1st Edition

Editing for the Screen

Edited By John Rosenberg Copyright 2025
    240 Pages 21 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    240 Pages 21 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    Combining essays and interviews with editors from film and television, this collection explores the business side of editing. Over 30 industry professionals dispel myths about the industry and provide practical advice on the business of film and TV editing.

    John Rosenberg has brought together contributions from Dody Dorn (Momento), Scott Conrad (Rocky), and Kevin Tent (The Holdovers) Bruce Green (Cool Runnings), Nancy Forner (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), and Yu Jung Hou (American Born Chinese), among others, to provide diverse perspectives on editing a variety of formats from feature films to sitcoms, working with other departments, breaking into the field as an assistant editor. Building on the craft of editing and looking at how aspiring editors can apply this to the industry, readers are taken through the process from getting started in the industry, to progressing through your career and getting ahead as an editor. Readers will also learn about the entrepreneurial expectations in relation to marketing, strategies for contending with the emotional highs and lows of editing, and money management whilst pursuing a career in editing for film and television.

    Written for undergraduates and graduates studying film and TV editing, as well as aspiring editors, this book provides readers with a wealth of first-hand information that will help them create their own opportunities and pursue a career in film and television.

    Chapter 1 – GETTING STARTED

     

    COULD WE PLEASE TALK ABOUT ASSISTANT EDITING?

    By Yu Jung Hou


    HAVE A LITTLE FAITH: Research and Determination on the Path to an Editing Career

    By Toi Juan Shannon

     

    EDITING: THE CAREER KALEIDOSCOPE

    By Dan Gross

    AN INTERVIEW WITH JASON BALLANTINE, ASC, ACE

     

    Chapter 2 – STICKING IT OUT

     

    AN INTERVIEW WITH ALI GREER, ACE

    POST CONFIDENTIAL: MY PATH IN THE REAL HOLLYWOOD

    By Jacob Eben

     

    THIRD TIME’S THE CHARM: POWERING THROUGH DOUBT, ONE CUT AT A TIME

    By Roy Arwas


    MOVIE EDITING: MY PASSPORT TO TRAVEL, ADVENTURE AND GREAT FRIENDS

    By Arthur Coburn, ACE

    Chapter 3 – FINDING SUCCESS

     AN INTERVIEW WITH KEVIN TENT, ACE

     AN INTERVIEW WITH BRUCE GREEN, ACE

     AN INTERVIEW WITH SCOTT CONRAD, ACE

     AN INTERVIEW WITH DODY DORN, ACE

     

     Chapter 4 – GETTING AHEAD

     FROM COAST TO COAST

    By Rick Shaine, ACE

     AN INTERVIEW WITH LORI JANE COLEMAN

     AN INTERVIEW WITH NANCY FORNER, ACE

     AN INTERVIEW WITH BILL YAHRAUS

     

     Chapter 5 – STARTING AGAIN

     SUBJECT TO CHANGE

    By Jason Rosenfield, ACE

     
    PASSION, HUMANITY AND PERSEVERANCE: THE EDITOR’S PATH TO SUCCESS

    By Kris Fitzgerald

     THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD: MY JOURNEY IN POST PRODUCTION

    By Eric Young

     AN INTERVIEW WITH GLENN GARLAND, ACE

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Biography

    John Rosenberg is a member of the Motion Picture Editors Guild (MPEG) and American Cinema Editors (ACE). He teaches the aesthetics of motion picture editing at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts. He is the author of THE FINAL REWRITE: How to View Your Screenplay with a Film Editor’s Eye and the popular guide to modern film editing, THE HEALTHY EDIT: Creative Editing Techniques for Perfecting Your Movie, now in its 2nd edition. For over forty years, he has worked in the motion picture industry as a film editor on nearly three dozen feature films, as well as a producer and production executive for several independent studios. He has collaborated with such talents as Jack Nicholson, Colin Firth, Ice-T, Ellen Barkin, Sam Elliott, Kelly McGillis and companies including 20th Century, Lorimar, Orion, New Line and Artisan. His films have appeared in international and domestic festivals, with multiple Official Selections in the Sundance Film Festival.