In Conversation with Editor Pietro Scalia

30 September 09

Supported by The Farm Group.

Explore the world of editing with renowned film editor Pietro Scalia.

At a special BAFTA event Pietro Scalia discusses his career highlights with producer and journalist Mark Salisbury. With clips from his famous body of work he demonstrates his approach to editing and explores the philosophy of his craft.

Highlights include the esteemed editor dissecting key scenes from Gladiator, Good Will Hunting and Black Hawk Down as well recounting his experience of working with different directors in the cutting room.

Watch Pietro demonstrate how he resurrected a character based on recycled material after the death of Oliver Reed on the set of Gladiator and learn how he put together complex action scenes spread over multiple locations for Black Hawk Down.

By dissecting a scene from Good Will Hunting, Pietro then explains how the most effective editing tool can be to resist the temptation to make a cut.

Pietro goes on to talk about dealing with multiple formats in the cutting room, the ability of editors to manipulate the thoughts and feelings of an audience and his personal approach to the editing process.

Editing is always about how the psychology of the viewer works. And we can manipulate that; we do it continuously...

More About Pietro Scalia…

Pietro Scalia has worked with an auspicious list of directors including Bernardo Bertolucci, Sam Raimi, Oliver Stone, Gus Van Sant and Ridley Scott, with whom he has developed a long-term working partnership.

With credits ranging from JFK, The Quick and the Dead and Black Hawk Down to American Gangster, Gladiator and Good Will Hunting, he's become one of the industry's highest regarded editors.

He has an impressive array of Awards to his name including a Best Editing Oscar and BAFTA for JFK in 1992, a BAFTA for his work on Gladiator in 2001 and a further Editing Oscar for Black Hawk Down in 2002.

Pietro Scalia speaking in Cineaste Magazine in March 2009 about the art of editing:

“For me the art of editing is being able to crystallize the dramatic ideas into a coherent and entertaining series of images and sounds that most fully emerge the viewer into the suspension of disbelief and bring the experience of the film to its fullest. Editing makes the artificial feel real. When a film works, then all the elements of technique become invisible and in turn leave a visible imprint on the mind and heart of the viewer."

• Pietro Scalia on IMDB

Thanks to Hireworks and The Farm Group for technical support on this special event.

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• ( What is this? )