Film editing is the process of selecting and combining shots into a sequence that creates a film.
Editing is often described as the “final rewriting” of a film, because it’s the last chance to change or improve what has been captured on camera.
Many of the world’s most successful film directors love the editing part of filmmaking because they believe it’s where they actually “write” their film.
As an indie filmmaker or freelance producer, you have a unique perspective on how the final cut should look and feel. During production, you capture your characters, locations, and story elements–everything you’ll need later during the edit to complete your film. But often, during the edit, your original vision can get muddied or significantly compromised by oversights that may have happened during the shoot.
If you do your homework which includes writing a viable script, production costs are fairly fixed. You have your crew, actors, and miscellaneous production fees times X number of shooting days and hopefully a contingency for adding an extra day if needed. This makes it a bit easier to create an accurate and realistic production budget.
But when it comes to post-production budgets, estimating how much to set aside is sometimes just an educated guess. If you underestimate or go over budget because of production challenges, it will adversely affect your ability to finish the edit to your satisfaction and have money left for color grading, final music and audio, and viewing copies. If you have more than a break-even budget at the start, even worse, whatever is left in the master budget after subtracting pre-production and production costs. It’s also at the mercy of how efficiently you completed production and prepared for the edit.
If you’re about to put your heart, soul, time, and money into your passion project, I’d like to offer some valuable tips to help you avoid costly mistakes and to help you see the best possible version of your vision on screen.
As a film & video editor with over 20 years of experience, I often work with directors and producers who have a clear vision for their projects. Unfortunately, many don’t plan for post-production early in the process which often leads to stressful days in the edit suite.
