Đạo diễn shoot 100 giờ footage cho phim 2 tiếng. Trong phòng tối, một người ngồi trước Avid và quyết định: take 3 của shot 47, hold thêm 12 frame, cắt sang reaction shot, dissolve sang flashback. Đó là Editor — người mà Walter Murch gọi là "co-author kín tiếng nhất" của phim.
Khác với Đạo diễn (lead vision on set) — Editor lead vision trong phòng dựng. Phim thật sự ra đời trong editing, không phải trên set. Hai pair iconic: Scorsese + Thelma Schoonmaker (50 năm), Spielberg + Michael Kahn — Editor là partner suốt sự nghiệp.
01Editor phim là ai?
Editor phim là người chọn take, cắt rhythm, build pacing và emotional arc của phim từ raw footage. Họ work với hundreds of hour material — multiple take per shot, multiple angle, multiple option. Decide: which take (performance, technical quality), where to cut (point of cut critical), transition (cut, dissolve, fade, match cut), pacing (scene rhythm, scene length), structure (sometimes reorder scene, cut subplot). Final cut là gần như "rewrite" phim trong phòng tối.
Khác với Editor animation (work với animatic + scheduled animation) — Editor live-action work với raw footage có sẵn. Khác với Assembly Editor (first pass — simply put scenes in order) — Editor refine sâu. Khác với Sound Editor (focus audio post) — Editor picture cut. Khác với Colorist (color grade) — Editor structure + rhythm. Có sub-specialty: Feature Film Editor, TV / Streaming Editor, Documentary Editor, Trailer Editor (marketing trailer cut).
- Chọn take từ multiple option per shot
- Cut rhythm — point of cut, pacing
- Build emotional arc qua structure
- Final cut với sound, music, color integration
Gợi ý tìm ảnh
"film editor avid editing room thelma schoonmaker scorsese editorial suite"
Editor phim — co-author kín tiếng nhất của phim
Vị trí trong quy trình sản xuất
Editor báo cáo cho Director (creative) + Producer (business). Phối hợp với: 1st Assistant Editor (sync, media management), 2nd AE / Editorial Assistant, Sound Editor, Colorist, VFX Supervisor, Composer. Tham gia: production (assembly cut during shoot — Editor cuts daily as footage arrive), post-production (refine cut với Director, multiple round — 3–9 tháng). Pre-production read script + meet Director. Total 6 tháng-1.5 năm per feature.
02Công việc của một Editor phim
1. Ingest & assembly cut
During shoot (production phase) — daily Editor ingest footage từ set, sync with sound. Assembly cut: put best take của mỗi shot in script order, raw cut. Editor work parallel với shoot — provide rough scene to Director sau few day. Editor cũng spot issue: missing coverage, performance problem, continuity error — flag cho Director rời set quay supplemental.
- Daily ingest + sync
- Assembly cut — best take per shot
- Issue flagging — coverage problem
Gợi ý tìm ảnh
"film editor avid premiere assembly cut footage sync ingest editorial"
Ingest & assembly cut during production
2. Editor's first cut
Sau wrap shoot — Editor có vài tuần alone với footage. Build Editor's first cut — version Editor's own without Director influence. This cut quan trọng: Director sees through fresh eye, often discover something different from on-set vision. Usually first cut longer (3 tiếng), refine xuống dần.
- Solo cutting — Editor's vision
- Longer first version (3+ hours often)
- Present cho Director
Gợi ý tìm ảnh
"film editor first cut alone avid editing room solo work"
Editor's first cut — solo
Gợi ý tìm ảnh
"director editor review cut screening editorial góp ý collaboration"
Present cho Director
3. Director's cut — iterate
Director join Editor trong phòng dựng. Multiple round revision: cut scene, restructure, alternate take, pacing adjust. Process can take 3–9 tháng. Editor must balance: defend Editor's instinct, accept Director vision, suggest creative alternative. Studio often có test screening — audience reaction inform cut further. Multiple cut version — "director's cut", "studio cut", "test screening cut".
- Director's cut — iterate together
- Test screening — audience góp ý
- Studio cut — exec note
Gợi ý tìm ảnh
"film director editor collaboration cut review editorial suite work"
Director's cut — iterate together
4. Picture lock & finishing
Picture lock: final visual cut frozen. Sound team start mix, Colorist start grade, VFX finalize shot. Editor sit trong: sound mix session (give note on rhythm interaction với sound), color grade session (sometimes minor edit adjust for color flow), final mix. Conform & deliver: master cut cho DCP (Digital Cinema Package), streaming master, broadcast.
