Oscars Were A Milestone For Editing

In our last issue, I talked about the changing face of post-production and how the falling prices of equipment and the decentralization of our workplaces are rapidly altering the nature of our work and the competition we face. Inexpensive editing programs are now available at your local electronics superstore. You won't be cutting your next feature with these packages, but your neighbors or their kids might do school projects with them and in the process they'll learn a great deal about what we do. What a change from the Hollywood that I came to in 1974, when it was difficult to become part of the Guild, when editors often worked in windowless rooms, and when everyone I knew outside the business thought we just "took out the bad stuff."

This year's Academy awards represented a parallel change in the public's growing awareness of our work and its importance. By way of introducing the film editing award, Will Smith read a statement from David Mamet, that offered one of the most respectful and succinct summaries of what we do ever broadcast. It came early in the program and was seen by roughly 41 million people in the US and many more overseas. The clips that were run from the nominated films were presented with a split-screen illustration of the editing process: three setups from dailies running across the top of the screen and the cut scene running in sync below with an indicator showing which take was being used for each cut. For a worldwide audience that still implicitly assumes that movies are made by photographing a live performance with multiple cameras, that demonstration must have been an eye opener.

Mamet, a respected playwright, screenwriter and motion picture director, offered a statement so supportive that I'd like to reproduce it here in full:

The humbling truth is that a film is made in the editing room. The most magnificent performances and the best intentions mean nothing if they don't cut. The film goes by at twenty-four frames per second, and however lovely it is, however thoughtful it is, however deeply felt, all the audience cares about is what happens next. The director, the actor, the designer, the writer can and do become sidetracked, confused, indeed even inspired into serving two masters -- the story and themselves. The editor serves only the story. As such, they are the best friend of the audience, and time and again, the salvation of the filmmaker.

The combination of those words, the articulate visuals, and the huge audience that saw and heard it was surely a milestone in the history of our craft. I hope we are all ready to come out of our dark rooms into the bright light of day -- because ready or not, that's what's happening.