Two and a half years later, Sacks was out of work when the show was
cancelled. Finding it difficult to locate another job in the film industry, he
got out of the business for a couple of years and worked at a restaurant.
Through a friend, Sacks got
back in the business as a day
player on the feature Dante's
Peak. Production assistant work
on a few television movies and
series followed. He served as
writer's PA on the second
season of the series Clueless,
followed by a stint as postpro-
duction PA on the pilot for
Love, American Style.
Sacks' work as a PA in
several different areas made
him realize that he wanted to
return to editing. Soon after
making the decision, he was offered work as a production assistant to
editor Pietro Scalia on Playing by Heart. It proved a pivotal point in his
career. As part of Scalia's crew, Sacks moved up to apprentice editor on
the features Gladiator and Hannibal, then second assistant editor on Black
Hawk Down.
Job Overview
Apprentice editor is an entry-level union position within the editorial
department. They assist the assistant editor and editor as instructed,
usually handling the cataloging of film and shuttling it between the film
lab and sound transfer facility, and the editor and projectionist. "An
apprentice editor is a combination of production assistant and assistant
editor," explains apprentice editor Rex Teese. "We help log film and help
load everything into the Avid [or Lightworks] editing machine. We run
back and forth between developing houses, dropping off and picking up
film. When it comes time to start cutting the picture together, we're there
splicing the film for the preview cut. It's pretty much all digital now, but
when they start previewing the picture, they go back to film. I'm like an
overpaid librarian. I keep track of everything that comes in from produc-
tion--every frame."
JOB TITLE: APPRENTICE EDITOR,
APPRENTICE FILM EDITOR
"Be willing to
do extra things. Stay
late. Get to work early."
--Steve Sacks
"Tell people what you want to do. If
you're working as a production assistant and
you're responsible and reliable, you'll stay a
production assistant [unless you] tell people
what you want to do." –Steve Sacks
CAREER TIPS
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