Chelsea Nyomi - Editor
Job title - Editor
Experience - 2+ years
“I think of editing as a puzzle, where you have multiple pieces that need to be put together in order to see the bigger picture.”
Tell us about your job role and the kinds of projects you work on;
I am currently a video editor/producer at Yahoo Sports, and I also do freelance editing and freelance videography. I started working at Yahoo in March 2021 and have worked on a variety of projects with them, ranging from talk shows, to podcasts, to interviews, to highlight reels, etc. When I first started working there, they were owned by Verizon Media Studios, so I actually worked on both the Verizon Media side and the Yahoo Sports side. At that time, I edited a few shows for Verizon Media, but most of my work was with Yahoo Sports. As a video editor/producer, I am responsible for ensuring the production and delivery of creative content to various platforms (Network, YouTube, & Social Media), and I work closely with other members of the media team.
For my freelance work, I’m mostly interested in doing artist interviews, documentary productions, short films, music videos, and commercials. I’ve only done one music video so far, and I haven’t yet worked on a commercial, but it’s in the back of my mind. In February/March 2022 I’ll be working on a variety of short films as part of an artist residency program that I’m enrolled in. Currently, I’m working on my own documentary titled ‘Cultured Reflections’, as part of my Master’s Research Project in graduate school. I also recently registered a sole proprietorship production company, and produced a series of online learning modules for Ryerson University (located in Toronto, ON, Canada). I worked on that project from April 2021 - November 2021, and carried it through from concept, to content, to script, to pre-production (location, talent, budget, equipment, etc.), to production, and finally with post-production. That was the biggest project I’ve worked on so far, and also the longest project. I enjoy learning and I have ambitions of teaching at an institution one day, so the project gave good insight as to what goes into teaching a course and how to create a stimulating learning environment for online delivery, similar to LinkedIn Learning videos or MasterClass productions.
What does an average day look like in your post-production working world?
While working at Yahoo Sports, there are a variety of shows and productions that I contribute to. It depends on the season as different leagues play at different times in the year. When I first started with them in March of 2021, I edited shows related to the NHL and the NBA, and did some other edits for miscellaneous shows that weren’t related to sports. In the summer I edited interviews for the Tokyo Olympics, and in the fall I edited for soccer in the Europa League. I am now back to editing NHL and NBA content, so it’s been a full cycle.
Since I’m a producer/editor, I have a role in pre-production, production, and post-production. Normally, we start with a rundown of the topics that will be covered in the show. I collaborate with other producers and with the talent/guests to ensure that everyone is on the same page. This is usually done at least 1 day before the show. On show day, I set up the zoom room where the guests will then enter. Due to the pandemic, we’ve been working entirely remotely, so I haven’t actually been in a studio for a long time, but normally we would be recording in-studio with professional cameras instead of via webcams on zoom.
Prior to the record, I do a sound-check to make sure everyone’s levels are high enough so that I don’t have to increase their audio too much during post-production. I also direct the guests to adjust their cameras so that they have enough head room, and ensure that their lighting is okay (not too hot and not too dark). Once everyone is ready, I turn my mic and camera off and press record and let the show run. I have to pay close attention to make note of any audio or camera glitches, as the world of zoom recording isn’t perfect due to errors with people’s internet connections or computer hardware.
After the show is wrapped, I stop recording, chat with the guests for a bit, then wait till everyone signs off. Now is when the post-production stage begins. I wait for the zoom recording to be converted to a readable format, then transfer the raw footage to my external hard-drive and import it into Premiere. Since sports shows are heavy on graphics and animated effects, I have to build the lower thirds in After Effects or Photoshop too. Once all the graphics are completed, I import them into Premiere and align them with their respective topics in the raw footage. It’s important for me to have an organized Premiere Project, with bins for each asset, for example: a sequence bin, graphics bin, raw footage bin, music bin, etc. The graphics bin usually has a subfolder that differentiates between b-roll footage downloaded from getty images, cp images, YouTube or one of the major league networks, and other folders for lower thirds, intro/outro title graphics, name fonts, etc.
Once I have all my ingredients, I start putting things together and fine tuning the edit points so that the story flows at a good pace and remains engaging. I place the b-roll in places where it corresponds to the dialogue, and I sometimes like to edit to the music if possible. I like using keyboard shortcuts as it shortens the edit time and allows me to adjust elements on the timeline easily. After I’ve edited everything, I export a draft version of the required videos and show them to my supervising producer, who then suggests minor changes if needed. For a given show, I usually have to export a full version which runs 30 minutes to 1 hour in both .mp3 and .mov format (for podcast platforms, YouTube, and network), and somewhere between 4-10 cut downs for social media (depending on how long the show is, the number of guests, and the number of topics covered). Cutdowns are short, easily digestible segments about a topic, and are sometimes in a different aspect ratio depending on the platform it is intended for. For highlight reels which are around 1.5-2 minutes, I don’t have to do cutdowns. For interviews, I usually export one 2-3 minute interview per topic, with around 5 topics per interview.
