Building an Efficient Editorial Workflow
Taking some time to think about how you’re going to manage your media is well worth the effort. It will save you time and potentially money for reshoots if you have a system in place before the first card is dumped.
Before Shooting
If you have the budget for a dedicated DIT, you probably wouldn’t be reading this. However, it may still be helpful to think about where your media is going to go after it comes off the card.
At minimum, you’re going to want somebody on set with computer skills (could be a reliable PA) to verify all media is copied and backed up before handing back to camera department.
During Shooting
Have you storyboarded and done paper edits? Would it be helpful to have an editor on set for guidance on coverage and other things? Do you want to shuttle media to an editor in real time to get rough ideas of how the dailies are working? Would it be good to have somebody creating proxies on set to speed up editorial?
These are questions that may help define what kind of workflow will be the most helpful while you’re busy worrying about every detail of the shoot.
After Shooting
If the production has not shared media with the editor until after production wraps, the post-production team will need time to prep and watch down the footage.
Some directors like to have the editor do a first pass assembly and then come in for notes. Others want to be present and involved intimately in the entire cut.
Whether you want to trust an editor with the assembly or be in the room, make sure to communicate your expectations well ahead of the post-production phase so everyone can plan accordingly.
Editing
How many workdays does the team have to complete the first cut? Is the editor also creating graphic elements like lower thirds or is there a dedicated graphics artist? How are the cuts being reviewed?
The answers to these questions will affect the efficiency of the post-production plan. Take care to communicate these answers and expectations to the post-production crew so they can prepare.
Finishing
Picture lock is not the final hurdle to finishing the project. Many projects get stuck in finishing because they have not established a finishing procedure and communicated to the various teams involved. Communication and adherence to technical standards are imperative to a smooth and timely finish.
At this time, all finishing entities should be pinged and aware that files will soon be on the way.
The reason I stress communication is that the finishing process varies greatly depending on the nature of the production. Sometimes changes need to be made and we have to go back into the edit and re-output changes for the colorist or the mixer.
These bumps in the road happen often and the best way to be prepared is to have world-class communication with all parties and practice workflows that account for error.
If you're interested in a doc-specific workflow that we use, check out this article: