Entry 6: Baby Driver and Editing

Paul Machliss in his mobile editing center.

Baby Driver has very special editing in that much of the editing was done on set. Editor Paul Machliss had a mobile setup built so he could edit during filming. This was done to ensure "that six months down the line we weren't gonna go, 'Ugh, we missed a trick here.' 'This didn't work." Machliss says that because he also worked with Wright on Scott Pilgrim vs. the World and At World's End, they had begun to come up with a cohesive system to edit the film on-set as it was shot. They had to get incredibly inventive for many of the scenes with large-scale car chases and such. Says Machliss, "Edgar said, 'We're filming on the road, I'd like you to be with me editing as we're filming'... So basically, we lashed up to an apple crate... and on this particular day, this is how it worked."

Machliss on his ExtraMobile editing studio.

Although our production is different as we cannot edit on set, we have taken many measures to ensure editing this picture is much smoother than our last film, like blocking out our actions and filming entire scenes from different angles as continuous shots, instead of stopping and starting the camera every time the scene cuts. Additionally, Brandon has been recording Foley sounds on set for many of our scenes, so we don't have to go out into the hallway at school and record the closest thing we can find with our phones after editing has begun. This way, we can edit the whole movie uninterrupted. I think this will truly help us not have to stay very late every day to complete our editing on time.

Sources:
https://www.premiumbeat.com/blog/editing-and-sound-baby-driver/
http://www.indiewire.com/2018/02/oscars-2018-baby-driver-editing-edgar-wright-1201930279/

Entry 5: Your Role (3/23)

I finish the editing for the horror segment of our film

I thought my discussion with the other editors was good to shine light on the common problems we were all facing and how we handled it. This was helpful as it also resolved a few minor issues we were all facing, like how to fix sound design in post. I'm feeling pretty good about the editing, as I enjoy editing movies, however, it is a lot of work. I'm most likely going to have to stay late every day next week in order to finish on time. Additionally, it's hard to fix problems with shots that we missed earlier in the week, so I'll need to find some creative workarounds for that. All in all, I'm feeling good about the editing we're undertaking.

The editing in Baby Driver, undertaken on set

Entry 4: How's it going? (3/18)

I feel like things are going pretty well. When our group sits down to work, we can actually get stuff done relatively quickly. As for me, the screenplay is completely done, and the editing won't begin until we're done filming. The prospect of editing this film is mildly daunting, as it is more intricate than many of our prior films. However, it should be very fun. I'm hoping to use techniques that I haven't used before, like changing the aspect ratio, grayscaling, etc.

Editing this may be scary, but not as scary as this Freddy Kruger statue that we put under a sheet for our film.

Writing this screenplay was really fun for me, because I decided to just think of the most crazy things I could come up with to fit in a single movie.

Entry 3: Editing and Storytelling (3/14)

1. A shot is made good by its attention to detail. When thought it put into how a shot should be filmed for the best effect, it shows. For example, take this shot from 2001: a Space Odyssey.

This shot is famous for its intricacies. The way that you can see the pods on the sides, the symmetric framing, and the space-agey lighting all work together to make an incredible visual creation. The meticulous planning has made something beautiful.

2. Editing is the most important part of a film. Without editing, there would be little meaning, it would simply be a series of shots. Take the montage, for example. By placing shots in a sequence, with certain shots after each other, it adds meaning to what would be meaningless film. For example, Battleship Potemkin, pioneer of the montage. Shots such as a woman getting shot, people falling over, children crying, help to show the destruction being wrought on the city. However, any of these shots on their own (save for the woman being shot) would not indicate anything beyond the obvious if they were not put together.

I begin to translate my screenplay to the storyboard. This was the day that I finished writing our script that was previously partially unfinished.

(3/5)

Our group stands back to admire our finished storyboard. I adjusted the script for our film, and then worked with the rest of our group to communicate the plot of the film through our storyboards.

(3/8)

The main focus of our movie is our door. Unfortunately, we couldn't find a door for less than $100, so we'll have to find an acceptable door in downtown Issaquah and all of the rest of our filming locations. One advantage we have for our 'horror movie' scene is the fact that the room we decided to film in is completely empty for renovations. So, we can completely control the environment. This is very helpful for the mise en scene of our scene. Additionally, we have chosen some really awesome filming locations.

After our first week of work, I'm feeling good about our film. I have a feeling it will be very time-consuming, but very fun to make. Our group is full of great guys who have awesome visions. I'm feeling good about my role, because I really enjoy the editing process, and the screenwriting is pretty much done. Our film is pretty creative and entails a lot of great days with the boys. The main thing that I'm worried about is that this movie will take a lot of time to complete.

Week 1 (Screenwriter/Editor):

I make amendments to the original script in order to make it more feasible for the four of us to produce with our zero budget (and fix the ending).