The Gathering - Austin

It's early in the year so it must be time for the "gathering". Yes, this is a direct reference to the movie "Highlander" but it seems appropriate for this event. Every year at this time, editors from around the country, and a few from beyond our borders, convene at one location to talk and learn about their craft.
The Master Editor's Retreat takes place in Austin this year starting tomorrow.
I have attended three times before and it's certainly one of my favorite things to do. We spend the day considering advancements in technology, software, and compression techniques, and wind the evenings down considering artistic and esoteric considerations in storytelling.
I'm always recharged after the retreat about being an editor and spending time with my fellow artists shows me the possibilities that are out there.
The dual nature of my career, directing/technical directing and editing, is not so strange. I think of directing as live editing and still try to find the right shot, framing, duration, and flow along the way. Plus, there are nearly as many revisions in live television.
As most of my editing is done alone, and all of my live work is with a large group, it's a nice mixture between the roar of the crowd and the quiet solitude and reflective nature of post production.
So stay tuned and wait to hear more on what the future holds courtesy of the 2012 Master Editor's Retreat!

5 Percent Takes 20 Percent of the Time

Greetings friends,
It's been too long since I've posted anything here but with the new year starting, I have dedicated myself to writing on a more regular basis. The world continues to be comical to me most of the time so I hate not getting to share some observations and opinions from time to time. Especially since I can sleep this morning for some reason.
I'm getting ready to attend the Editors Retreat in Austin next month and it has me thinking about the craft of editing and what I do on a regular basis. For those of you who watch television or any kind of media for that matter, have you considered the very painful process of editing? Yes I said painful!
It seems, and it's been true for many years, that as an editor, I spend roughly 20 percent of the time on a project, on 5 percent of actual content. You would think with advances in computers and non-linear editing software, this would have improved over the last twenty years but for some reason, it's a part of the process.
We now do reviews via sites like yousendit where we have less interaction in person with clients. Although I like the fact that I can do the majority of my editing alone, there's a gap sometimes in the communication process that can often lead to multiple revisions.
So I guess we just plug along, try to stay creative, and hopefully bridge that gap in communication a little better when you can.

A Bon Voyage to the Intern

Ah interns, so full of life, happy to have something to do, so idealistic, and at times, some of the most talented people in the room.
Today marks the end of Mallory Roberts' internship with the Houston Astros. I've seen many interns over the course of 16 years with the Astros, some I remember, most who just moved on never to be heard of again.
When I walked into the control room on Monday, I was in a foul mood because of a parking situation. Without getting into the details, let's just say if you are trying to park in Lot C, you better have a current parking pass with the correct date on it. We pick up our parking passes usually at the end of the month for the following month. Since the Astros were on a long road trip, we got our passes on Monday which happened to be the beginning of the month.

This is what my envelope looked liked. Mallory had taken the time to personalize most of the crew's envelopes and was more than clever about it. Consider that Brian Hoisier's (pronounced Hoe-Sure) envelope had a picture of Brian the dog from Family Guy, a garden hoe, and a bottle of Sure antiperspirant.
So Mallory's efforts made me laugh, feel better about the parking jerks, and generally made the show that night better than it would have been had she not been around.
Isn't that one of the best thing an intern can do? Not to say that her work on graphics and other duties she  had while at the Astros weren't just as important!
So we bid farewell to you Mallory, wish you the best in Atlanta at Turner, and know you are embarking on a very successful and long career! Fair winds to you!!

Back to High School

Last week I got the chance to speak to three classes of high school students about production and post-production and the television business in general. What struck me initially was how young these kids were. We never think we are young and goofy once we reach a certain age, but some of us never really grow up and that's probably especially true in the television industry.
The technology continues to race onward and what took an entire facility to produce in the mid '80's is now sitting in one computer, audio processing, editing, special effects. The tools available for these kids is amazing.
Back in the day when I was dreaming of being a Rodriguez, Tarantino, or Wells, it required a lot of other people to complete the dream. Well my dream is re-awakened and I plan to use both the tools I have AND the experience of the last 20 years... that's truly the only advantage I have over the youth of today!

The All Encompassing Aspect of Editing

There are times when editing overtakes my life. I will eat, sleep, and work with the singleminded purpose of making a deadline for a viewing and everything else fades away.
The last ten days have been like that. I've been working to finish a 14-minute show and have done little else other than work. It hurts my head.
I write this as the producer and staff are watching my cut so I have...you guessed it, fourteen minutes to kill. My friends have been hassling me about getting another Stain Boy club CD out, whether or not I'll be attending an editing conference in New Orleans in March, and other non-job related stuff.
If the next twelve minutes go well, I'll take the afternoon off and enjoy myself for just a bit.
I also want to cook more meals at home... three weeks ago I cooked Mexican salmon. Red pepper, jalepenos, onion... the colors of the Mexican flag.

Here's to an evening at home away from After Effects, editing, or thinking in general!

It's Been A Good Year For The Balls

Every year about this time, the Rockets management throws us a party to thank us for working the previous year, and to get us excited about the upcoming year. It's always an enjoyable time to hang out with the crew on a social level and be thankful that we are all still around.
I believe this would be the fifth or sixth year but who is counting.
During the party, there are raffle prizes and the evening culminates with handing out a couple of team signed balls. As with most contests, the best prizes are at the end and in the previous years, if my number was called it was called early. While I never expect anything, it's a nice bonus.
This year my number came up last!

It is nice to know that Jabulani won't be lonely and as homesick for South Africa now!

Now That's A Tomato!!

I think being out of Africa got me away from writing on a regular basis but since there haven't been a lot of comments, you may not have noticed.

This past weekend I worked the 16th Annual SPCA telethon in Houston. I think I've worked the last six or seven years and it's always an enjoyable weekend although the five hours on the air without any commercial breaks is tough.

For some reason this year, I got it in my mind that I wanted to get a photo with one of the sponsors' mascots, so I told folks this and sure enough my dreams came true. It may be a little silly, but it sure was fun. 

I make all the vegetables laugh!!!