EditFest London 2016 – Editors in Conversation

If you want to hear from some of the best editors working in the film and TV industry in an intimate and open setting then Edit Fest, which runs in Los Angeles and London once a year. It’s a rare treat that’s not to be missed!

But if you did miss it, you’re in luck, as for the second time ever, videos of the full sessions are now available online for your viewing pleasure!

The dates for Edit Fest 2017 are EditFest LA 5th August 2017, EditFest London 24th June 2017, so sign up now to get in on the action for yourself. A huge part of the day is being able to meet and chat to these, and the many other editors and assistants in attendance, first hand.

For more editing craft wisdom, check out these previous posts in which I rounded up some excellent craft wisdom gleaned from previous EditFest days. The first post on EditFest LA 2016 includes full videos of all the seminars.

EditFest LA 2016 | EditFest London 2014 | EditFest London 2013 | EditFest LA 2013 | EditFest LA 2012

Dailies to Delivery – Feature Film Editors in Discussion

Moderated by Alan Heim, ACE

Pia Di Ciaula – Tyrannosaur, A Quiet Passion

Sim Evan Jones, ACE – Shawn the Sheep

Paul Machliss, ACE – Scott Pilgrim vs the World

Nathan Nugent – Room, Glassland

John Wilson, ACE – Me Before You, Billy Elliot

In this panel discussion moderated by the American Cinema Editor’s President, Alan Heim ACE, you get to hear from some outstanding editors on the craft, business and creativity of editing feature films.

For me editing is like a series of little epiphanies, sometimes you just get that moment that gives you a lot of pleasure [When you see two shots cut together for the first time], even though a cut is instantaneous, it has no duration, but when you see shot A meet shot B for the first time, I think director’s enjoy being part of that discovery process with you. – Paul Machliss, ACE

Click on the little Playlist Menu (top left of the video embed) to jump to parts 2-6 of the Dailies to Delivery panel discussion.

Each of the editors show a clip from their work, although these have been edited out for copyright reasons.

Small Screen Big Picture – Editing Top TV Shows

Moderated by Anthony Boys, ACE, Veep

Gary Dollner, ACE – Veep

Mark Eckersley – War & Peace

Úna Ní Dhonghaile – The Missing, Dr. Who

Tim Porter, ACE – Game of Thrones

As moderator Anthony Boys states in his introduction, it is tricky to find information on the process and craft of TV editing direct from the editor’s themselves, but in this hour long panel discussion you get a treasure trove of that kind of insight.

One thing to watch out for is if you get a lot of notes, and if you were to do all the notes you might destroy the show. So sometimes you have to be very shrewd in understanding that the notes might be highlighting that something is amiss, but often the solutions offered by others, aren’t the right solutions, necessarily. So just to be prudent with them… – Úna Ní Dhonghaile.

Each of the editors show a clip from their work, although these have been edited out for copyright reasons.

Click on the little Playlist Menu (top left of the video embed) to jump to parts 2-5 of the TV editing panel.

Paul Hirsch ACE, A Career Conversation

Master editor Paul Hirsch ACE is interviewed by journalist Adrian Pennington in the final session of the day. It’s a great tour of a hugely successful career packed with plenty of insights on the craft and the production history behind numerous iconic films.

Paul’s credits include Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Planes Trains and Automobiles, Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back, Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, Falling Down, Carrie and many more!

Paul was the focus of the first ever episode of Name That Editor, a little online video that I put together, in which you get to see a montage of trailers from selected highlights of one editor’s career play out in chronological order. It’s a great way to see one editor grow in their career and craft over several decades!

Check out the full post on Name That Editor here for more details and explanation!

Click on the little Playlist Menu (top left of the video embed) to jump to parts 2-4 of the session with Paul.