Interview with the Editor: Dana Martell
Ever wonder what it takes to be an editor on a major reality show? Or maybe just what kind of software you’d want to use to get ahead on your own independent project? Well, we’ve got the answers for you. We rolled out the questions with Dana Martell --currently an editor on season 28 of the Challenge. Dana was gracious enough to answer all of our questions about what it takes to work in the land of post production. Originally from the city of cheesesteaks but currently living the reality tv editor lifestyle in the city of Angels (For the layman, that’s Philadelphia and Los Angeles--smile, wink emoji), Dana has been working in post production for a few years now on various shows from The Bad Girls Club to the Real World. She has risen up through the ranks since starting as in intern with reality tv giant, Bunim-Murray Productions. Since then she has filled in several titles in the industry as a logger, dailies editor, assistant editor and now finally, a full fledged editor.
There are a lot of challenges that come with working as editor on reality shows--tight deadlines, maybe not having the right scenes or the perfect audio or even just late nights trying to pull together that last cut. We don't always think about what goes into the making of our favorite reality shows, so this interview is that rare glimpse into the other side of our favorite rants, raves, and over all reality drama.
15N: As an editor, what is the most important part of your day?
DM: I like to think all parts of my day at work are important but I would say the most important days are when I get notes on a cut. I really enjoy seeing constructive criticism and suggestions on how I could better my cut.
15N: PC? Mac? Headphones? What kind of gear do you use to get the job done?
DM: I am a total Mac girl, I use Mac both at home and at work. I don’t use headphones much as an editor now because I have my own office, but when I was an assistant editor I relied on my headphones all the time. I LOVE my Bose noise cancelling headphones, which I bought refurbished at a Bose outlet store. As for software, generally I use Avid Media Composer 8 at work but at home I use Final Cut Pro. Final Cut is definitely more affordable and user friendly for smaller projects outside of work.
15 N: For a beginner, what are the biggest and most common mistakes to avoid?
DM: I’m still in the beginning stages of my career, so I’m still learning new techniques everyday. One thing I have always been open to when it comes to this field is being able to handle constructive criticism. You have to understand that creativity is very subjective when it comes to television. What you may think is great, may not appeal to someone else. You have to remember that this is a job and you are working for a client. You shouldn’t take offense to someone else’s notes on your cut. You may not always agree with what your client says but you are there to make their vision come to life.
15 N: You mainly work in reality, what are some of your biggest challenges?
DM: I am one of those rare creatures that is not afraid to admit that I love working in reality television and I plan on staying in reality. I really love how unpredictable it can be. You may not always have the shot you want or the audio you want. It’s spontaneous things like that, that keep me on my toes and keep pushing me to be more creative. I’ve always enjoyed a creative challenge and working in reality television does that for me.
15N: What does stringing out videos entail? How do you find the story?
DM: Thankfully, every show I’ve worked on we have had a story department. I know a lot of people think “Story department? But if it’s not scripted why would you need a story department?” Story goes through all of the raw footage and looks for things that we could use to build a story around. They usually come up with the theme of each episode and make sure it all makes sense as a whole and string it out for the editors. A string out is basically a rough draft episode that we eventually build on. Think of a stringout as the structure of a house and the editors build upon that to make the house whole. Story spends a lot of time looking through footage and work really hard to give us everything we need to make each episode make sense.
15N: In what ways can editing be a collaborative effort?
DM: Even though you are the one in the driver seat in the edit bay, everything is a team effort. Everyone’s job on a show is important, no mater how big or how small your title is. I rely so much on my team and in the end we create something great together as a whole. A lot of the time, I’ll need someone’s opinion on what I cut, whether if was easily understood or seemed a little confusing. There is no way I could do my job without the help of my co-workers. On the shows that I have worked on you are not the only editor working on an episode, you are working with a team of editors. We are all here to do one thing, to make a show and make it as great as we possibly can with the tools and footage we have.
15N: How do you cut the fat on your videos? What’s the difference between a good take and one that gets canned?
DM: For me, it’s simplicity. I look for the point of the story in a scene and center everything around that as simply as possible. If something isn’t helping to move the story along, I cut it. In reality there really isn’t a good or bad take, you have what you have and do whatever you can creatively to make your viewer understand what’s going on. For example, we use “cutaways” for certain shots if we don’t have the person saying something on camera but we have their audio. However, when working on a competition/game show, you’re looking for the best takes of your host and that just means searching through raw footage to find the best ones.
15N: In reality, crews are used to working on a tight schedule, how do you edit to make deadlines?
DM: Edit schedules are pretty tight and ultimately, time is money. I’ve always considered myself a creative person, but when you are on a schedule you have to turn your creative switch on as soon as you come into work. It’s tough when maybe you didn’t get enough sleep the night before or maybe you’re going through something in your personal life--when you come to work you need to put all of that aside, turn on your creative switch and escape into the scene that you’re cutting. Sometimes tight schedules mean you need to work 10, 12, or maybe even a 13-hour day. Either way a deadline is a deadline and it needs to be met, even if that means sacrifices your weekends.
15N: How do you structure a scene? What makes a scene pop to you?
DM: One thing that works to my advantage is that I am in the age demographic of most of the reality tv shows out there. I try to think like our audience would, “what would our audience like to see?”, “what will grab their attention?”. I try to cut things the way I would like to see it as an audience member. You always want to have a hold of your audiences’ attention; if a scene is too long and dragged out your viewer may change the channel. Music also plays a huge part, a scene can look completely different just by changing the music. Music helps aid emotion in a scene, whether it’s a happy upbeat music cue or slow bassy tension cue. Certain things like a bass hit on a certain word may also help punctuate an emotion in a scene.
15N: Any other advice for newbie editors trying to make it in the industry?
DM: Dreams come true with hard work and dedication. Whatever your passion is, make sure people know it. No one will know what you want if you don’t speak up, people can’t read your mind and no one will help point you in the right direction if you don’t know initiative. And don’t forget to pick the brains of your mentors, observe and always ask questions.
To see more of Dana’s work check out the new teaser trailer for Season 28 of the Challenge over at MTV.
http://www.mtv.com/news/2741224/rivals-challenge-new-season-twist/
Maureen Costello is the second half of 15 North. You can find her on the internet sometimes.
