So Confused - Please Help

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Indyreel

Well-known member
Just purchased CS5 to edit my first feature film. New to professional NLE's but heard Premeire was suppose to be world class standard for movie making.

After receiving it, I ran into a "professional" editor who said "don't buy into the hype. Premeire pro is more for photo editing than movie editing. You're much better off going with Avid or Vegas, as these are what most Hollywood films are edited on"

Yes, I'm a newbie editor, so the above statement concerns me, as I don't know enough about the pro editing world to know if this is true.

Could a professional please shed some light on this subject for me? As I don't know if I should send CS5 back and get something better for movie editing.

Thanks and sorry for being so uninformed.
 
Indyreel said:
...After receiving it, I ran into a "professional" editor who said "don't buy into the hype. Premeire pro is more for photo editing than movie editing. You're much better off going with Avid or Vegas, as these are what most Hollywood films are edited on"
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The "professional" needs to take his own advice. Avid isn't the end all to be all. Buy the tool that best the suits you. If you downloaded the trial of CS5 first and liked it, and it does everything you need it to do, then use it.

There is a reason so much of Hollywood and television uses Avid, and that is that Avid is as much a hardware company as it is a software company. The station I work at is all Avid, because Avid also supplies server systems for on air playback and storage, on air graphics playback systems, and news/scriptwriting programs that are all integrated into each other. So Avid definitely has some advantages... but my station also has sunk a couple million dollars into Avid for those advantages.

Vegas is used because, well, Sony owns it and it doesn't make a whole lot of sense for Sony Pictures to buy Avid systems, when they already have their own software in house.

If you're trying to work on your first feature film, which I'm going to assume is a low budget independent film, CS5 is more than adequate.
 
CS5 is very powerful and is in no way a photo editor.

Your professional should try it before opening his mouth on the unknown. Sony vegas is very much a consumer program.
 
Mike Harvey said:
If you're trying to work on your first feature film, which I'm going to assume is a low budget independent film, CS5 is more than adequate.
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I'm not looking to produce a low budget "looking" film. I want it to look professional and be worthy of a full theatrical release.

Will CS5 be more than adequate for that?

Thanks.
 
Smifis said:
It will indeed be adequate although you may want to consider hiring an editor
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Id certainly consider doing this if its within the realms of available cash.

Otherwise, CS5 is brand spanking new, has some really great features and if your feature is good, no one will ever say "oh he edited that on CS5, we cant touch it".
 
Indyreel said:
I'm not looking to produce a low budget "looking" film. I want it to look professional and be worthy of a full theatrical release.

Will CS5 be more than adequate for that?

Thanks.
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How will your NLE impact what your film actually look like?

If you want professional result, spend a lot of time learning how to use the program or hire someone who knows how to use it. Premiere will not make your movie look good, the PERSON using Premiere do that. It's the same thing as buying a camera expecting it to do all the work for you.

Stay away from any "professional" who tells you that this or that tool is completely useless. That's because a real professional knows that it's not about the tool at all, but who's using it.
 
Indyreel said:
I'm not looking to produce a low budget "looking" film.
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And in no way was I trying to insinuate this... if it came across that way, my apologies.

Without knowing what exactly you're wanting to do in post, I would venture to guess yes, it will more than capable. I wouldn't see why you couldn't.

[EDIT] I completely agree with Huy and what he says. Premiere, Avid, Vegas, FCP, iMovie... they're all just tools, and it ultimately matters more who wields the tool than the tool itself.
 
Huy's right, it's the man (or lass) behind the desk and not the program which is why i suggested considering hiring an editor.
 
Indyreel said:
Just purchased CS5 to edit my first feature film. New to professional NLE's but heard Premeire was suppose to be world class standard for movie making.
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Well, the others took care of what I would say about most of the rest of the post . . .

But while Premiere is certainly a competent NLE that you'll be able to use to great effect, it's not "the world-class standard."

