The Rough Cut

Latest Episodes:

Spies in Disguise Dec 30, 2019

Show notes

The team from Blue Sky Studios is back with a new film this holiday season! Editors Randy Trager and Chris Campbell are on hand to bring us further into the world of animated features with a deep dive on their movie, Spies in Disguise. Randy and Chris break down the milestones and the marathon of delivering a high-profile animated film that works for audiences of all ages. They tell us about...

Being the last line of defense for QC
Sidestepping the trap of tunnel vision in post
The dynamic of co-editors working with co-directors
The similarities between pre-viz editing and editing animated films
Why great audio tools are important for the animators
The Midnight Run connection

Learn more about editing for animation with Frozen 2 editor, Jeff Draheim ACE.

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Elf Dec 24, 2019

Show notes

Happy Holidays, Post Production Fans! A bonus Rough Cut podcast featuring Elf editor, Dan Lebental ACE. Originally recorded in 2013, ten years after Elf made its debut in theaters, we chatted with Dan about his memories of working on the film, including...

How the film originally had a darker, more cynical tone
Working in a hybrid Avid/Film workflow
When an editor and director become like "an old married couple"
Cutting forced perspective footage
How the studio always knew it would be a hit...yeah, right

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Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Dec 23, 2019

Show notes

42 years, 9 films, 3 trilogies - and they all come down to this...Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Editor Maryann Brandon, ACE calls in from her editing suite on Endor to talk to us about cutting the last chapter in the Skywalker saga. Maryann discusses...

Cutting ten feet away from the action
Working with three less months in post than on 'Force Awakens'
The JJ Abrams "factor"
The process of continuing Princess Leia's story

Go back to the beginning and listen to our podcast with Star Wars and 'Empire' editor, Paul Hirsch.

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"The Avid" Turns Thirty Dec 16, 2019

Show notes

In December 1989, the Avid 1 / Media Composer was released to the public for the first time; launching a revolution in film and video editing. For this week's Rough Cut podcast we talk with Avid's founder, Bill Warner to discuss what prompted him to create the Media Composer as well as the challenges he faced along the way. Bill talks about...

How a corporate Christmas video made him give up linear editing forever
A fortuitous encounter with Apple that opened his eyes to the power of the Mac platform
The importance of capturing commercial editorial
The open arms (and minds )of Hollywood
What "Avid" actually stands for and the origins of the "Pyramid" logo

See the original 1987 Avid prototype on the defunct Apollo workstation.

Check out how the Avid 1 / Media Composer looked when it was introduced in 1989.

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Avengers: Endgame Dec 09, 2019

Show notes

For over seven years editor Jeff Ford, ACE and assistant editor Robin Buday have been bringing the Avengers to life on the big screen, culminating in the biggest film of 2019, Avengers: Endgame. Jeff and Robin call in from on location of their next film to reflect on their time in the MCU and to talk about:

Making the jump from assistant to editor
Dialing in the dailies
Adapting to the styles of different directors
Breaking scenes into acts
The benefits of working in "shoot" order
The "indie rock" aesthetic of the MCU
"The Dude" knows editing

Plus...

Take advantage of the latest promos for Avid Media Composer!

Enter to win a (probably autographed) hardcover edition of Paul Hirsch's book!

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El Camino - A Breaking Bad Movie Dec 02, 2019

Show notes

Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul editor, Skip Macdonald ACE guest stars on this week's Rough Cut podcast to talk about cutting the Netflix original film, El Camino - A Breaking Bad Movie. Skip describes the unique aesthetic of the BB universe as well as...

How the cinematography influences his editing
Getting in the right "head" of the characters in the scene
Making a cinematic tv show vs making a movie for tv
Advice on making the jump from assistant editor to editor

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Don't forget to enter to win (by entering your contact info) a hardcopy edition of editor Paul Hirsch's new autobiography.

Frozen 2 Nov 25, 2019

Show notes

On this week's Rough Cut podcast, we begin our exploration of animation with Frozen 2 editor, Jeff Draheim ACE. Jeff breaks down the process of editing an animated film and does a deep dive on...

Editing storyboards and layouts to ready for production
Selling the story with scratch tracks and temp fx
Adjusting camera moves and sketches with AfterFX
The "sweatbox" stage of post production
Cutting back on overwriting and over explaining

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Ford v Ferrari Nov 18, 2019

Show notes

Editors Mike McCusker, ACE and Andrew Buckland open up their edit room to The Rough Cut to talk about their new film with director James Mangold, Ford v Ferrari. Mike and Andrew get into: