Contents

Dedications

Acknowledgments

Preface

Part 1 Getting Started

Chapter 1 On Your Way

1.1    Find an Assistant

1.2    Know Your Tools

1.3    Basic Setups

1.4    Bank It

1.5    Move to Hollywood

1.6    Create Your Resume

1.7    Your Favorite Five

1.8    Find the Job

1.9    Prepare for the Interview

1.10  The Interview

Chapter 2 Before Your First Day on the Job

2.1    Be Prepared

2.2    Script Elements

2.3    Scene Breakdown

2.4    Schedule for Elements

2.5    Continuity

2.6    Wall Continuity

2.7    Measurement Charts

2.8    SFX

2.9    MX: Needle Drops and Score

2.10  Playback: MX and PIX

2.11  VFX

2.12  Stock

2.13  Order the Supplies

Chapter 3 Your First Day

3.1    Setting Up the Project Window

3.2    Settings

3.3    Import FX and MX

3.4    Binders and Paperwork

3.5    Spec and Format Sheets

3.6    Meet the Crew

Chapter 4 Your Second Day

4.1    Importing Dailies

4.2    Interpreting Paperwork

4.3    Watch the Dailies

4.4    Continue to Digitize or Begin to Organize

4.5    Setting the Bin

4.6    Communicating

4.7    Archiving as You Go

4.8    MX and Needle Drop Bins

4.9    When Dailies Are Completed

Chapter 5 Edit and Distribute the Cut

5.1    Editor’s Cut

5.2    Taking Notes

5.3    Recording Temp ADR

5.4    Preserving Copies

5.5    Lifts

5.6    Scene Timings and Total Measurements

5.7    Building a Cut

5.8    Cutting the Recap

5.9    Shipping

5.10  Director’s Cut

5.11  Privacy in the Editing Room

5.12  Producer’s Cut

5.13  The Locked Show

Chapter 6 Get Ready to Online

6.1    Create a Locked Sequence Bin

6.2    Remove Add Edits and Check for Jump Cuts

6.3    Format the Locked Sequence

6.4    Complete the Format Sheet

6.5    Create the Locked Continuity and MX Sheet

6.6    Prepare the ADR List

6.7    Prepare the VFX Notes

6.8    Reassign Tracks

6.9    Create the Chase Cassette (DVD)

6.10  Create the PIX and Audio Edit Decision Lists (EDLs) and the OMFs

6.11  Prepare for SFX and MX Spotting

6.12  Duplicate the Script and Sound Reports

Chapter 7 Assisting Protocols for Documentaries

7.1    Elements of a Documentary

7.2    Sort the Footage

7.3    Create a Radio Cut

7.4    Stock Footage

7.5    Stills

7.6    Titling

7.7    Use of SFX and MX

7.8    Finishing the Documentary

Chapter 8 Assisting Protocols for Reality Shows

8.1    Dailies

8.2    Basic Management

8.3    Work Space Synchronization

8.4    Offline and Online Management

8.5    Digitizing and Organizing Dailies

…Step 1: Stacking

…Step 2: Overlapping Clips

…Step 3: Check for Timecode Drift

…Step 4: Synching Each Camera to the Base Camera on V1

…Step 5: Set Auxiliary TC for the Base Camera

…Step 6: Adjust the Aux TC for the Rest of the Cameras

…Step 7: Add Edits at Every Place on the Sequence Where a Clip Starts or Stops

…Step 8: Creating the Subclips from the Sequence

…Step 9: Create the Multigroup by Auxiliary TC

8.6    Project Organization

8.7    Outputs

8.8    Things to Check Before Outputting a QT or DVD

8.9    QuickTimes

8.10  DVD Outputs

8.11  Locking

8.12  Up-Rezzing

8.13  Audio for OMF

8.14  Prepping for Online

8.15  Assisting on FCP in Reality Television

8.16  Importing and Organizing the Project

8.17  Multiclips

8.18  B Rolls

8.19  SFX and MX

8.20  Transcriptions

8.21  Story Stringout

8.22  Output

8.23  Online

8.24  Audio Prep for Online

8.25  In Summary

Chapter 9 First Day Observations in the Editing Room

9.1    A Day on Episodic Television

…Laura Sempel (American Intern 2010)

9.2    Different Venue in Episodic Television

…Andreas Arnheiter (International Intern 2010)

9.3    A Day on a Feature

…Paul Penczner (American Intern 2010)

9.4    A Day on Reality

…Nompi Vilakaze (International Intern 2010)

9.5    In Summary

Part 2 Protocol

Chapter 10 The Unwritten Rules of the Editing Room

10.1    Be on Time (15 Minutes Early)

10.2    Make the Coffee

10.3    Unlock the Editing Rooms

10.4    Boot Up

10.5    Prepare for the Day

10.6    Informative Messages and Post-it Notes

10.7    Grooming

10.8    Know the Phones

10.9    Ask Down, Not Up

Chapter 11 Personality

11.1    Have a Yes Attitude

11.2    Make Eye Contact

11.3    Admit Mistakes

11.4    Be Honest

11.5    Be Proactive

11.6    Leave Your Problems at Home

11.7    Crying

11.8    Arguing

11.9    Lodging Complaints

11.10  Gossiping

11.11  Noise and Personal Hygiene

11.12  Creating Ambience Levels

Chapter 12 Navigating the Room

12.1    Entering the Room

12.2    Know When to Leave the Room

12.3    Answering the Phones

12.4    Reading the Room

12.5    Taking Notes

12.6    Giving Your Opinion on a Scene

12.7    Triangulation

12.8    Email Etiquette

Part 3 Make the Cut

Chapter 13 Approaching Your Career

13.1    Get into a Cutting Room

13.2    Develop a Relationship with the Post Staff

13.3    Find a Mentor

13.4    Keep a Journal

13.5    One-Year Plan

13.6    Gracefully Leaving Your Nonunion Job

13.7    When to Look for Work

13.8    Choose Your Genre: From Features to Television

Chapter 14 Plan Ahead and Move Up

14.1    Three-Year Plan

14.2    Money Management

14.3    Perform at Your Highest Level

14.4    Edit Every Day

14.5    Upward Mobility

14.6    Cementing Relationships

14.7    Gracefully Leaving Your Union Job

Chapter 15 On the Brink of Editing

15.1    Five-Year Plan

15.2    That Promised Seat

15.3    Expanding Your Network

15.4    Advanced Skills

15.5    Editing Styles

15.6    Edit During Hiatus

15.7    Remaining an Assistant

15.8    In Conclusion

Part 4 Commonality

Chapter 16 Editors Panel Discussion

Glossary

Index