Cutting to the bone

I am deep in the editing process on my short film Alien Echo. This is the stage where things get brutal, in the best possible way.

You start with a cut. Then you script, scrape, and slash at it. Scene by scene. Moment by moment. You strip it back to make it as tight and as dramatic as possible. For me, editing is about finding the drama and getting straight to it. That is where the film reveals itself.

Right now, I am pulling back the curtain on the rough cut, which is the first draft. I am shaping it into the second draft. That means cutting it back to the bone. No indulgence and no filler. Just the essential beats that drive the story forward.

Editing a short film feels like solving a puzzle. You are constantly asking what the story actually needs and what it can live without. Audiences do not have time for waffling, especially in short form. You want to get them to the good stuff.

That does not mean everything has to be rushed. You can still hold a shot and you can still use a slow dolly if it earns its place. Every choice has to serve the rhythm and the emotional beats of the story.

That is where I am at with Alien Echo. Cutting hard. Sharpening the drama. Trusting the process.