No NLE's For SPIELBERG

(From The Avid Yahoo User's Group)

Why is it that STEPHEN SPIELBERG STILL cuts his movies using a MOVIEOLA?

Whats wrong with AVID or non-linear editing? Anyone know?

The answer -- because he can.

Spielberg has stated many times that he simply loves the tactile, sensual nature of cutting on film. He likes the painterly quality of being able to hold your medium in your hand, like paint brushes or a sculptor's clay. And remember that he came of age cutting on film. Sometimes, things just stick and for him, this one thing that works.

Having worked on the other side of the hall from the
MICHAEL KAHN cutting room (Spielberg's editor), I can tell you that Michael has cut non-linear before, but Spielberg prefers film.

They won't cop to it, but I think that a large part of the decision lies in security. When cutting on film, you can keep everything just a bit closer to home.

Furthermore, I reckon that the chances of having to send off DVD's to dozens of people throughout the editing process is vastly diminished by editing in film, thereby eliminating some of the risk of piracy, which is so darn actual these days.

Or, I guess maybe he likes flatbeds because they never crash.

In any event, it's just as easy to turn out a bad film when cutting film or cutting non-linear.

"I'm told I might be the only guy who still edits on film.
I've cut pictures on the Avid for other directors, such as JAN DE BONT's TWISTER in 1996 and BRAD SILBERLING's LEMONY SNICKETS: A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS last year.

Steven is a traditionalist; he likes to feel the film, see the film, touch the film. It's no problem for me, because the work never goes any slower because of it.

I like film because, as an editor, you are forced to have a point of view and to make decisions that can only go one way at a time. This is unlike electronic editing, where you bring several versions to the director and he takes some from column A and some from column B to put a film together. That's not making editors' decisions. An editor should feel good about making contributions to the movie and display a point of view via his collaboration with the director."

MICHAEL KAHN

For more words from Michael Kahn on editing, check out this full interview with him in EDITORS' GUILD MAGAZINE.

The Michael Kahn Interview