Real-Life Communication
Film editors are key members of a massive team that makes movies
possible. They work in close collaboration with a team of artists and technical
experts -- sound technicians, screenwriters, producers, musicians and more.
Keeping
everyone on the same page -- or in the same frame -- takes a lot of communication.
Most film teams hold regular meetings throughout the project.
But sometimes,
long-distance communication is necessary. Maybe the director and his assistants
have already traveled overseas to begin shooting their next project. Or maybe
the editor's studios are located miles from the set of the film.
For
whatever reasons, editors sometimes have to write memos to keep the creative
team up to speed on the editing process. These memos have to be written so
that non-editors can understand, yet give a sense of the actual work being
done.
You are in the final stages of editing a film and are preparing
your weekly report. With this project, the film is digitized and edited on
a personal computer. In fact, about 80 percent of all films are now edited
this way.
In your memo, you want to mention:
- You are on schedule. The completion date is two weeks away and you should
have the film completed one day early.
- You have made several different cuts of some parts of the film. These
cuts have been saved into different "bins" (files) on the computer system
and you will be able to show all different "sequences" (versions) at the final
screening.
- Different visual effects -- including the title sequence -- have been
completed and are ready for review. You'll want to mention that thanks to
the cpmputer system, you can quickly and inexpensively change any of these
effects.
- The film, overall, is coming together well. You have preserved most of
the director's cut and worked hard to maintain her artistic vision throughout.