Editors
Interviews - Editors
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“I Was Watching Russian TV More than My Entire Family in Russia”: Maxim Pozdorovkin and Matvey Kulakov on Editing Our New President
Maxim Pozdorovkin entered the documentary film world in 2013 with Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer, a film that earned him top prizes at Sundance, Cinema Eye Honors and the British Independent Film Awards. He returned to Sundance in 2014 with The Notorious Mr. Bout. Now, he returns to the World Cinema Documentary Competition once again with Our New President, a doc on Russia’s propagandistic state-run news networks. Below, Pozdorovkin and co-editor Matvey Kulakov discuss how they crafted a feature film from such surreal archival footage. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes […]
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On the Cut
On a film screen, a single edit flies by in the blink of an eye — usually, in 1/24th of a second. In the edit room, though, a cut is teased, strategized, finessed and obsessed over. We asked six editors from six of the fall’s best films to give us the frames on both sides of one particularly noteworthy cut — and to explain why these edits are so important. Call Me By Your Name Director: Luca Guadagnino Editor: Walter Fasano Fasano: Sensual. That’s the way I’d like to define our approach to the editing of Call Me By Your […]
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“A Coming of Age Story–with Jump Scares”: Jason Ballantine on Editing It
In horror movies, kids are often exempt from the carnage. It’s a trope of the genre—the cute moppet that any experienced horror viewer knows is in absolutely no peril within the confines of the film. Andy Muschietti’s adaptation of It opens with a grade-schooler in a yellow rain slicker having his arm torn off by a sewer dwelling clown—a creature who then drags the child into the underground bowels of Derry, Maine. The film’s brutal ground rules are immediately established – anyone is fair game and no appendage is safe. “I am very conscious watching any film where the main cast […]
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Transforming Information into Experience: White Sun Screenwriter and Editor David Barker
David Barker is a hard one to put a finger on. He is an American writer and editor who over the past 10 years has gained an international reputation for his analytical ability and open, unconventional approach. Recent collaborations include Deepak Rauniyar’s sensitive exploration of the impact of Nepalese civil war White Sun (opening today at New York’s MOMA and running through September 12) and Josephine Decker’s upcoming feature with Molly Parker, Mirandy July and Helena Howard, Madeline Madeline. Things happen with David differently than you’d expect them to. You walk an entirely other route than you wanted and end […]
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Color Grading with the Blackmagic Micro Panel
I’m a video editor, not a color grader, but for most projects I have to do my own color adjustments, and I’ve been using three-way color correction tools to manipulate video color since the days of Final Cut Pro 5. When you first start playing with a three-way color corrector it can be both fun and very disorienting. Small adjustments in color can look right at first, then look horribly wrong when compared to another scene. It can be easy to know what you want, but very hard sometimes to get “there.” In short, color correction is hard. It’s part […]
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Editor Evan Schrodek on the Fraternity Hazing Drama Burning Sands
A producer on Ryan Coogler’s Fruitvale Station, Gerard McMurray makes his debut as a writer/director with Burning Sands. The film tells the story of five college students who embark on a “Hell Week” of hazing and abuse in order to receive admission into a prestigious black fraternity. Evan Schrodek, an editor on The Walking Dead, cut the film after he became friends with McMurray at film school at USC. Below, Schrodek speaks about the film’s nuanced portrait of fraternity hazing, the personal nature of this story and his love of genre filmmaking. Burning Sands premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and will be […]
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“Both Playful and Unique”: Editor Dominic LaPerriere on Dayveon
Dominic LaPerriere has edited three feature films that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival: Fishing without Nets (2014), The Free World (2016) and, this year, Dayveon. From first-time director Amman Abbasi, Dayveon tells the story of a 13-year-old boy’s coming-of-age after the violent death of his big brother. LaPerriere co-edited the film with Michael Carter. Below, he speaks with Filmmaker about how he got into editing and finding the right balance between moving a plot forward and letting an audience savor the moment. Dayveon premiered at Sundance last week in the NEXT lineup. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of […]
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“Grounded Yet Earnest, Awkward Yet Buoyant”: Editor Jacob Craycroft on Brigsby Bear
From Robert Altman’s A Prairie Home Companion to Super Troopers, Jacob Craycroft has edited more than 40 features and shorts since 1997. In recent years he’s cut the young-Obama biopic Barry, a segment of the anthology film New York, I Love You and, at this year’s Sundance, Brigsby Bear. Craycroft spoke with Filmmaker ahead of the film’s premiere about the film’s tricky tone, working with the ever-busy cast and crew of SNL and the difficulty of editing a single project in both AVID and Final Cut Pro. Brigsby Bear screens five times during the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Filmmaker: How and […]
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“More Eyes, More Money and More Pressure”: Editor Casey Brooks on Landline
Gillian Robespierre assembled a familiar team for her second film. Like her 2014 breakthrough Obvious Child, Landline features the work of DP Chris Teague, co-writer/producer Elisabeth Holm, star Jenny Slate and editor Casey Brooks. In the below interview, conducted before the film’s world premiere at Sundance 2017, Brooks discusses the film’s balance of comedy and drama, his entry into editing and dealing with heightened expectations in the wake of Obvious Child. Landline costars John Turturro, Edie Falco, Abby Quinn and Jay Duplass. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to […]
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“Letting Moments Breathe and Have the Space to Flourish”: Editor Joi McMillon on Lemon
Joi McMillon received an Eddie Award nomination earlier this year for her work on Moonlight. An editor on a number of shorts and TV series, including an episode of Girls, McMillon’s newest feature is Lemon from writer/director Janicza Bravo. Filmmaker, which hailed Bravo as one of its 25 New Faces in 2014, spoke with McMillon before the 2017 Sundance Film Festival about the genre-defying new film. McMillon discussed the film’s unique blend of comedy and drama, the importance of an unspoken glance and her cinematic influences. Lemon stars Brett Gelman, Judy Greer and Michael Cera. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the editor of […]
