Carly Brown - Editor
Job title - Editor
Experience - 7+ years
“I used to get nervous showing the full assembly to the director - especially when I’m working with someone new - but I now realise this can be just as nerve wracking for the director... the moment when they see all their work come together! I’ve realised it’s a journey you go on together and is actually the most fun part of the process.”
Describe your job role and the kinds of projects/clients you work with.
I’m an offline editor working primarily in scripted drama - although I have previous experience in sports, documentary and branded content. My drama work includes cutting banking drama 'Industry' (HBO / BBC), superhero comedy drama 'Extraordinary' (Disney+), Ashley Walters' directorial debut 'Boys' (Sky) and 3 episodes of Candice Carty-Williams' music drama 'Champion' (BBC1 & Netflix) which airs in a few weeks!
What does an average day look like in your post production working world?
In the assembly stage of the edit, I start my day pretty simply - by watching the rushes of what was shot the day before. My assistant will prepare a stringout of all the rushes in each scene bin, from when the take starts rolling through to when the camera cuts, and I'll sit back and watch the whole thing in one go (ideally away from my Avid and on a sofa if the edit suite allows!). I was encouraged to work this way when I was Assistant Editor to the brilliant Lucia Zuchetti on 'The Crown' - she always emphasized the importance of the first watch. I make notes as I watch and mark down my favourite takes (sometimes different to the director's selected take!), as well as picking out moments I want to use at certain points in the scene. After watching all the scene string outs, I'll pick a scene to start assembling. I find It's better to get everything roughly together and then I come back and refine. I'll then add sound design and tidy up any mics with rustle or distortion on, as well as adding temp VFX and grade if needed on certain shots. I find even at an assembly stage I like my edit to be as polished and smooth as possible, so that there are no distractions in the first viewing for the director. This also feels like my chance to put my stamp on the edit - after this stage there will be director, producer, exec producer and broadcaster notes which will shape the edit. So I want it to be in the best possible state for the following stages.
Once my director has finished shooting they will join me for the fine cut. I used to get nervous showing the full assembly to the director - especially when I'm working with someone new - but I now realise this can be just as nerve wracking for the director... the moment when they see all their work come together! I've realised it's a journey you go on together and is actually the most fun part of the process. Sometimes the director will sit in and we will work together the whole time, other times they will leave me with notes to work on myself. This could be anything from looking through alternative performances for certain lines/scenes, restructuring the whole edit to help with pacing, adding music and further sound design to enhance the story, and trimming down to time. Every day I duplicate my timeline and I keep everything organised by date, so I can easily go back to old edits if we decide we prefer something from before... or I somehow mess up my timeline and find everything is out of sync...!
How did your career in post production begin?
After doing loads of student TV and filmmaking at Southampton University (alongside my degree in English Literature), I started work in TV as self-shooting researcher, with the aim of becoming a director. My work included ‘Gareth Malone: Sing While You Work’ (BBC), ‘The Jump’ (Channel 4), ‘The Jonathan Ross Show’ (ITV) and the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Despite working on these incredible shows in studios and on location all around the world, I kept being drawn back to the world of post production, and the incredible power of editing to transform a film.
I eventually decided to focus solely on editing, ending up at production company Whisper as an Edit Assistant, and worked my way up to in house Editor. I learnt to cut fast turnaround VTs for live sports shows including Formula 1 for Channel 4 and UEFA Womens' Euro, as well as longform documentary projects and online campaigns / commercials for clients such as Emirates, Google, Heineken, Aston Martin and Red Bull.
Despite loving the work at Whisper, long term I always wanted to work in drama, and I was given advice that I would need to step back to be an Assistant Editor. I sent loads of emails asking Editors / Agents if I could buy them a coffee and pick their brains. A week later I got a call from one of my favourite Editors - Úna Ní Dhonghaíle - who needed a Second Assistant Editor on 'Misbehaviour' the feature film she was editing! I got this job and it was the foundation of my way into drama - leading to assistant work on 'The Crown' and feature film ‘Belfast'.
Alongside assisting, I cut as many short films as possible, and one of these was ‘Boys’, a Sky funded film with Ashley Walters directing. This was a great stepping stone and helped me sign with my agent Jessica Carney, who then put me forward to cut ‘Industry’ season 2. This was a dream job and I'll always be grateful to the team at Bad Wolf for taking a chance on me.
Carly assisted editor Úna Ní Dhonghaíle on the movie ‘Belfast’ (2021)
What has been a career highlight?
Being selected for Edinburgh TV Festival 'Ones to Watch' talent scheme in 2018 was a massive help career wise and an amazing opportunity to meet some other brilliant industry professionals. The in person festival experience opened so many doors and gave a great sense of the wider industry and how post production fits into that. They also run an entry level scheme called ‘The Network’ which I would highly recommend applying to if you’re starting off in TV.
Who are your role models in post?
So I am a little biased (as she gave me my first drama job)... but Úna Ní Dhonghaíle is an incredible role model and a really inspiring Editor. Her passion and drive for every project is amazing and she's so generous with her time and advice for up and coming Assistants and Editors.
What advice do you have for others wanting to start a career in post?
Start building up a body of work as soon as possible! Cut anything you can get your hands on - you never know what it will lead to next. You may have to start out as a runner or a trainee but if you put the hours in, take the work seriously and be nice and helpful to everyone around you, you'll go up the ladder in no time.
Also - get your editing keyboard shortcuts sorted so you can be a super speedy editor, and think about what kit works for you. I work with a Logitech mouse which I have mapped shortcuts to the extra buttons - I now can’t cut without this!