Wicked: Part One
The Rough Cut
Editor, Myron Kerstein ACE WICKED: PART ONE editor, Myron Kerstein ACE finds himself in the familiar positions of both cutting a musical and also collaborating with director Jon M. Chu. This is Myron's third musical in a row, following Lin-Manuel Miranda's tick, tick Boom! (2021) and Chu's IN THE HEIGHTS (2021). Prior to IN THE HEIGHTS, Myron first cut for Chu on his film, CRAZY RICH ASIANS (2018). Adapted from the venerable Broadway smash, WICKED: PART ONE follows the journey of a young woman named Elphaba. Misunderstood and often outcast because of her green skin, Elphaba forges...
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Emilia Pérez
The Rough Cut
Editor -Juliette Welfling EMILIA PÉREZ editor Juliette Welfling took on the job of editing her first musical without knowing the rigor and precision that would be required for the job. For better or worse, neither did writer/director Jacques Audiard, himself new to the world of making a musical. It turns out, experience might be overrated, as the Netflix Oscar-hopeful has won over critics since its premiere at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival. Written and directed by Jacques Audiard, EMILIA PÉREZ is based on Audiard's opera libretto of the same name. Audiard's opera was...
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A Real Pain
The Rough Cut
Editor - Robert Nassau A REAL PAIN editor Robert Nassau might be Brooklyn's secret cinematic weapon when it comes to finding an editor who knows how to cut not-too-dark dramedies. And the seems to be what writer/director/actor Jesse Eisenberg was looking for when it came time to turn over the cutting room keys to his latest project. Premiering to much fanfare at Sundance 2024, A Real Pain is now delighting critics and audiences alike in its theatrical run. A REAL PAIN follows mismatched cousins David (Jesse Eisenberg) and Benji (Kieran Culkin) as they reunite for a tour...
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Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
The Rough Cut
Editor - Otto Burnham Editor Otto Burnham took on the job for SUPER/MAN: THE CHRISTOPHER REEVE STORY knowing that he wouldn't be lacking for source material on his subject. Rather, the challenge would lie in processing the countless hours of material from Reeve's work and his life to find the real superhero within. Directed by Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui, who co-wrote the script with Otto, SUPER/MAN: THE CHRISTOPHER REEVE STORY is an intimate view into the life of actor Christopher Reeve. The film chronicles his rise to stardom upon landing the role of Superman in the 1970's,...
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Joker: Folie à Deux
The Rough Cut
Editor, Jeff Groth ACE JOKER: FOLIE À DEUX editor, Jeff Groth ACE had a tough act of his own to follow, coming off of his ACE Eddie and Oscar nominated work on Todd Phillips' JOKER (2019), but follow it he did. Directed by Todd Phillips from a screenplay he co-wrote with Scott Silver, the sequel follows failed comedian Arthur Fleck as he struggles with his dual identity. While incarcerated at Arkham State Hospital as he awaits his trial, Arthur meets the love of his life, Harley Quinn. JEFF GROTH, ACE Having worked previously with Phillips on such films as THE HANGOVER III...
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Challengers
The Rough Cut
Editor - Marco Costa CHALLENGERS editor Marco Costa knew one thing going into Luca Guadagnino's recent tennis movie, and that's that Luca didn't know anything about tennis. Luca would explain to Marco that this film isn't about tennis. The incredibly kinetic action in the tennis sequences that Marco cut say otherwise. CHALLNEGERS stars ZENDAYA as Tashi Duncan, a former tennis prodigy turned coach and a force of nature who makes no apologies for her game on and off the court. Tashi is married to Art, a champion on a losing streak. Tashi’s strategy for her husband’s redemption...
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Saturday Night
The Rough Cut
Editors Nathan Orloff and Shane Reid SATURDAY NIGHT editors Nathan Orloff and Shane Reid team up for the second time in 2024 with their latest Jason Reitman / Gil Keenan project about NBC's long-running sketch comedy show. Having previously cut GHOSTBUSTERS: FROZEN EMPIRE together, the pair developed a strong working relationship that certainly came in handy when Shane had to do double duty between this project and DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE (2024). SATURDAY NIGHT is a frenetic dramatization of what happened behind the scenes during the ninety minutes leading up to the first broadcast of...
