TV editing has intense highs
Name: Meg Townend
Occupation: Freelance television editor What jobs did you do before this one? spent my teenage years working after school at a video library. During university I worked every odd job going to pay my way, from welder, cleaner and house painter, to babysitter.
QWhy did you choose this job? I’ve always been interested in people and the stories of their lives, so making documentaries is a natural extension of that love. I’ve found that I enjoy making films on challenging issues, and finding less traditional ways of exploring the world.
QHow did you get into it and when? Editing found me. From the age of 12 I was passionate about making films and taking photographs so when I left school, that’s what I studied. When I left university, even though I originally wanted to be a cameraperson, my lecturer directed me into the postproduction field and found me a job as a runner — the lowest rung of the TV/film ladder.
QWhat qualifications and training did you need? There is no one route into editing. Some find getting relevant experience more useful than specific qualifications, but it can be difficult getting a foot in the door — even with a degree. I’ve a BTEC in photography and a BA Hons in Film from the UK. I worked as a runner in postproduction, building up industry contacts and editing for free at the weekends for two years, before being given the opportunity to assist editors assembling sequences and preparing footage. Another two years of that led to me being offered my first series, aged 25.
QWhat personal skills do you need? A strong visual memory and good finemotor skills are important. An interest in films, documentaries, TV shows and a willingness to learn and constantly adapt your skill. A high attention to detail, an ability to think laterally and solve challenges constantly. Good emotional intelligence, being helpful, friendly and amenable. You have to be OK with erratic work patterns, long hours, stressful situations and living the freelance lifestyle. Sympathetic friends and family are a must!
QAny physical requirements? The ability to sit in small, dark rooms for countless hours staying focused, alert and not falling asleep while watching hundreds of hours of footage.
QWhat do you do on a daily basis? Compile the footage into a timeline. Edit to script or the producer’s guidelines, depending on the show or what the footage suggests. Add voiceover, music, archive and then view it.
Restructure and make changes.
View it again. Make more changes until everyone is happy or you run out of time. Then send to the channel and hope they like it!
QWhat is the most challenging aspect? Footage that doesn’t tell the story your producer thinks is there. Or having a channel change their mind about the angle of a show after it’s been filmed. Deadlines change and issues arise and you have to ‘‘keep calm and carry on’’.
QAre there any particular health and safety issues? Sitting for too long. Staring at screens for too long. Stress when you have a tight deadline.
QWhat is the most interesting assignment you have had? I’ve edited so many interesting and challenging films. From a yearlong edit on an observational series with the UK Royal Family to wideranging documentaries and, more recently, learning so much about animals, working freelance for NHNZ.
QHow has the job changed since you started? The technology has changed greatly. Nonlinear (digital) editing started in the industry at the same time I did, and each year it evolves. Editing schedules are shorter, and because crews record their footage on digital they can be less selective when filming, which gives you a lot more work, but also more options in the edit. You can be working with hundreds of hours of footage for a onehour show.
QWhat’s something people generally don’t know about the job? That you can work remotely across the world. Over the past few years I’ve been lucky enough to cut films for the BBC or CH4 remotely, with the production team based in London while I’m in my edit suite in Dunedin. Technology has moved so fast that as long as you have great technical support, your location isn’t a barrier any more.
QWhat are the highs of the job? It’s rewarding when tens of millions of people see your film, or it receives great reviews. But I also enjoy working on campaign films that have a further impact in society. For example, I edited a film about female genital mutilation in the UK, which informed a debate in the UK Parliament, a change in the law and the first UK prosecution.
QWhat are the lows of the job? Weekends disappearing. It used to be tough being in a windowless edit suite in the midsummer heat while your friends were at Glastonbury. Now it’s tough when your family is in Central but you have a deadline to meet so can’t join them. But it’s part of the job.
QWhat’s the strangest thing you have had to do? As a runner, strange jobs are part of the job description! In my first week on the job I had to go into a sound mix and count expletives in a gangster series to see how many needed bleeping; I had to pick up a dead, rotting pigeon from a balcony because the smell was leaking into an edit suite; and I had to make tea for Beatles producer George Martin. Not all at once, fortunately.
QWhat is the salary? As a runner you earn minimum wage, and as a freelance junior editor on a TV series you may earn $1000 a week. Senior editors’ rates then vary widely depending on your experience, the budget of the show and from country to country, but can extend into the thousands per week.
QWhere will you be 10 years from now? Hopefully still making interesting films and editing documentaries. Working half the year for international clients, and the rest making beautiful natural history films with NHNZ.