Editing On The Set

As video producers transition into the 21st century, we have an opportunity that no other filmmakers or mediamakers have had in the past: we can edit on the set.

Even if celluloid film editors of yore dragged their large and bulky Moviola or Steenbeck film-cutting machines onto the set, they would have needed to wait for the lab to develop dailies for them to even begin the post-production process. Now we have high-powered dual-core processor laptops which will let us begin the editing process before the actors remove their makeup. I'm going to break this topic in two: editing on the set for narrative-type works and on location for documentary-style projects. There is obvious crossover, but each has enough unique situations to warrant the split.

Editing on the Set: Narrative Projects

Narrative projects are Hollywood-style, three-act "stories," usually with scripts, storyboards and actors. I'm going to include commercials and music videos with this grouping, assuming that the editors shoot in their city/town of residence, for reasons that will soon be obvious.

Whether the project's Director of Photography (DP) is shooting tape (HDV, DV or Betacam), disc (Sony's XDCAM HD optical disc or similar) or solid state (Panasonic P2 or similar), he can load footage from the set onto a laptop's hard drive. So, while the crew is eating lunch, the editor can copy the morning's footage to a computer and be organizing and editing before the afternoon's lights, camera and action. Let's look at a few of the advantages and disadvantages of this process.