Editors, edit producers and a post-production supervisor explain how to make the editing of a TV programme as smooth as possible.
They talk about how to schedule the editing of a one-hour programme, why transcripts are invaluable, and the importance of communication between the post-production team and shoot crew.
The panelists
Emma Comans (post-production supervisor)
Tom Sales (editor and edit assistant)
Ann Marie Goodwin (senior edit producer)
Pete Benn (editor and lead editor)
The panel is introduced by Jo Woolf (factual entertainment series producer).
Questions they answer and the points covered include:
0:00 - Introduction
2:21 - What is a post-production supervisor?
4:00 - What sort of projects or series need the role of post-production supervisor?
5:03 - What are your [Emma Comans'] top tips for making things run smoothly?
8:20 - What does an edit assistant do and how is it different from an assembly editor or a junior editor or an assistant editor?
10:58 - In your [Tom Sales'] experience, when should an edit assistant come onboard a project and how in advance before the editor actually starts?
12:54 - Lines of communication
18:01 - How much have edits changed and got more complicated over the last 20 years?
21:45 - Multi-camera (multicam) setups post-production work
25:32 - Avid Media Composer (Avid) crashes
27:48 - What's a match frame edit?
28:48 - As an edit producer, what sort of information do you need in order to be able to do your job as efficiently and productively as possible?
31:32 - Using new viewing platforms as an edit producer
35:17 - Have you [Ann Marie] found any unusual schedules and expectations?
38:54 - Doing notes taking a long time
40:06 - Stitch editing and story editing
42:28 - Points when an edit assistant would love to come in and what a snap in is
45:17 - What is the software, ScriptSync?
47:02 - What is the software, Blackbird?
48:57 - When first beginning a new project, what are the first three organisational steps you would take?
51:31 - Creating an 'edit bible' after finishing a project
55:20 - Communication
56:22 - Covid-19 and remote working
58:59 - With budgets being made tighter and tighter by channels in Covid-19 times, where do you think that cost saving can occur in post-production?
1:00:46 - What is the software, Frame.io?
1:01:51 - What happens if the wrong decision of what to import is made and you want something different?
1:03:39 - What're the best ways to communicate when people are working remotely?
1:07:41 - Has anybody got any post-production money-saving tips?
1:09:47 - The viewings with the broadcaster
1:13:55 - Do series producers, executives and commissioning editors rarely pay attention to part three and four of an episode edit?
1:15:56 - Rough cuts
About the speakers
Jo Woolf is an award-winning factual entertainment series producer with over 15 years' experience overseeing different edits. Jo works with ScreenSkills to deliver training on edit producing. Jo has worked on The Choir: Military Wives, First Dates and Big Flower Fight.
Emma Comans is a post-production supervisor and set up her own company, Flying Fox. Emma has worked in post-production for more than 15 years. Emma worked in-house for Tiger Aspect Productions running their post-production, and has also worked for major post-production houses such as Clear Cut Pictures and Molinare.
Tom Sales is an editor and edit assistant. Tom has worked as an editor on such projects as Inside the Ambulance, Cruising with Jane McDonald Christmas Special and Nightmare Tenants, Slum Landlords. He has worked as an edit assistant for Dorothy Street Pictures on various projects in 2020 and 2021. Tom also runs a popular Facebook group called I NEED AN EDIT ASSISTANT - UK.
Ann Marie Goodwin is a senior edit producer who has also worked as a series producer and executive producer. Ann Marie has worked on such projects as Big Cat Diary, The Wonderful World of Chocolate, Paddington 24/7 and Rich Kids, Skint Holiday.
Pete Benn is an editor and lead editor who has been working in post-production for 20 years. Pete worked on some of the first series of Big Brother. He has also worked on 24 Hours in A&E, Grand Designs, The Apprentice and SAS: Who Dares Wins.
About the event
This is a recording of an online event that took place on 12 February 2021. This event was supported by the ScreenSkills Television Skills Fund which invests in training for the freelance television workforce thanks to contributions from the BBC, Channel 4, ITV and Channel 5. It was introduced by factual entertainment series producer, Jo Woolf. It's part of a ScreenSkills programme managed by the Indie Training Fund to support freelancers to upskill and stay connected, helping to keep the industry resilient during Covid-19.
Further careers information
Read our job profiles on being a series producer and an edit producer in unscripted TV. Check out our unscripted TV job profiles.