If you want to hook your audience from frame one, there’s one story beat you absolutely need to get right: the inciting incident. It’s the moment that breaks up the “ordinary world” and kicks your story—or your edit—into motion. And where you place it makes all the difference.
To explain it, I l...
Ever feel like your edits fall flat, but you can’t quite figure out why? In this video, I break down one of the simplest but most powerful tools pro editors use: changing tempo to match emotion.
Most beginner editors run at a constant pace, like a commuter driving with cruise control. But pro ed...
When we’re editing, it’s easy to fall into the habit of dropping one long ambience track under a sequence of shots. It works, it creates flow, and honestly, it’s a totally valid approach. But if you’ve ever felt like your sound design is stuck in a rut, there’s a simple trick that can make a huge...
Ever run into the problem of trying to switch music tracks in the middle of a scene without it feeling jarring? In this video, I walk you through a pro-level trick I’ve used for years in broadcast TV editing—and it’s surprisingly simple once you see it in action.
The key is interruption. Instead...
Most beginner editors focus on where to cut between scenes—but pros know the real magic is in how you transition between them. In this video, I sat down with director and former editor Scott Rice to break down four powerful scene transitions from our short film Treasure Imagination. These aren't ...
Great editing isn’t about one massive choice—it’s about stacking a bunch of small, intentional ones. In this video, I walk through four subtle but powerful techniques that made a recent commercial work. I’m joined by veteran director Scott Rice, and together we break down how we approached this p...
In this video, I break down my five-step editing process using a real commercial I cut with veteran director Scott Rice. It’s the same framework I’ve used for over 20 years on big-budget TV spots, and I believe that using it will sharpen your edits instantly.
Watch as we unpack each step while s...
In this video, I’m breaking down a five-step editing process that has shaped my 20-plus year career editing high-budget broadcast commercials—and it’s something you can use in your own edits starting today. I’m joined by the brilliant Scott Rice, a former editor turned commercial director (and co...
Great sound design can make a commercial—but where do you even start? In this video, I sit down with seasoned commercial director Scott Rice to break down how pro editors approach sound design specifically for commercials—and why it’s just as essential as the cinematography.
We talk about how so...
In this video, I brought in veteran commercial director Scott Rice to roast my rough cut of a comedy PSA about underage drinking. Scott’s not only a longtime collaborator, he also teaches with Matthew McConaughey at UT Austin, so I knew I’d get honest, high-level feedback.
We walked through mult...
If you've ever edited a commercial or short-form video, you've likely faced the same challenge Scott Rice and I tackle in this video: balancing cleverness with clarity.
Scott—veteran commercial director, former editor, and co-professor with Matthew McConaughey at UT Austin—joined me to dissect a...
When editors talk about emotion being the most important factor in a cut, it sounds inspiring—but vague. So in this video, I sit down with veteran director Scott Rice to break down how to actually edit for emotion in a practical, actionable way.
Whether you're working on a short film, commercial...