Edit Isn’t Post. It’s Present
Let’s dismantle a myth.
Editing doesn’t begin in a cold suite after “pack-up.” It doesn’t start when someone sighs and mutters, “Fix it in post.” And it certainly isn’t the aftermath of everyone else’s chaos.
Editing begins long before the first frame is shot. Or at least it should
What Does an Editor Actually Do?
Think of a film as a kitchen. The footage is your raw ingredient. The director may have written the recipe. The DOP may have sourced the best produce. But the editor? The editor is the one who cooks it. They blend, taste, refine, and plate the dish. Every texture. Every breath. Every unexpected aftertaste, that’s them.
They don’t just stitch scenes together. They command emotional timing. They define rhythm. They decide whether the audience feels everything or nothing at all.
So why are editors still treated like technicians when they’re the final storytellers?
“Fix It in Post” Is a Lie
“Fix it in post” has become a cultural crutch. A lazy catch-all for poor decisions made during production. Continuity slips? Blame post. Underexposed shots? Let post handle it. No transition plan? Post will figure it out.
A Post Production head stated,
“It is like telling the sound recordist to figure out the sounds post shoot wrap.
And somehow, it always lands on the editor’s desk ; like a digital dumping ground.
Yes, editors can stabilise footage, patch errors, reframe, manipulate sequences. But they’re not magicians. And they shouldn’t be treated like they are.One editor told us quietly,
A veteran of seven Netflix Originals, Mishaalikka told us ,
“It would just be easier if everyone was on the same page.”
That wasn’t a complaint. That was a plea for alignment, not miracles.
The Invisible Constraint
When editors are excluded from early planning, it’s not just prep time they lose; it’s power. They inherit fragments of a story, often shot without rhythm, pacing, or transitions in mind. At that point, editing becomes reactive. A form of survival, not authorship.
An editor stated,
“You’re just trying to make it work instead of making it great”
That one line captures the shift from creative intention to structural duct tape.
The Editor’s Current Reality
In most productions, editors are the last ones hired and the first to be blamed.
They receive footage with no emotional brief. No sense of arc. No plan for flow. They’re asked to create poetry out of disconnected fragments. And more often than not, they work in silos, left out of shot design, narrative decisions, or tonal discussions.
The same editor later told us ,
“You can’t expect the editor to do everything—all the time.”
And yet, they’re still told: Make it sing.
With what? A broken instrument?
The Workflow We Pretend Works
On paper, filmmaking is a relay race handing off one phase to the next. In reality, by the time the baton reaches the editor, it’s knotted in crisis.
They’re expected to reverse-engineer emotional logic from footage stitched without intent. Rushes arrive without tonal guidance. Schedules are compressed. Scenes are incomplete. And feedback often comes from people who weren’t even on set.
As one production manager head described the process:
“Poor planning → Time mismanagement → Sloppy execution → Missing fundamentals → Fix it in post → Underpaid editor does damage control.”
That isn’t a workflow. It’s a rescue mission.
Why Involving the Editor Early Changes Everything
Bringing editors in early isn’t about hierarchy. It’s about vision alignment.
When editors are included during pre-production, everything sharpens. Shot sequences are crafted to cut cleanly. Transitions are imagined ahead of time. Coverage becomes smarter, not just longer.
Here’s how a smarter workflow looks:
- The production house hosts full-crew readings.
- The director outlines not just what happens, but why it matters.
- The editor joins early meetings, flagging blind spots in rhythm or structure.
- Call sheets reflect not just location but emotional stakes.
What results is leaner shooting. Cleaner coverage. Reduced redundancy. Everyone—DOP, director, writer, and even spot boys moves in sync with a shared emotional arc.
Time is saved. Budgets stay tight. Stress drops. And editors stop reacting they start co-authoring.
A Smarter Blueprint
Let’s redesign the pipeline:
- Involve editors in script breakdowns.
Trim narrative fat before it hits camera. - Include them in pre-production meetings.
Let them absorb tone, stakes, rhythm. - Let them advise on shot planning.
They know what needs to cut and what never will. - Add emotional cues to call sheets.
Not just time and scene number, but feeling and arc. - Protect their timeline.
Good editing takes breath, not just deadlines.
What This Unlocks
The ripple effects are visible. Footage returns smarter. Storytelling tightens. Post timelines shrink. Editors regain authority not as patch-up artists, but as emotional engineers.
On set, the vibe shifts too.
The director shoots with purpose. The DOP trims fat. The writer tightens transitions. Everyone is aligned, not just in task, but in tone.
This isn’t about giving editors more work. It’s about giving them the space to do real work.
Letting Go of Legacy
Bollywood has long romanticised its chaos. We’ve mistaken confusion for creativity. Celebrated spontaneity over structure.
But the truth is: creativity thrives on clarity. On rhythm. On prep. On intention.
The editor is not your backup plan. Not your fixer. Not your magician.
They are your final storyteller.
The future of filmmaking doesn’t lie in “figuring it out later.”
It lies in designing it right, before the first clapboard ever slams.
Because if your film is falling apart in the edit suite… It’s already too late.