LEARN THE ART OF FILM EDITING WHILE WORKING ON A REAL MOVIE

At the heart of the Edit Center curriculum is our six-week Art of Editing Course, which brings together independent filmmakers who need their movies edited and beginning editors who need the chance to learn on a feature film. We truly believe that editing cannot be learned from a seminar, book, lecture or exercise; cutting a real film -- for a real director -- is the only way to immerse yourself in the field and learn the skills you'll need to start your career.

As a student at the Edit Center, you will:

WORK ON AWARD-WINNING FILMS
Edit Center students have worked on such films as: Winter's Bone (Grand Jury Prize, Sundance 2010), Frozen River (Grand Jury Prize, Sundance 2008), Garbage Dreams (Oscar Short-List 2010), The Winning Season (Acquired by Lionsgate) and Strange Powers: Stephin Merritt and The Magnetic Fields (SXSW 2010), to name a few. Other Edit Center class projects have screened -- and won awards -- at Sundance, Cannes, Toronto, South by Southwest, Full Frame, and countless other international and regional film festivals.   (To see a list of all our past projects, click here.)  As a student at the Edit Center, you'll work hand-in-hand with the director to help them achieve their vision, and you'll receive a credit on the finished film. 

LEARN THE TRICKS OF THE TRADE FROM PROFESSIONAL EDITORS
Our teachers are in the classroom all day, every day, working one-on-one to help students sort through material, solve problems, and learn the professional workflow of film editing. Our teachers' credits include Adventureland, "Mad Men," The Cove, Sicko, The Squid and the Whale, Garden State, Maria Full of Grace, Welcome to the Dollhouse, Girlfight, "The Wire," and countless other independent films and television shows, and they are dedicated to sharing their knowledge with the next generation of up-and-coming film editors. (For a full list of our teachers and their credits, click here.)

BECOME A FINAL CUT PRO EXPERT
We believe that six weeks is the minimum amount of time necessary to learn any editing program well, and our goal is to make sure you leave the class confident enough with the system that it becomes transparent. By the time you finish the course, you'll be thinking about your edits, not the buttons you need to push to make them happen. Movies as diverse as 300, Napoleon Dynamite, Cold Mountain, and Super-Size Me have been edited on Final Cut Pro, and we believe that a thorough knowledge of this software will serve you best as you look for work after the course.  (View scenes that Edit Center students cut during the class.)

BUILD A CAREER NETWORK THAT LASTS FAR LONGER THAN SIX WEEKS
After the class, each student leaves with a credit on their class project -- a real-world credential that helps build your editing resume -- and an editor's reel of cut scenes to show the work you've done during the course. But beyond that, you'll leave with a network of connections in the independent film world.  Edit Center alumni edited No End in Sight (Oscar Nominee 2008; Special Jury Prize, Sundance 2007), Day Night Day Night (Prix Regards Jeune, Cannes 2007), Palindromes (Venice, Toronto, New York 2004), Control Room (Sundance 2004; Jury Award, Full Frame 2004), "Stella" (Comedy Central), and more. Our students have also worked in post-production on Slumdog Millionaire, The Messenger, Little Miss Sunshine, Half Nelson, Murderball, and Match Point, among others, and all of them cite the bonds they formed during their six weeks at the Edit Center as crucial in jump-starting their editing careers.  (See what our students have to say about their time at the Edit Center.)

DON'T HAVE SIX WEEKS TO SPARE?
As an Apple-certified training center, we also offer weekend and one-week Final Cut Pro classes. All classes are taught by working professionals on top-of-the-line editing systems.