Winnie Cheung - Director/Editor
Editor
Experience 15+ years
“One part of the process that remains the same is being present and protecting the first viewing of dailies. I make time and space to watch the footage without thinking too much about how it will work itself into the edit, although ideas come up naturally.”
Describe your job role and the kinds of projects/clients you work with.
I’m a director and editor for commercial, television, and film. I move back and forth between scripted, documentary, and experimental. My commercial clients include Google, Starbucks, Nike, H&M, and Coca-Cola. My own film projects lean towards genre films with a focus on supernatural, psychological thriller, and horror.
What does an average day look like in your post-production working world?
Because I work across genres, lengths, and formats, my day-to-day is very different, and honestly, that keeps things exciting for me. If I’m working on a commercial project, I’m probably making a million versions of a campaign spot, auditioning different performances, camera angles, music tracks, and sequences for that magic permutation. A lot of my time is spent organizing the project so that I can recall everything at a moment’s notice.
If I’m working on a documentary, a lot of the editing happens on a text document. I’m writing out treatments, copying and pasting transcripts. Lately, I’ve been incorporating Figma into my workflow. This is called story producing, and there’s a separate role for this on bigger projects, but for more indie budgets, the director, editor, and producer share this role. Once the story is crafted on paper, I dig into the edit on the computer. From there, it goes back and forth between paper and actual edits.
If it’s a scripted project, I’m assembling an edit based on the script, script notes, and storyboards. If it's more of an experimental film, I won’t have access to any of these documents.
One part of the process that remains the same regardless of format is being present and protecting the first viewing of dailies. I make time and space around watching the footage without thinking too much about how it will work itself into the edit, although ideas come up naturally. From there, I visualize ways to organize the footage that would generate the final output. For example, if I’m seeing a lot of graphic symmetry in the footage, I might start creating a matchcut select sequence.
How did your career in post-production begin?
After college, I interned at Country Music Television in Nashville, Tennessee, and ReelFX in Dallas, Texas. After moving back to New York City, I worked my way up as a promo editor at various boutique places. I signed with Picture Farm Productions as a Senior Editor in 2017, and the post department really blew up during my time there. I had the opportunity to collaborate with a much larger post team while managing upcoming talent. I got on Lost Planet’s roster in 2022.
What has been your career highlight?
I recently went to SXSW with my own short film, “Last Call.” I was able to bring many members from my team to the festival. This was a special moment because representation still lacks at the moment, but I feel like I’ve been able to make small changes here and there by making space for up-and-coming artists to experience a big festival like SXSW.
Who are your role models in post?
There are the big ones, like Walter Murch, Sally Menke, and Thelma Schoomaker. More recently, I’ve had the pleasure of hanging around with all the incredible editors on Lost Planet’s roster. It feels really surreal to be chatting with them day to day and working side by side with them on larger campaigns.
I really look up to all my former employers who offered me a seat at their desk, who let me watch them edit from behind their shoulders. I learned from the best, including Mark Valentine, who’s now creative director at ultrabland., Jason Zemlika and Jamie Hubbard, owners of Cause+Effect, and Toddy Stewart over at Supervision. The direct osmosis of watching an edit come to life is priceless. I have no idea how assistants working remotely learn how to edit these days.
What advice do you have for others wanting to start a career in post?
If you’re passionate about it, keep going. When I first graduated from college, I thought that I would surely land an entry-level position at one of the big post houses in New York City. I wasn’t hired by any of them. Instead, I found work in television promos and my own passion projects. I was only recently offered representation a few years ago. These editors usually go through the post house pipeline, and I didn’t do any of that, yet, here I am. The journey is different for everyone, and I’m thankful for all the delicious sidequests that got me here.
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