The Role of a Video Editor

Creating amazing video content that captures the excitement of events, showcases a brand in the best light or gives you a platform for your talents, takes much more than capturing the right footage. That footage needs to be turned into meaningful content, used creatively and interpreted to turn the final product into something professional and engaging. To do this takes a number of different specialisms. A key role in the process is that of video editor.

What does a video editor do?

A video editor takes the footage that has been captured and then uses it to tell a coherent story. They will assemble and construct a sequence of moving images, skillfully using other types of media to help construct a narrative. This helps to create a clear story that adds value to the footage. The core function of a video editor is to select, cut, trim and sequence different pieces of footage into a narrative structure that will ultimately become the completed video.

Video editors need to have a broad range of skills. They need to have technical mastery of the technology they use, as well as the aesthetic ability to make good choices about what to use and how it should be presented. A video editor might not have a comprehensive understanding of every last detail of the process, but they will be part of a team that does and will know who to approach for different tasks.

Assistant editors

The video editor will often have support from an assistant editor. This can be a career entry point for someone who aims to become a video editor or can be a valid long-term role in itself depending on the aptitudes and ambitions of the individual.

Their role involves logging footage as well as preparing assets for post-production.  With digital technology, the labour intensive aspects of video editing that assistant editors used to undertake have mostly been streamlined or made redundant. You tend to only find separate assistant editors in larger production companies, with much of their role taken on by the video editor themselves or other people in the production team.

Assembling the footage

Video editors will possess high levels of technical knowledge, particularly when it comes to editing software and post-production tools. This allows them to work efficiently, dealing with large amounts of material in a short period of time.

Video production rarely has limitless amounts of time available to complete tasks. The norm is working to tight deadlines and budgets, meaning that everyone involved has to know what they’re doing, and need to work efficiently while not allowing quality to drop. For that reason, the role of a video editor is incredibly complex and requires high degrees of skill.

The editor has to marry their creative nous with technical skills to solve a range of problems. They have to be willing to improvise, all the while working hard to maintain consistent efficiency.

Rough cuts

The video editor will seldom work alone throughout the process, being part of a larger team of people with different skills and responsibilities. The editor essentially works like the master craftsmen who takes the overall vision for the production and applies that to the editing process.

The video editor will often be joined by other people in the process such as the producer, who will provide direction and advice about the edit. The video editor will also give their own recommendations.

The video editor will be able to seamlessly use the tools available to them, be strong at constructing compelling narrative, and be good at communicating their ideas while receiving feedback. The video editor is a crucial cog in the video production team.

Combining roles

In smaller teams, the role of producer and video editor may be combined. Or it might be the case that someone with the necessary skills takes on both roles on a particular project due to budgetary constraints. Needless to say, for someone to be able to successfully carry out this role takes a broad range of skills.   

They will see the project through from beginning to end and will plan the production with the needs of post-production in mind. To carry out this role an individual needs to be a jack-of-all-trades, extremely experienced and confident in their capabilities.

While there are capable video professionals who are able to step up to the plate and combine roles, it can have some disadvantages for the customer who loses the separate insight and experience that different people can provide.

Top of the profession

Experienced video editors are highly sought after individuals with real creative flair and technical mastery. They’re able to take whatever footage they’re presented with and then turn it into a masterpiece.

They’re exceptional storytellers and their work really stands out from the crowd. They’ve often established a professional specialism and have become the standard by which others are judged. You find these people working in small commercial video production companies and Hollywood blockbusters.

At Eight Engines, we’ve assembled Manchester’s leading video production team. Our video editors are some of the best in the business. If you’re searching for a video editor in Manchester then our team members have a track record that speaks for itself.

Through editing, amendments and completion, our award winning team takes the expertly gathered footage and turns it into something that ticks all the boxes.

If you’re considering creating video content for your brand, organisation or event then contact the team at Eight Engines today.

Call 03309 950645 or email info@eightengines.com to find out more.