Splice Now

I’m starting to wonder whether we aren’t in the middle of another big technical revolution, this time not driven so much by post, but by production and distribution. Our switch to digital is a done deal, but theirs is just getting started, moving us to a pure digital workflow all the way from camera to theater, DVD and Internet. That means another big learning curve for us, another pig in the python that we have to digest.

Post Magazine does its year-end wrap up in their December issue. Some of the points mentioned include:

• More and more people are working with their own gear.
• Editors are doing more compositing, titling and color correction.
• We’re seeing more HD materials in the cutting room.
• We’re seeing more disk-based formats, with no film or tape anywhere.
• Production is shooting more and circling takes less.
• Editors are being asked to take responsibility for archiving and versioning.
• It’s soon going to be possible to edit at 2K resolution.

Some of this won’t seem particularly surprising to folks in the independent world, but for feature and TV editors in Hollywood it represents a sea change. More than ever before, we’re being forced to become generalists. It’s almost as if the jobs of editor and assistant and post supervisor are starting to merge, at least at the edges, and frankly, though the article doesn’t mention it, it looks like this is happening along with increased downward pressure on wages.

I do a new show every nine months or so and lately it seems like each one embodies an entirely new workflow. The pace of change is accelerating. I hope we can all embrace it and use the new tools to enhance the things we love about our craft, because it looks like there’s no stopping this thing and it sure doesn’t seem like it’s going to slow down any time soon.

As our tools have become cheaper and more ubiquitous, competition for editing jobs has increased. The result is that some picture editors and assistants are getting squeezed pretty hard. But it seems like music editors have it worse, and I’m starting to wonder whether they aren’t the proverbial canary in the coal mine.

Since they’re often paid directly by the composer, it’s not uncommon to see the them working non-union on otherwise fully union shows, working long hours for a flat rate. They often work out of their houses, using their own equipment, without an assistant. The expectations, time pressure and technical responsiblities can be very high. And if you don’t like the money or the working conditions, there’s often no support from the rest of the crew. The crew is you.

I wonder whether these aren’t the kinds of conditions that picture editors will face in the next few years, at least on lower budget shows. As our equipment gets more portable it’s easier to work at home. As the technology gets simpler and more efficient, crews shrink.

Dovetailing with this situation, Verizon and AT&T just got the right to deliver TV over telephone lines in California. That means we’re soon going to see dramatically faster Internet speeds. It’s going to make all kinds of things possible.

But with this, as in so much of the digital revolution, the law of unintended consequences bites us in the butt. Working at home is a great idea, right? Sure, until you realize that if you work at home you never get to GO home. Cheaper equipment is a great idea, too — until you factor in the idea that you’re going to be buying it yourself, upgrading it, and doing your own tech support. Videochatting with your director over a super-fast Internet connection is wonderful, until you realize that the same connection can be used with anybody in the world, and you’re competing with a whole lot of people you’ll never see.

So what do we do? No doubt, the Editors Guild has a pivotal role to play. We’ll never prevail if we don’t work together and get ahead of these trends. But just saying no won’t work. It’s essential that we think about these issues in the broadest and deepest possible terms. If we don’t want to be forced to be cheaper then we have to be smarter.

And as individuals? It’s much the same. The only thing we can do is to get ready by improving our skills.

That long learning curve that we’ve been climbing for the last decade and a half? It sure doesn’t look like it’s going to flatten out any time soon.

In early April I saw Haskell Wexler’s new documentary “Who Needs Sleep,” about overwork, long hours and lack of sleep in the film business. The film premiered at Sundance and got a big reaction there. I saw the first major LA screening, sponsored by the Writers Guild and the Screen Actors Guild and shown at the WGA theater.
The house was completely full and the feeling in the room afterwards was electric. There were three separate rounds of applause–once when the end title started, once when the lights came up and finally, a long standing ovation when Haskell came up on stage. It was ironic that the event was sponsored by the WGA and SAG–not the IATSE. Crew members were well represented in the audience, and might have been the majority. The film clearly seems to appeal to a very strong and so far untapped feeling on the part of every crew member, namely the importance of ‘quality of life’ issues.

Haskell has started a nonprofit called “12 On/12 Off” with a simple program:

• No more than 12 hours worked.
• No less than 12 hours of turnaround.
• No more than 6 hours between meals.

Personally, I’d vote for 10 hours of work (are we really fighting for a 12 hour day?) but 12 hours is a no brainer, and for that reason it’s going to get a lot of support.

There was a panel discussion after the screening, moderated by WGAw President Patric Verrone, and Haskell made the point that he wants to appeal to all groups — IA, DGA, WGA, SAG, etc. He believes that if we get into partisan, juristictional infighting we’ll lose. He commented that he had been unable to find anybody, including studio heads, who are willing to say that long hours are a good or necessary thing. Thus the problem is systemic.

Political movements often start with a unmet need — a simple rallying cry that everybody can unite around.

This might be the start of something.