- Picture lock — final visual
- Finishing session — sound, color, VFX
- Master delivery
Gợi ý tìm ảnh
"film picture lock finishing sound mix color grade dcp delivery"
Picture lock & finishing — final delivery
03Editor phim cần giỏi gì?
music_note
Sense về rhythm & cut point
psychology
Storytelling — restructure scene
settings
Avid Media Composer mastery
widgets
Collaborate Director — trust deep
palette
Visual taste & framing
bolt
Stamina & patience
Sense về rhythm & cut point
Editing essence: where to cut. Walter Murch's 6 priorities of cut: emotion (51%), story (23%), rhythm (10%), eye-trace (7%), 2D plane of screen (5%), 3D space (4%). Cut on emotion above all. Practice via: re-cut favorite scene multiple way, A/B compare. Read "In the Blink of an Eye" (Walter Murch) — Bible of editing.
Watch documentary "The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing" (2004) — interview top editor.
Storytelling — restructure scene
Editor là last rewriter. Phim trên page khác phim trên screen — pacing, rhythm, audience reaction change everything. Editor must sense weak point, cut subplot, reorder scene. Famous: Annie Hall original 2.5 tiếng + drama; Editor + Woody Allen restructure thành 90 phút romantic comedy — won Best Picture.
Avid Media Composer mastery
Industry standard cho feature. Avid Media Composer — master deep (multi-cam edit, multi-version, complex bin, keyboard fluent). Premiere Pro common indie / streaming. DaVinci Resolve growing. Take Avid course (Avid Certified User), practice via short project.
Collaborate Director — trust deep
Editor-Director relationship intimate — sit together 6+ tiếng/ngày for months. Build trust: deliver good cut consistently, respect vision, suggest without ego, listen. Best pair work multi-decade: Schoonmaker+Scorsese, Kahn+Spielberg, Cassidy+Linklater. Career Editor build through repeat collaboration.
Visual taste & framing
Editor choose take based on framing, performance, light. Phải có visual taste sharp. Study cinematography parallel với editing — biết DP intent giúp pick right take. Watch film analytically, identify why specific cut work.
Stamina & patience
Edit session 8–12 tiếng. Detail-obsessed work — adjust 2-frame cuts. Live với same phim for months. Stay creative throughout. Pace energy. Take walk break. Manage burnout.
04Làm cách nào để trở thành Editor phim?
1
Học film / editing 4–5 năm
VN: ĐH Sân khấu Điện ảnh (Dựng phim Hà Nội + TP.HCM). Quốc tế top: AFI Conservatory (Editing strongest program), USC, NYU Tisch, NFTS (UK), La Fémis Paris. Foundation: film history, editing principle, sound, narrative theory. Critical: edit own short extensively during school.
2
Master Avid + Premiere — 1000+ hour
Tool mastery foundation. Avid certification, Premiere Adobe certified. Free: YouTube "InsideTheEdit", "This Guy Edits". Practice via own short, friend's short, re-cut existing film footage. Buy small home setup (Mac + Avid subscription).
3
Khởi đầu: Editorial Assistant / 2nd AE
Path entry chính: Editorial Assistant (EA) hoặc 2nd Assistant Editor trên feature. Handle media management, sync, prep. 2–4 năm EA học inside editing room. VN: Galaxy Studio, BHD post, Tuấn Studio. Quốc tế: Major studio post house.
4
1st Assistant Editor
Promote thành 1st AE — sometimes cut scene independent, manage editorial quy trình. Build trust với Editor. 2–4 năm 1st AE typical before promote Editor. Cross-cut TV episode is fastest path.
5
Editor solo — TV episode → indie feature
First editor credit usually: TV episode (drama series, sitcom episode rotate editor), indie low-budget feature, documentary (faster path for Editor — easier to step up cut). Build credit. Reel quan trọng — cut piece show emotional moment + technical skill.
6
Sự nghiệp Editor
Dài hạn: (1) Established Feature Editor — work với top Director repeatedly, prestige + decent rate; (2) Trailer Editor — high rate, faster project (advertising-style); (3) TV Lead Editor — series consistency (Game of Thrones, Succession); (4) Documentary Editor specialist; (5) Cross to Director — Editor experience valuable (Asghar Farhadi). Lương: VN entry 15–25M, mid 30–60M, feature editor 50–120M; US Editor $80K–$300K, A-list (working với Spielberg, Scorsese) $500K–$1M+/film. Career often 30–50 năm — Thelma Schoonmaker editing into her 80s.
