How Do I Hire a Professional Video Editor?

Hiring a professional editor to help you with a video project is a crucial move that you cannot take lightly. The end result and finished quality of your production counts on your hiring a video editor that has the skills, expertise, and education required to deliver powerful transitions, exemplary special effects and graphics, and expert quality dialogue and sound. The entire post-production process, and much of what happened in the production process, is dependent largely on the hiring of a professional video editor.

Film creation requires a unique talent and video editors carry much of the final weight of the success of the project on their shoulders. While there may be several video editors to choose from for a project, finding and hiring the best video editor for the job requires careful consideration and a determination to find the best person for the job.

Here’s what you should be considering prior to hiring an editor for the job.

Video Editor Qualities

The top qualities of a video editor are going to vary from one individual to the next, but generally, you’re looking for someone that’s creative, determined, and experienced.

In addition to these main qualities you’re looking for the following:

• A portfolio that showcases the editor’s work and proves his or her abilities to deliver powerful sound, image, style, and transitions. Without this, an editor doesn’t stand a chance to get hired.
• Pristine sound in all of their work. This is important, you don’t want any instances of footage that is paired with background noise. Words and anything spoken in the film should be clear, and crisp.
• Clear images that include pristine special effects. Any use of effects should appear natural and must not be lost in transition. The transitions should be impeccable.
• Is the style identical from one reel to the next? Is the editor capable of producing different styles and elements? Does the style meet up with what you’re looking to achieve?

Considerations in Hiring a Video Editor

Before you hire a video editor it’s a good idea to consider the various qualities involved in the production and what you wish to achieve. Think about your needs, and how you wish the editing to take place for your production. Considerations include:

• What would you like the final production to look like?
• What skills are you looking for in an editor? The experience for someone to sort through footage is likely to be quite different than that required for an editor that is to clean up special effects and advanced production elements.
• What do you want your editor to do? Are you hiring someone to help you edit or are you looking for an entirely hands-off approach?
• What’s your budget like? Naturally, you need to hire an editor that will work within your budget.

Questions to Ask Potential Video Editors

Before you consider hiring a video editor you need to prepare a set of questions to ask that will help you to define whether the particular candidate is the right person for the role. The video editor hiring process will require you to look loosely at the various roles and goals of each editor that is considering a position.

Questions should really dive into the logistics of the video including:

• How much time will it take for you to finish a project of this magnitude?
• How much do you charge for this type of work?
• What is your schedule like?
• What skills do you believe are most important for this project?
• What concerns do you have about this project?

For more information or to learn more about hiring a professional video editor, give Beverly Boy Productions a call.