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PaulGriffith

PaulGriffith

Hey guys! Been a while since I've been active, it's been genuinely busy, but I see myself here quite a bit for the next few months. I just today started post production on a feature! I'm working with a production company in LA, they shot it May-October and they're handing ALL of post off to me and the team.

I'm pretty stoked, it's a small team for sure. I'm supervising the process as well as doing the edit/color/VFX (nothing too splashy, but typical stuff like a few sky/screen replacements, etc), then Foley and mix go to a talented audio engineer I've done a lot of work with and the score to another crazy talented composer.

It's a story about crime and poverty following a couple of mafiosos.

I've worked a lot of TV and shorts, but my first feature! If you've been there, any advice is appreciated. Thanks!
 
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Thanks! I know they have stuff in the works, but it's not my department on this one. My job is to hand a 100% finished movie off to the producers for them to hand to distribution. After that, it's out of my hands.

None the less, pretty excited!
 
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I've been given a piece of advice. It's all about the workflow and communication.

Work out what final output you need and work towards that goal. Timing is very important, but that's for your editor to handle.

Make sure everyone who needs to know, get the appropriate information and gives their feedback along the way.

Trust the people you have chosen, to get the job done. Trust but verify.

Make sure the process allows for creative input from multiple people.

Give appropriate feedback. Guide them if they're doing a job you're not happy with, be careful not to criticize too hard. Thank them for a job well done. Do this all through the process. Too many people give negative feedback and too few give positive feedback.

Don't be afraid to ask questions. They are experts in their field. Use that expertise.

Make sure the appropriate people sign off at the right time. The last thing you want is for someone to agree to the final cut, send it off to all the post audio teams and then get blamed when you have all their work compromised because the director or the producer wants a change.

Oh, APE wants me to say, "It's all about the sound. You know it's half the experience, right?"
 
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But he IS the editor

My only advice about editing a feature: do each scene in a separate project file. Especially if your computer isn't super fast. If you try to edit the whole thing on one timeline your project will start takin longer and longer to load. Soon you might have to wait a couple minutes every single time you open your editor and it's frustrating.
 
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moonshieldmedia said:
But he IS the editor

My only advice about editing a feature: do each scene in a separate project file. Especially if your computer isn't super fast. If you try to edit the whole thing on one timeline your project will start takin longer and longer to load. Soon you might have to wait a couple minutes every single time you open your editor and it's frustrating.
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That's a good one!
It makes it easier to see different scenes as little movies too ;)

Good luck!

The longest project I worked on was 1 hour long and I was just an 'emergency editor' to get the pace back on track in 1 day. (Meaning: I had to cut the crap with fresh eyes 2 days before the premiere :P ).

So, my advice: when you have a first cut, let someone who is not involved, but who has a lot of experience, take a look at it to give some feedback.
It's easy to loose oversight on such a project.
 
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What're your fat cut and final cut turn-around-time deadlines?

How many hours of raw takes did you receive?

Do you know where the producers are distributing this to or through?
 
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Thanks guys!

Sweetie, I'm both editor and post supervisor, managing the audio mix and score composition, so your advice still works haha.

The longest narrative I've edited was pushing 45 minutes, we're aiming at 80-90 for this one.

Ray - We're kind of working this a little different. To help turnaround, the three of us are working simultaneously. As I put scenes together I send them to audio to mix ond to the composer who will start working themes. As more scenes are put together, he'll then be able to work with the themes he's written and build them up and down at the right moment.

That said, looking to have the fat cut finished early January and the final by the end of January.

I'm not sure where it's going yet. Their first one had a very limited theater run but made profit in DVD sales and was on Netflix. They're pushing for a wider release this time for sure. Again, my contract is for post, so I'm not too sure after that.

Edit:
Oh, and I'm not sure exactly how much footage there is yet. Thee are three cameras in some scenes, only 1 in others. I'm still syncing footage and organizing it all, once I dig in I'll have a better idea on how much raw footage there actually is. Guessing based on file size and the fact that there are three cameras, I'd put it between 30-40 hrs.
 
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PaulGriffith said:
We're kind of working this a little different. To help turnaround, the three of us are working simultaneously. As I put scenes together I send them to audio to mix ond to the composer who will start working themes. As more scenes are put together, he'll then be able to work with the themes he's written and build them up and down at the right moment.
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Well that's an interesting way to do it :P

I know Sound Designers who would never agree to such a deal, I hope it ends up working out (i.e. no discrepancies in sync etc.).

Good luck with it all.
I would posit that you should most definitely know what the distribution is so you can cater for it. You're going to end up needing to know whether to package a DCP, or compile DVD or Blu-Ray, or send to TV etc.
Plus your Sound Designer/Mixer is going to want to know what to mix for (as the spec changes depending on where it's going), and what stems he/she has to provide.
 
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jax_rox said:
Well that's an interesting way to do it :P

I know Sound Designers who would never agree to such a deal, I hope it ends up working out (i.e. no discrepancies in sync etc.).

Good luck with it all.
I would posit that you should most definitely know what the distribution is so you can cater for it. You're going to end up needing to know whether to package a DCP, or compile DVD or Blu-Ray, or send to TV etc.
Plus your Sound Designer/Mixer is going to want to know what to mix for (as the spec changes depending on where it's going), and what stems he/she has to provide.
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Thanks man! It's unconventional for sure, but it's also the only way we can make the deadline. They start shooting the sequel in March and need this tagged and bagged. The sound engineer and I have worked A LOT together though, close to a decade, and though we're doing our best to edit lock as large of portions as possible we're ready for those last minute tweaks and building our project files to accommodate. We work pretty close, it's easy to ask a lot haha.

We're definitely mixing for multiple distro opportunities as well. Delivering stereo and surround, plus M&E bounces for international distribution. When it comes closer to the final render we'll know more for sure.
 
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PaulGriffith said:
We're definitely mixing for multiple distro opportunities as well. Delivering stereo and surround, plus M&E bounces for international distribution. When it comes closer to the final render we'll know more for sure.
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Your workflow is not entirely unconventional but will make it tough to avoid errors, especially across so many mixes and sub-mixes. You'll need to know well how to provide EDLs and Change Lists in addition to AAFs/OMFs of course, and your sound guy/team will need to have some decent conforming software. My advice for the theatrical mix would be to take the pre-mix (mixed stems) to a commercial theatrical dub stage for final mixing or at the very least carefully check your theatrical mix in a commercial theatrical dub stage, to avoid being seriously bitten in the ass!

Good luck!

G
 
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