a favorite; I like all of them. It's a cheap answer, but it's true. I like spots, I like documentaries, I like narrative. They all offer different kinds of challenges, and different forms of gratification and exhilaration. Once you start seeing something coming together and it's working, that's a phenomenal feeling. All of a sudden you start getting excited, even about little things – like if all of a sudden you put in a close-up, and that character starts becoming something they didn't seem to be in the dailies. And that's exciting, because you realize you're contributing to this thing that's being created.

Do you have to alter your technique for each?

No, you don't. You just have to aggressively tell a story and understand what your time frame is. If you're telling it in thirty seconds, or you're telling it in 15 minutes, you still have to be aggressive enough to tell that story but understand you're getting to an end.
 

When did you find out about the Oscar nomination? What was your reaction?

I was watching the E! network that morning, because I knew they were covering the announcement. And of course I thought they'd include Short Form Live Action Narrative Films in that, and they didn't. While watching, I got a text message from Jim Jenkins, the O Positive director, which said 'congratulations.' I called him and asked what he meant, and he said, 'You guys got nominated.' I called Bryan. It was 5:30 in the morning in L.A. and he was out jogging. He was too anxious to hang out at his apartment, and hadn't heard yet. When I told him, he screamed very loudly.

Will you be donning a suit and striding up a red carpet on Sunday?

I just found out that I'm going to the awards presentation. If 'Asad' wins, I'll be in the back cheering for Bryan and Mino Jarjoura, his producer.

This isn't your first award ceremony - what are you like with the nerves beforehand?

Well, this is different because it's such a bigger scale. And it's such a longer story that people are responding to. And that's what makes it really exciting. I've had a chance to see it with an audience a few times, and people really do respond in a screening situation, which is fantastic. Certainly working in spots you don't get to savor that moment when people are reacting to something, unless you're looking in social media, and even that doesn't feel like a genuine response. But when you're in a theatre and all of a sudden people laugh or get emotional during something that you did, that's a big deal.

What's next on the slate for you?

Nothing long form right now, just doing spots and working on various campaigns. We're all pretty busy here, just moving forward and seeing what comes next.

Posted on 21st February 2013