Edit Time

[MEAT]

What is a realistic amount of time needed for a one-man-band reporter to cut a quality news package of 1:30 on a non-linear system?

Package would include nat hits (with proper ramping of audio etc, standups, sound bites, video with sequencing, no jump cuts from b-roll of person to sots of same person, etc.).

How long should it take someone to edit a quality piece once they sit down to edit?

Assume the script is written and all the video is captured.

All that needs to be done is to cut the audio track and edit the story.

I'm just trying to get a feel for how long this is taking people in other markets.

 

[bluffton]

How much time do you have?

My answer is realistic. If you have 25 minutes then that's how long it should take. If you have 3 hours, then it could take that long. When a pkg is written, and only needs voiced and edited, it shouldn't take any longer than any other pkg. It really depends on how it was shot and written. I know a lot of folk who can shoot a pkg with only four minutes of video (thank you Norman workshop) and others who shoot 60 minutes. If you have edited your camera and gotten exactly what you need with a few fluff shots or so, you could easily have it done in 30-60 minutes.

Cheers

 

[MEAT]

My answer is realistic. If you have 25 minutes then that's how long it should take. If you have 3 hours, then it could take that long. When a pkg is written, and only needs voiced and edited, it shouldn't take any longer than any other pkg. It really depends on how it was shot and written. I know a lot of folk who can shoot a pkg with only four minutes of video (thank you Norman workshop) and others who shoot 60 minutes. If you have edited your camera and gotten exactly what you need with a few fluff shots or so, you could easily have it done in 30-60 minutes.

Cheers

Yeah....small shop here...a lot of people trying to get into the edit bays thus the backup at times. Just trying to get a feel for what is a reasonable expectation for time in the edit bay...nothing that will be set it stone but something to shoot for. Thanks for the feedback.

 

[Lost in Alaska]

There are so many varibles here we wouldn't know where to begin. I am assuming this person knows the video, has experience with the edit system and knows the story, all since they are OMBing. As bluffton said, if they have 25 minutes, thats how long they should take. I have been able to get packs like this edited in under 30 minutes, but I have also seen people take 60+. How often does the computer crash? How organized is said person? Do they have a big time crunch, or can they take their time?

 

[MEAT]

There are so many varibles here we wouldn't know where to begin. I am assuming this person knows the video, has experience with the edit system and knows the story, all since they are OMBing. As bluffton said, if they have 25 minutes, thats how long they should take. I have been able to get packs like this edited in under 30 minutes, but I have also seen people take 60+. How often does the computer crash? How organized is said person? Do they have a big time crunch, or can they take their time?

Very few computer crashes. I'm assuming the editor is well experienced in the system. I was thinking 1 hour would be a fair standard.

 

[redcoat]

In normal circumstances, where there's not a big time crunch, I would say an hour should be sufficient. However, if alotted more time, I can easily spend 1.5 - 2 hours on most packages that I have carefully shot with sequencing and nat sound in mind. I also pay very close attention to pacing, good audio levels, and making sure that all the sound flows seamlessly together by utlizing audio dissolves. I feel like there's always one more thing I could do to a package to make it that much better.

 

[104imdirect]

The Crunch vs. The Tweaker

We've all had days that have required us to slam a package together fast - like 30 minutes or less. Sure, it's nice to have a few hours to really make a story sing, but I'm a firm believer that if you really want to make your work shine - the entire day should be spent having a conversation about what your piece will look like. Before you even hit big red and start spinning tape - brainstorm. Talk it out. Think on it. Of course, as the day progresses you'll get some of the things you want, some things you didn't expect and new ideas will form. As long as you keep that conversation going about what the final product will look like, you'll both be on the same page when it's time to cut - even if you have to slam.

 

[TexasDave]

I think you're looking for a broad time frame. Here's what I told my green photogs when I was chief - plan for an hour of editing per minute of package.

I know that is simplifying the process, because there are too many variables in news. You don't always have that much time, so you need to edit however long you've got. But if you're looking for a general rule of thumb, an hour per minute is what I've used.

Now if you've got an experienced editor, you don't need that long. This was what I told guys with little or no experience. That much time gives the person editing time to insert nat pops, etc.. Of course, this was editing tape-to-tape. Your time may differ depending on what you edit on. Do you have to import the tape in real time? Can you just upload your video?

So edit as long as you have time for. But my general time frame was an hour per minute, and we always made slot. Now more experienced guys here can cut quality video with nats in 30 minutes and make it look good. We've all done that. But I'm guessing you might be new to the industry, so listen to all the advice here.

And if you are new, try this exercise. After the show, take a package that already ran and was edited, and re-edit it using different shots if possible, to see how quickly you can assemble the same piece. Might take you shorter. Might even take you longer. But it's a good exercise to work on pacing, which is always important in news. Because at some point you'll return to the station or get to the truck and realize you only have 20 minutes until air, and you just now have the finished script. So it will be beneficial to work on editing in time crunches, because you will have those scenarios, sometimes more often then you'd like.

Good luck and happy editing.

 

[javary]

with edit bay traffic jams and time to "ingestify" footage... i "hope" for an hour in the edit bay...

that said, i'll use every last second of the time i have, whether it be ten minutes, one hour, or more. of course, how well the story turns out correlates directly to how much time i spend editing...

 

[A Step Above Productions]

It all depends - I have seen it done in less than 10 minuets

 

[valkbilly]

Editing for 20 years here, I would say the average person should have 45 minutes to 1 hour for your average PKG. But, all editors should crash that together in 15-20 minutes when needed.

 

[DevinDavis]

I usually get a script with 20 minutes till air. Sometimes I'll have twice that, but its rare. I start drawing the line at 10-12 minutes because, in a bureau, I have to fight for microwave time over top of the hour live shots. I've gotten stories done in 12 minutes, but had to sit and wait till late in the first block to feed due to live shots.

As an OMB you should be very familiar with the video you have and should be able to write to the video accordingly. It should be as simple as dropping in your shots and nats. I'd say a good 30-40 minutes should be a good rule of thumb.

 

[javary]

I usually get a script with 20 minutes till air. Sometimes I'll have twice that, but its rare.

you need to get your reporter to stop bending you over like that....