After Effects is. Photoshop is. Premiere isn't.

Which isn't to say it's bad at all, only that it doesn't have the "professional standard" status that AE and PS do.
 
"World-class standard" for NLE these days seems to have more to do with market shares than actual features.
 
I think that's unfortunate because it creates a continuing cycle: people buy the application because that's what everyone uses, and in turn that keeps the program popular regardless of whether it's actually the best or not. Take FCP for example, you can make a good case for why Premiere is a superior program in many ways, but to hear some people tell it you can't be a professional unless you cut on FCP. Sometimes the best doesn't necessarily rise to the top.
 
Huy Vu said:
I think that's unfortunate because it creates a continuing cycle: people buy the application because that's what everyone uses, and in turn that keeps the program popular regardless of whether it's actually the best or not. Take FCP for example, you can make a good case for why Premiere is a superior program in many ways, but to hear some people tell it you can't be a professional unless you cut on FCP. Sometimes the best doesn't necessarily rise to the top.
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I think you're right in the Premiere vs other NLE software only argument... but Avid is in it's own little world, given the number of hardware solutions that Adobe/Apple/Sony simply don't offer. Which is also why it kinda make's it an apples and oranges argument. For a lot of big places (like where I work) Avid makes sense because of everything else they offer (playback servers, on air graphics solutions, etc). Other than Grass Valley, I can't think of anyone offering anything similar.

I have no numbers anywhere to go on, but I would wager that the bulk of Avid's money is made on large production houses and TV stations that can afford or have much more of a need for the million dollar setups, not the individuals or one-man bands buying just MC by itself. Unfortunately, when most people think "professional" they think of the guy working in the big houses or stations, not us little guys, even though we're every bit as professional.
 
David Jimerson said:
[...] it's not "the world-class standard." After Effects is. Photoshop is. Premiere isn't.[...]
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Agreed but wouldn't you also say that Premiere relies on other programs in the suite to pick up its slack, and therefore, CS5's non linear editing ability is "world class"?
 
Well, media management is important and AVID does have that sorted out, but I find it a bit restrictive as well (can be a good thing) on your editing technique. The new MC 5 might change that.

Multiple codec and formats support is really becoming important these days, especially with the number of features being shot on Red/Panasonic/Sony/Arri digital etc, cams. Not to mention DSLR.

Typically, when editing a feature, bells and whistles (effects etc) are less important as these are usually handled by a diff. department. Though on the really low budget end, more of this is handled by the all in one editor.

I look at stability, ease of use and format/codec support first when looking at a system.

Ability to output to a finishing system is important as well.

Though, as stated earlier. NLE's are just tools (particularly these days as the NLE's have improved so much). Some tools work for some people better than other and for some jobs better than others.

I always hate seeing ads for an editor but you must be an expert in there NLE (see that a lot for FCP/PPro). I'm always leery of prod companies who put more emphasis on what system you use rather than you skills as an editor.
 
Jordan_S said:
Agreed but wouldn't you also say that Premiere relies on other programs in the suite to pick up its slack, and therefore, CS5's non linear editing ability is "world class"?
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It's one of the major NLEs, for its abilities. But it's not "the standard."
 
Denwa said:
Though, as stated earlier. NLE's are just tools (particularly these days as the NLE's have improved so much). Some tools work for some people better than other and for some jobs better than others.

I always hate seeing ads for an editor but you must be an expert in there NLE (see that a lot for FCP/PPro). I'm always leery of prod companies who put more emphasis on what system you use rather than you skills as an editor.
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I sympathize, but part of the "skill" is being able to sit down within 10 minutes of showing up and getting to work, instead of trying to figure out how to do what you want to do.
 
David Jimerson said:
I sympathize, but part of the "skill" is being able to sit down within 10 minutes of showing up and getting to work, instead of trying to figure out how to do what you want to do.
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I'm sure that when large budget movies ask Walter Murch to edit their film, their first thought is does he use X system.

:)
 
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