I like to export videos through Adobe Media Encoder as it allows me to create a queue of videos and export them all at once, instead of exporting them one by one through Premiere. After all of the videos are exported, I drop them in a Google Drive folder and send the link to supervising producers and the publishing team, where the videos will be uploaded to their respective channels. And that’s a day in the life of video editing at Yahoo Sports!
How did your career in post-production begin?
The first time I used Adobe Premiere Pro was in February of 2017. At that time, I was a volunteer for an on-campus media company at Queen’s University (in Kingston, ON, Canada) called Studio Q, and I began to express interest in videography after learning the basics of digital photography the year before. I was editing footage from the Focus Film Festival, which is a student-run festival that produces a select number of short films each year. Studio Q sent three people to cover the festival, and we each took turns between being the camera operators and host/anchor for the night. After the festival, our task was to create an event recap, and I was the assistant editor. That first experience with Premiere Pro was eye-opening to me. Being able to sift through the footage, select what makes the cut and what doesn’t, and add music and graphics was so cool to me! I experienced what it takes to tell a story through a series of video clips, and that’s when I decided I wanted to pursue film and media as a career.
At that time, I was studying science and I was halfway through year 3 of a 4 year undergraduate degree. I didn’t have enough elective credits to switch from science to film, nor did I have enough space in my timetable to even minor in film. Since I wanted a bachelor's degree and didn’t have the financial or parental support to drop out of my program and restart from year 1, I decided to finish my science degree and solely support myself after graduating so that I could pursue a career in film & media. I finished Queen’s in April 2018 and later enrolled in Humber College’s Broadcast Television & Videography program (in September 2018), a 2 year diploma program with an internship component, where I focused mainly on editing during my second year.
Tell us about a career highlight;
While at Humber College, students are required to complete an internship that reflects the specialty of their choice. I applied to many editing positions around the GTA, and was ecstatic to be selected for a video editing internship at TSN, one of the leading sports broadcast networks in Canada. This was a pivotal moment for me as I had the opportunity to concentrate and develop my editing skills in a professional environment, and I enjoyed every shift that I had there. I was fortunate enough to complete my internship a few days before the initial pandemic lockdown in March 2020, and I’m glad I had the chance to experience the internship in person.
A second pivotal moment in my career was creating a sole proprietorship production company for film and videography services, which allows me to work with more established clients and provides me with a professional business to brand my work. I registered the company in August of 2021, and have had one client so far. Once I finish my graduate studies, I will have more time to focus on my production company.
Which women in post do you admire?
I actually don’t have any names that I can state off the top of my head. I’m thankful that platforms such as Edit Girls exist, and I appreciate the work you are doing to represent women in post-production. I hope that the stories on here can inspire people to pursue a career in post and can provide helpful information to those looking to get started or to navigate their careers.
What advice do you have for other women wanting to start a career in post?
A good place to start is to watch films and videos from a technical perspective, instead of just for leisure. Pay attention to the continuity, pacing, coverage, and clarity of the story. I think of editing as a puzzle, where you have multiple pieces that need to be put together in order to see the bigger picture. There’s a lot more flexibility with editing than a puzzle though, in the sense that you can rearrange footage and make multiple sequences to tell a new story or have a different impact. A film comes together in post-production, so it’s really important that you understand how scenes are composed and how a series of scenes in a sequence can develop the story. Aside from live-action films and television, I also watch a lot of cartoons to analyze how the story develops from an animated perspective, as animation differs from live-action in terms of the type of shots that are captured/created.
Another thing you can do is practice editing your own videos, and eventually create a demo reel. There are plenty of tutorials online that can help you learn how to use non-linear editing software such as Adobe Premiere, Final Cut, DaVinci Resolve, or AVID Media Composer. Install one of these programs and either use your own footage, or download practice footage from the internet and play around with it. I think Adobe Premiere and AVID Media Composer are industry standards, so it’s beneficial to know how to cut on both of those. A fun task to do is to use footage from a movie or show and splice it up to create a new storyline. Once you’re comfortable with editing practice footage, try filming your own footage and edit a demo reel that can be part of your portfolio.
The next step is to reach out to prospective clients, companies, and organizations to show them your work. You should also get comfortable posting your work online, either via your own website or social media channels!