To Appreciate the Art of Film Editing, You Must Start With a Frame of Reference

What is an Editor?

Editors are the unsung heroes of great movies, and are a largely misunderstood part of the filmmaking process. In an article called, "To Appreciate the Art of Film Editing, You Must Start With a Frame of Reference",  Editors are the part-artists, part-technician, who, the minute the camera starts rolling, begins to organize each days footage to most closely approximate the director's vision. An editor catalogues every single take an actor takes of a line, and recombines them until every scene works. The editor's job "is partly to anticipate, and partly to control each shot that cinematographers get.

The Process

  The actual editing itself in a film doesn't take place until after all of the movie has been filmed and all the actors have gone home. The editors and film directors then work together day in and day out to  see how the finished product will turn out on the big screen. Whether working with film stock or digitally, the first round of film editing starts with the script. Film editors assemble the footage into a rough, or editor's cut, that follows the script by cutting and splicing various shots together. The rough cut shows the film editor where the film needs changes or corrections. The film editor will point these corrections out to the director. Working closely with the film director, the film editor begins the second version of the film, the director's cut. This version smoothes out all the flaws and corrections that needed to be changed. After the director's cut, the producer or movie studio reviews the film. The film editor then makes the third version, the final cut. The movie is then reproduced and put into theaters.

The reason I chose to read this article closely is because film editing is something that greatly interests me, and I think that it is constantly overlooked and under appreciated. What I enjoy most is seeing all the footage that has been filmed and adding different effects and music, and being able to see the finished product come together, knowing the time and effort it took to create it. I think that editing is one of the most crucial roles in creating any film, or video.