Baby, its all up to YOU One of the hardest truths I had to face when I was first starting out in filmmaking is accepting the fact that NO ONE is going to make your film. No matter how cool, inspirational, or sexy....
You and you only are going to have to drive it all the way to the finish line. from pre-production mood boards to posting teasers of the finished film on Instagram - its going to be your hero's journey.
Once I realized that fact of life, I began to teach myself how to edit. It was out of necessity that i dove head long into the world of Adobe Creative Suite and unlocked the door to Premiere Pro with nervous hands.
Embarking into the Digital Woods At this time, I had a firm understanding of shooting with my camera and directing. And the thought of once again throwing myself into learning a new skill was terrifying. The simple truth was because I couldn't afford to hire an editor and my friends were either too busy or had no idea how to edit.
I was on my own to expand my skillset. After a few weeks of tiptoeing around it, I truly jumped into my quest. This would be both the smartest decision I've ever made in my life... but also the most difficult. Why you ask? When I tell you the hours of YouTube tutorials I watched deliriously while editing alongside could break a grown man's soul, you'll just have to believe me. My prior experience was making fictional movie trailers on MovieMaker with a Windows 7 back in the day, so let's just say I was starting at square one and it was painfully obvious by the number of times I had to come back to certain basic videos. But through that never ending gauntlet of technical play-by-play, often replayed incessantly, till I finally understood what in the world Caleb from the YouTube channel FilmHeroKid meant by speed -ramping and crushing my blacks.... I finally learned to edit.
A New World
Whoever said knowledge is power is one right motherf****er. With this new knowledge of video editing, I unlocked huge career opportunities for myself, boundless creative freedom, and credibility withing my community.
When you can take raw footage, full of bad takes, janky lighting, and stationary shots and somehow transform it into something captivating, alive, and hypnotic, it's a bit like discovering alchemy. The magic of movie making lies solely in the editing and disguising of the raw materials to create a portal into a new world.
While it is a meticulous process, time consuming, and difficult, the pleasure of watching the piece grow and transform before my eyes is all the reward i need. Having the power to create film and have my vision come to life, especially after years of frustration when i could mobilize passion projects, editing is truly a blessing.
On to the Next Adventure
I cannot begin to express my gratitude the creatives who educated me and continue to be resources when I face problems in my work. A simple YouTube search usually always yields just the solution I need. And for that generosity, I am forever thankful.
Comments