What's your opinion on radio cuts for documentaries? I was talking with another editor the other day about our process, and they were advocating for making a radio cut first. I don't mean to yuk anyone's yum, but I think you have to carefully consider what you are going for when you decide what process you are going to use in the edit.
Starting with a radio cut can work for some kinds of documentaries, especially ones that are very interview-driven. Other documentaries are negatively impacted by starting with a radio cut.
It's important to consider what kind of film you are making and whether it can benefit from the radio cut process or should be cut in a process that follows the footage more.
First I'll briefly lay out my typical process which is anti-radiocut, then I'll get into why an approach like this is better than starting with a radio cut in many cases.
First I'll look at all the material, and make rough selects as I go. Then I'll think a bunch. Then I'll jump into cutting scenes. Usually I'll pick the scene that seems the most fun to cut. Maybe it's a verite moment, or a story beat told in interviews by multiple people that I “cover” in b-roll or verite. As I'm doing this, I'm thinking about how this scene will function in the story arc of the piece: is it scene-setting? Character development? Laying out the central problem?
How I think it will function will determine to some extent how I cut it. I aim for length of scene pretty close to my guess for what the final scene length would be.
I'll think about what other beats will be needed to tell the emotional arc of this story, and look for the elements that will fulfil that beat, sometimes requiring creating them from nothing or bringing in new material.
When I have a bunch of scenes, I'll start stringing them together and figuring out the structure. Obviously, a bunch of this is a collaborative process if I'm working with a director.
Why is this "better" than starting with a radio cut for many documentaries?
✂️ It's harder to get a feel for the beats in a radio cut.
✂️ A radio cut is dependent on words, and so you're making decisions without ~80% of what gives a film emotional resonance.
✂️ Some beats of your story are going to mainly visuals, music, natural sound, and only a small amount of actual words - how will you and your team account for these when viewing and approving a radio cut?
✂️ Framing your structure around words might lead you to undercut non-verbal moments that don't fit into a verbal narrative.
✂️ A radio cut imposes the rhythm of an essay (or a podcast) that will ripple down through subsequent versions.
I'm not saying a radio cut is bad way to start... just be sure it's right for your film. If you've got a lot of verite, forget it.
In my opinion. Tell me I'm wrong.
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