[David Johnson]

The next time you speak to Doug, please thank him for me … until I read his article (and similar viewpoints from others here on the COW) I was feeling a little like an old dog on a rant because I just didn’t want to change with the times. Now, I just feel like an old dog with a legitimate gripe. Let’s just hope it doesn’t take Sony too long to release Browser v2 with fixes for all the things Doug outlined and the foreground processing issue, which is a biggie.

[David Johnson]

Great minds!? You must be talking about Todd.

By the way, this is sort of a given, but just in case … once re-saved as a CS5 project file it won’t be able to go back into CS3. I’ve heard about someone writing a script to make that possible, but I don’t know if it’s available yet or what limitations it might have.

[David Johnson]

I’m glad you found my opinions helpful Jon. Best of luck.

[David Johnson]

Thank you for the excellent tips, Micheal. When we generate media in codecs that aren’t native to our facilities, we always make a point to discuss details directly with the recipient to avoid any gotchas like missing the mark for an Avid Fast Import as you mentioned.

We’re a fairly small shop so things like acquiring a software license from Apple or hardware encoders are more of a pipe dream than a pipeline for us right now (pun intended).

Thanks again and I hope you’ll make more of your speaking engagements available online in the future … CA is quite a trip from FL.

[David Johnson]

No worries, Jon. I understand that these are difficult topics to discuss in writing, rather than conversation.

Although my job covers a very wide range from producer to studio manager and everything in between, I am an editor and have been for many years. As it relates to being an editor, I consider my primary tools to include Final Cut Pro, Premier Pro, After Effects, 3D Studio Max, Photoshop, Illustrator, Audition, Sony Sound Forge, Sorenson Squeeze, Telestream Episode, DVD Studio Pro and Encore DVD, along with probably a couple dozen other ancillary programs. However, for several reasons, I think the names of the tools in one’s toolbox are irrelevant. For one thing, my list was different 5 years ago and will no doubt be different 5 years from now. Also, specific tools depend largely on an individual editor’s needs, experience, preferences, budget, etc.

Part of what I mean with that last part is that, for example, I’ve been using After Effects since it was made by Adobe’s predecessor Cosa. So, for me, it made no sense to switch to Motion after so many years. Similarly, it use to be impossible to do mograph without using After Effects, Photoshop & Illustrator together, but AE now has most of the functionality we use to need the other programs for. So, I think an editor should at least know the basics of Photoshop and Illustrator, but a deep knowledge is not nearly as critical as it once was.

If you prefer Motion, go with it … again, the specific tools are irrelevant … they come and go, but the principles remain the same and are transferable.

Another part is individual preferences. I’ve never liked doing titles, mograph, compositing, audio, etc. in my NLE even though most now have basic capabilities for those tasks (FCP is my primary NLE). I also prefer the interoperability amongst programs from the same developer and it seems unlikely Photoshop or Illustrator will be dethroned any time soon, but again, in most cases only the basics are necessary anymore.

How complex the work is depends entirely on one’s individual circumstance … if you’re a TV drama or documentary series editor, in some cases you might be expected to also make all the show opens, promos, etc. … in some cases, you won’t.

I hope this helps.

[David Johnson]

I tried to reply, but it got blocked because I used a word that refers to people who specialize, but also contains the same letter sequence as a popular pharmaceutical product that’s often in SPAM messages.

I’m sure it’ll show up eventually.

[David Johnson]

For the most part, neither television drama or documentary editing requires much in the way of special fx, mograph, animation, etc. Both types of programming typically have show opens and promos that are created once by a mograph/animation specialist and re-used for every episode. The editors typically cut the body of the shows and only do things like episodal titles, transitions, etc. in the style consistent with the open, promos, etc., which usually doesn’t require the same specialties as the people who make the opens, promos, etc.

So, it just depends on which of those roles you’d prefer … it sounds like you’re more interested in the editor role than the specialist role. Program editors are often staff positions, while specialists are often freelancers … there are pros and cons to both.

[David Johnson]

Thanks much, Michael. I understand your points, but we’re not just talking about the ability to play media … I understand that ProRes can be read on either platform, but it can’t be written on either platform so what I’m getting at is that we prefer to (and are often required to) eliminate the need for unnecessary transcoding. If we’re sending media to an Avid shop, we may want to or have to send it in an Avid codec, rather than require them to transcode our ProRes.

Thanks again.

[David Johnson]

[Chris Buttacoli] “I don’t see why purchasing an old version of AE from someone should be illegal. Making copies would be, I understand.”

You’re absolutely right, Chris, it isn’t illegal to purchase software from someone … it sounded to me like Gary was asking for someone to just give him AE 3.1 discs, but perhaps I was overzealous in suggesting that the best approach might be to ensure that a legit copy is being purchased, which getting from Adobe would leave no doubt of.

[David Johnson]

I’m not sure I understand what you are asking, but I’ll mention a couple things that might help …

First, it seems you pretty much answered your own question: [Jon Fidler] “What is the general day to day stuff I need to know how to do?” …. “you obviously need typographic and design knowledge for lower thirds, titles and transitions, animations as well as designing and animating basic logos and text as well as compositing.”

It depends primarily on specifically what you want your career to be and what you might be willing to settle for. Nowadays, it’s pretty much impossible to be an editor without some skills in mograph, animation, compositing, etc. unless you’re looking strictly at the high-end Hollywood track where, in many cases, editors edit and different people do the other things. Years ago, it even worked that way in mid and low-range shops, but those days are mostly long gone. By the “settle for” remark, I mean that, while you might have your sights set on doing Hollywood features, the reality is that a very small percentage make it that far so it’s usually wise to also factor in whether you would be satisfied making a decent living doing local broadcast, corporate, etc.

Another thing important to consider is that we all learn as we go. It’s not as though you learn everything you’ll need to know at the start of your career and then rest on your laurels and live happily ever after. Like many others who frequent the COW to both learn and share what we’ve learned, I’ve been in this business for 20 years now, but still spend a lot of time learning new stuff. So, I’d say focus on getting a firm grasp on the basics and learn more advanced stuff as needed.

Do you need to spend countless hours, days and years learning how to do high-end special fx, etc.? Not unless you’re dead set on Hollywood and will accept no less. To even get and keep a decent job as an editor, do you need a firm grasp of titles, animations, mograph, etc.? Absolutely.

I hope you find my two pence helpful.