Hi guys,

 I work at a post-production facility in the UK, I am currently assisting on a project that is not of huge proportions or budget but does contain A LOT of footage. I have been given a very unusual amount of time to prepare for this project before it has even started the edit.

So theres the story, heres the question...

Is it worth me using script-based editing (No 'Script Sync' Damn cheepos! [:'(] ) on this project? And how can I sell it to an editor that is quite high strung? / Hasn't even heard of it?

I have read through all posts on this forum concerning this project but no one has clearly stated the benefits an editor recieves from having this available.

Here are a few...

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You can jump from take to take and even if you have to wiggle it a bit to get to the exact line, it still beats by a wide margin going shot to shot in a bin with NO reference whatsoever about where your next line starts.

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                                 Again, here's another example where Avid is apart from all the other NLE's out there. Script based editing is darn more intuitive then bin searching for a shot if you don't know the story. I cut low budget features, as I am doing right now, and something like this could do two important things for me.

1. Not make it necessary for the director to constantly sit in as I work. This happens often, but not always, as some of the digi-underground stories are shot with a very loosely based script. Sometimes, nothing more than notes on scrap pieces of paper. (I'm serious) I need the director there to explain certain things to me and tell mer what he's going for beacuse I don't know, I don't have a freakin script ! Even when you do, you still don't necessarily know.

2. Allow me to follow the story in a more intimate graphical way, so I maybe free to work more creatively. I'm sure by reading dialogue and having a choice of shot assignment options per line of the screen play will create many more opportunities to be creative and yet invisible in a way that reading a cut list cannot inspire. If you can really get into the story, then you can tell it better with a more attuned and interpretive editing style. Again, I say editing is not cutting, it's assembly and story telling.

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And, it's a feature that FCP isn't likely to get soon, if ever.

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I know that the whole not needing the director in with you all the time is very very handy, and the visual reference is also useful, the only problem with this is that if the shots I choose are incorrect then how will it be of any help to the editor that doesnt know how to operate it?

...Suppose he can match bin at least...?

Just interested if anyone can quite clearly describe the benefits?

Well, I'll give you my $.02 worth.

I am in the middle of a rather large edit (since November of last year) and script based editing has been absolutely invaluable for a couple of reasons.

1. Coverage--By laying in takes against the script as they are logged and captured I was able to instantly make sure that everything in the script was covered.  This allowed us to catch something that the script supervisor missed and we were able to shoot the missing scene before the multi-day shoot wrapped up.  That alone sealed the deal for me.
2. Reduced time searching for takes-- With having each take mapped out in the script including where in the script the talent (inevitably) blew the scene we were able to almost completely eliminate all of the "I know there's another take there that was better, are you sure you logged it, can we look through the source tapes one more time, now wait, which take was that?" pain.
3. Visual Layout--It was also helpful for me to have a physical representation of how far each take ran into a given scene.  With some reads lasting 3-4 minutes I was able to keep from going down too many "dead ends" like watching an entire take only to realize the last 4 words were bad.
4. Super Quick rough assembly--Script based editng lets you highlight a take and a selected area of the script and edit that into a timeline with a quick click. (I hadn't been aware of this trick until after I was using Script-Sync so it may only work with Script Sync) This let me do a very rough assembly of the a-roll in a 44minute script in less than 2 hours.
5. Script-Sync--I know you mentioned that you won't have access to Script-Sync, but when you do it is quite remarkable.  I was able to do an edit in Spanish, a language I haven't spoken since high-school (which was, um , SEVERAL years ago) by matching up ins and outs on the script and having script-sync take me right to the points in the clips.  It was remarkably cool to use.

That's what I can think of for now, but if you have any specific questions I'll do what I can to answer them.

ac

 Wow brilliant response acedits thanks mate!

I have been going through the program and have done my first script and it's shaping up quite nicely, the first problem I have detected though is that we are using multi cams so when I sync a clip to the script I then have to sync the other three clips from different angles...Can't really see any way around this problem!

I think you have certainly nailed it when you're talking about searching for takes, I spent a whole morning once searching for a single shot, with this program It wouldn't have been an issue.

Ok cool well thanks and good luck with the rest of the edit ace