✂️ What's your editor attitude?

The 2nd Proclamation of The Editor's Manifesto

Author

Jesse Koepke
June 20, 2023

Editors talk a lot about skills. A quick YouTube search will bring up thousands of tutorials for every NLE and every technique.

What is rarely talked about is an editor’s attitude.

How we think and feel about our role as editors directly impacts our emotions and interactions, and ultimately our work.

That’s why this is Proclamation 2 in The Editor’s Manifesto:

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I will cultivate a helpful attitude.

But what attitudes are the most important? Where should we start?

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“I will be gracious.”

We editors are stressed group. So much so that the Occupational Information Network named video editing the 2nd most stressful job in 2022.

This comes from a lot of factors: last-minute deadlines, late assets, conflicting creative visions, etc. The whole string of production and post passes through the hands of an editor and we interact with almost every department in film and video.

Because of this, we have a chance to set the tone at the end of a project. We can either make it a peaceful race to the finish, or a squabbling mess that barely makes it.

We can thank our camera operators and do our best with the footage we have, instead of snapping about shaky and overexposed footage.

We can thank VFX for their hard work, instead of grumbling that they are getting us finished shots two days too late.

We can patiently ask our director questions to understand his/her vision, instead of arguing with over which b-roll shot makes the scene “cinematic”.

Yes, this can be so hard! We usually have good reasons to be disgruntled and upset.

But that’s what grace is: a freely given gift, even when it’s not deserved.

Editors can shift the mood by extending grace when times are hard.

“I will be humbly confident.”

Humility and confidence might seem like a contradiction. But they are actually best friends.

You see, confidence by itself can lead to arrogance. You proclaim that you are the best at everything and can do no wrong!

Humility keeps this in check by acknowledging that there are things you have yet to learn.

On the other hand, humility by itself can lead to insecurity. You worry that your edits are no good, you don’t have what it takes to be an editor, and other editors will get picked long before you are!

Confidence keeps this in checking by acknowledging that you have skills and experience that will improve the project.

“I will be servant-hearted.”

Rarely does a project originate with the editor. The story and material are usually handed to us from a writer, director, or producer.

Even as we edit, we rarely get to call the shots. The lead creative drives the choices. Hopefully we gain their trust and we can offer ideas, but the lead creative still has final say.

We serve the lead creative by bringing their vision to life. We serve the viewers by informing, entertaining, and evoking emotion in them. We serve our co-workers by helping when needed and delivering on time.

We prepare our hearts to help a project succeed by entering the project with a serving attitude.

These three attitudes elevate the project and people around us. They position our hearts to be inclined toward helping and lifting up, rather than grumbling and tearing down.

If you had to spend days in an edit suite with someone, which type of editor would you prefer?

Cultivate these attitudes

There are days when these attitudes are so hard to hold onto. But we can commit to always value and come back to them.

We can also learn how to hold them in better ways. When someone has wronged you, how do you acknowledge the wrong but still extend grace? How do we be humble without slipping into false humility? We can always improve our attitude.

Remembering to cultivate a helpful attitude will keep your heart and emotions healthy, as well as build healthy relationships.

This is how an editor thrives for decades.

This is part of an ongoing series about The Editor’s Manifesto.

Next time we’ll be looking at the 3rd Proclamation.

Thanks for reading!

What attitudes have been helpful in your editing career? I’d love to hear about it.

Keep cutting,

– Jesse Koepke

When you're ready, here are a few ways you can grow your editing career: