Mike Nicholas
Forum Replies Created
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Just adding more coal to the fire, but as everyone sates:
If you want to work professionally (full time, nothing else but editing), learn FCP and Avid. That’s it. You won’t NEED anything else.
If you want to know the shows that I worked on using those programs, they include:
The Apprentice
The Contender
Prison Break
Deadwood
EntourageThe list goes on; needless to say, there’s not a lot of broadcast shows working out of PPro.
“Roto is not a skill, it’s a job.”
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[Tony Alznauer] “There are plenty of clients who may not know how good something can get and just ask for their projects to look their best. If every kid out of film school has these tools there will be a large number of clients who settle for what they think is a properly color corrected project, thinking they are getting the same thing for much less.”
Ding ding ding! Give that man a prize; you made my point in a much more concise way. I agree totally…
“Roto is not a skill, it’s a job.”
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Having worked in the highest end (currently in a shop with discreet, davinci, and Avid DS working on feature films and commercials) as well as the middle ground (an Apple-centric, FCP offline/finishing house) not to mention the lower levels (low-budget student films and indies), I climbed this ladder thanks in large part to the desktop availability of those wonderful post tools.
However, I think that the apple-fying of the world has a definite negative side: Clients suddenly feel that because the tools are cheaper, the price HAS to be lower. As a result, the middle ground is slowly disappearing. Talent be damned…I’ve worked with the same people for years now, and despite the fact that 3 years ago we charged X amount, suddenly the clients want it at 2/3 the price since “Shake costs $500; we want a discount.” Never mind that the talent level has not changed, and neither has the work; they just want it cheaper because the tools (some of which we don’t even use) have gone down.
In the almost 5 years I’ve been doing this professionaly, I’ve seen the bar lowered significantly in terms of standards. Clients used to come to an online session ready for finishing; now that they can make changes to an edit or graphic from a laptop, they are less prepared. Most of the time, I have to re-do their EDLs and graphics for them to meet network standards. The knowledge of how the workflow is managed is forsaken because mistakes can be covered up with little fuss. Half the time, clients (including working editors and graphic designers) don’t know how to read a vectorscope or make a matte and fill. They can make pretty pictures, but the skilled workflow is almost non-existent.
Anyone who thinks that “talent” will continue to get paid the same amount is not paying attention to current post models. Half the people doing the work (most of which are doing it without proper training) don’t know the standards that have taken years of MY LIFE to learn. While it’s true that maybe colorists getting their own coffee is a good thing, what’s not a good thing is that people are taking shortcuts to the editors/colorists chair without putting in the time to learn the fundamentals. As a result, the quality of the product suffers, and clients become spoiled by “good enough” work.
my 2 cents…“Roto is not a skill, it’s a job.”
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[adkimery] “Knowing FCP/Avid in terms of editing and knowing them in terms of AEing are two very different things. It’s pretty much the difference between being a race car driver and a race car mechanic.”
That right there is the main difference in AEs and Editors….AE’s gotta be organized, fast, AND know the machine enough to rip it apart and put it together. Get to know some engineers; when the box goes down, it’s up to the AE and engineer to piece it together. Great analogy adkimery…
“Roto is not a skill, it’s a job.”
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Having been an assistant editor on FCP, Avid, and Fire/Smoke, I can tell you the best way to become an editor’s assistant is to
1) Stay late/ come early and learn the dang machine, front to back and end to end.
2) Chat up the artist/ editor you’re assisting, you’ll gain their trust if they like you and you might learn a thing or two along the way.Confidence and competence are key, but equally important is the relationships you build to get the job. If people like/trust you, you’re already halfway in the door. Just make sure you learn the job well, and the rest will take care of itself….
“Roto is not a skill, it’s a job.”