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Megalopolis
The Rough Cut
Editor - Cam McLauchlin MEGALOPOLIS editor Cam McLauchlin had no idea what was waiting for him on the other side when he knocked on Francis Ford Coppola's door. Now that Coppola's decades-in-the-making passion project has become a "surreality", McLauchlin still can't quite explain everything that took place in the making of this film. One thing is clear to Cam however, this was Francis's vision and Francis IS "Cesar Catalina". MEGALOPOLIS takes place in a somewhat alternate universe, where New York City is New Rome, and stars Adam Driver as Caesar Catalina, a brilliant artist, who...
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Industry
The Rough Cut
Editor - Kyle Traynor Although INDUSTRY editor Kyle Traynor joined the series already in progress in its sophomore season, by season three he would be given the cutting room keys to half of the season's episodes, including both the series premiere and its finale. Created by Mickey Down and Konrad Kay, INDUSTRY follows a group of young graduates competing for a limited number of available full-time employment opportunities at Pierpoint, a top investment bank in London. The graduates include Harper Stern, a Black upstate New York native who uproots her life in pursuit of success despite...
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Rez Ball
The Rough Cut
Editor - Jessica Baclesse REZ BALL editor, Jessica Baclesse says she got the job for the film through a chance encounter with a not-so-stranger across a crowded room. Random or not, Jess already had plenty of editing experience under her belt, including time logged cutting a big sports movie with Michael B. Jordan's directorial debut, CREED III (2023). REZ BALL was directed by Sydney Freeland and co-written by Freeland and Sterlin Harjo (RESERVATION DOGS). It tells the story of the Chuska Warriors, a Native American high school basketball team from New Mexico who, after losing...
info_outlineEditors - Mags Arnold, Brenna Rangott and Matt Chessé ACE
TRUE DETECTIVE: NIGHT COUNTRY editors Mags, Brenna and Matt had never worked together prior to uniting under showrunner Issa López for the fourth season of the HBO MAX anthology series, but you wouldn't know it from talking to them. The camaraderie between the three and the fun they have is in stark contrast to the dark and dangerous tone of their hit show.
TRUE DETECTIVE: NIGHT COUNTRY is set in the fictional town of Ennis, Alaska and follows the investigation behind the mysterious disappearance, and even more mysterious discovery, of eight men from a research station. Leading the investigation are two law enforcement officers who share a troubled past, Detectives Liz Danvers (Jodie Foster) and Evangeline Navarro (Kali Reis).
MATT "CHALKY" CHESSÉ, ACE
Editor Matt Chessé, ACE often finds himself cutting with frequent collaborator, director Marc Forster. The pair have been working together since 2000 and have joined forces on such films as; MONSTER'S BALL (2001), FINDING NEVERLAND (2004), THE KITE RUNNER (2007), QUANTUM OF SOLACE (2008) and CHRISTOPHER ROBIN (2018). Matt also cut TRUE DETECTIVE: NIGHT COUNTRY star, Jodie Foster's film MONEY MONSTER (2016).
MAGS ARNOLD
Mags Arnold entered the film industry in 1993 as a trainee sound editor, crossing over to picture editing as second assistant editor in 1994. She was promoted to first assistant editor in 1995, working on films such as HIGH FIDELITY (2000) and CAPTAIN CORELLI’S MANDOLIN (2001), both under celebrated editor Mick Audsley. Following her work as an assistant, Mags has cut shows such as WITCHER (2023) and BIG LITTLE LIES (2019).
BRENNA RANGOTT
Brenna is the lone editor on "Night Country" who has past experience with showrunner Issa López, working on the series BRITTANIA (2019) together. Despite her cheerful demeanor, Bren could often be found in the cutting rooms of horror genre projects like STARVE ACRE (2023), FATHER OF FLIES (2021) and HOST (2020).
Editing TRUE DETECTIVE: NIGHT COUNTRY
In our discussion with TRUE DETECTIVE: NIGHT COUNTRY editors Mags Arnold, Brenna Rangott and Matt Chessé, ACE, we talk about:
- Fun with field trips
- When the editor is the scene stealer
- Keeping things light when the story's so dark
- Playing the paranormal against the practical
- How "clumping" is better than cross cutting
The Credits
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