This past summer I got a chance to cut web videos for Rolling Stone at the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Tennessee. Featuring some of the biggest names in music, the festival is like a modern-day Woodstock but cleaner, more organized and admirably sustainable. For four crazy days I soaked in the Bonnaroo buzz and stayed up all night editing artist interviews and live performance footage. Unfortunately, it was more work than play but, even so, it was incredible to be there. Overall, I cut more than 10 videos; here are my five faves…
The Art of Editing Comedy
Since the films that have inspired me the most are overwhelmingly dramas, usually darker ones, editing comedy is something I never imagined I’d be doing. But perhaps my forays into comedy not have been without reason. As it turns out, I really enjoy editing comedy and discovered I have a natural instinct for it. Maybe this isn’t so surprising since comedy and drama are really flip sides of the same coin. After all, it’s no accident that the theater masks of ancient Greece represent both comedy and tragedy—comedic moments are frequently precipitated by tragedy (however minor) and tragedies are often incited by absurd, even laughable acts. That said, good comedy is as hard to pull off as drama; in fact, it’s sometimes easier to make people cry than laugh…
