Premiere Profile: Jimmy Falinski
Jimmy Falinski photo credit Nicky De Silva
Interview With Editor And Premiere Pro User Jimmy Falinski
Name: Jimmy Falinski
Age: 37
Location: Denmark
Website: www.jimmyfalinski.com
Social Media: twitter.com/jimmyfalinski facebook.com/jimmyfalinski
Premiere Bro: How did you start editing?
Jimmy: I grew up during the better era of MTV, when they still showed music videos and had interesting programs like “Alternative Nation” and the likes. Those videos were very experimental and grabbed my attention. Of course, so did big names like Michael Jackson, Madonna, and so on. I really liked watching music videos back then. You would always see something new and it got people experimenting how to distort things in-camera and how to screw up the film. Now, we have easy effects to do that. Back then it was really a craft and that kinda got me started. Together with my best friend, Lasse Hoile, who pushed me a lot to get going (and still does almost everyday—he is now a famous photographer and artist and also does a few music videos here and there) I started to take video courses and internships at a few different production companies; always working, even after work to learn new stuff while the “old” editors went home at 5 o’clock sharp. Back then, the machines cost a fortune. So it wasn’t easy to just learn stuff at home like it is today, where you can buy something so cheap too… things have come a long way! Now, it’s not the gear you pay for, but the man or woman and that’s why it’s so important to always be on the learning curve.
“...when you find your “call” in life, you know you have to really dig into it proper ... keep getting inspired and challenging yourself as much as possible.”
Premiere Bro: What was your hardest lesson learned in becoming an editor?
Jimmy: Not sure it was hard, hard—it’s just, when you find your “call” in life, you know you have to really dig into it proper and just work and work as much as possible and get as much inspiration as you can, working with different people and learning whatever you can. It’s long, long days in a very dark room; insanity is what you have to be careful of. Remember to get some sun at least a few hours each day. The hard thing is when you get into a place where you don’t get a chance to expand yourself, where you make too much conveyor belt stuff, which, sadly, can easily happen at some production places. You have to keep getting inspired and challenging yourself as much as possible.
Premiere Bro: Why do you use Premiere Pro?
Jimmy: I think, like many other FCP 7 users back then, I wished they [Apple] had actually pulled themselves together and kept supporting the platform. Sadly, that didn’t happen. Premiere Pro CC came along and got my attention. I got into Premiere Pro and totally loved it! They [Adobe] knew what it was all about; workflow, features, and ease of use for all the different codecs and formats that’s out there. It just works. It’s fast and I hope they don’t drop the ball in the future. The good thing about Premiere Pro is you don't need to transcode all the formats unlike other programs. It just “eats” everything you throw at it which is a huge timesaver. Now you can spend the important time on the important things and not on the excruciating wait time for renders. I’m done more quickly because of a constant flow, which the clients like of course. My offline versions look almost as good as the final online which also helps a great deal with the other people in the room.
“The good thing about Premiere Pro is you don’t need to transcode ... you can spend the important time on the important things...”
Premiere Bro: What is your favorite part of the editing process in Premiere Pro?
Jimmy: Everything before the actual editing process get’s me tired quickly, structuring the whole file thing, logging, bins… it’s important, of course, and even though it’s tiresome, it will save you time in the end. It’s important to have a nice clean project but, when all the raw material is in and it’s good, that’s when you peak - at least I do. Creative editing is my number one. When I get a chance to experiment and try new things out and of course the time to do it, it happens But there are also the jobs that you just have to edit like an assistant because the client already knows or it must be done so and so. Sometimes that just makes you really tired before you have even begun.
Premiere Bro: What is your favorite Premiere Pro shortcut/feature and how do you use it your workflow?
Jimmy: I don't have one favorite feature. I have many. Here are some of them: Native support for Arri. Adjustment layers. Autosync on audio. Free-draw mask pen. Autosave to cloud. Pancake timeline set-up. Dragging a timeline to the source video. Maximize panels to full screen.
Jimmy Falinski photo credit Nicky De Silva
Premiere Bro: What would be your #1 Premiere Pro feature request?
Jimmy: Like all programs, there are a few hits and misses. But the good thing is they [Adobe] listen to the community or at least I hope they do. It would be nice to iron out some of the bugs it still suffers a little from, and perhaps make it a bit more stable.
Premiere Bro: What hobby or activity (outside of editing and postproduction) makes you a better editor?
Jimmy: I like to run. So each morning or evening I run some miles to get the day’s stress levels down…you know clients sometimes. I guess I’m a bit of a sports nerd, so I keep up to date on that too. I also enjoy checking out what’s moving and “hip” in the music video and commercial worlds, what’s happening with directors and editors I like, and gear of course… and taking it easy when I can or have the time.
Jimmy Falinski photo credit Nicky De Silva
“No matter how good you think you are, you still have to learn. That will keep it fresh and get you up in the mornings too.”
Premiere Bro: What constructive suggestion would you give an older, professional editor? Or give to the post production industry in general?
Jimmy: That’s a bit hard. Usually you meet a lot of people who think they can do no wrong or won’t listen to constructive critique! One thing I would say, here in Denmark, our education is very different from the real world. They kind of only teach linear things. Of course, if you don’t know much to start with, you have to learn the standard stuff. But they don’t teach you how things are actually happening out there, which I think is a shame. They don’t teach when you have to sit in an editing room with 4-5 clients and everyone has an opinion and you have to make them all happy. Or really, really tight deadlines but you have like 10 hours of raw material and the clients don’t seem to see what’s wrong etc. etc. But, of course, it’s also different from job to job and who you work with. There is just a lot of waste which could be sorted out proper. I guess some in this business just never want to learn about the process or think they know but really don’t, which is an annoying time waster…
Premiere Bro: What advice would you give a younger, amateur editor?
Jimmy: It’s all about working and working and just never giving in! I know it’s a bit of a cliche but you have to make the mistakes and you will. But those are the ones you learn the most from. So don’t let it get you down. Take it always as a learning curve. Seek out new inspiration and try different things and don’t be scared. No matter how good you think you are, you still have to learn. That will keep it fresh and get you up in the mornings too. Leave your ego at the door...
Here is a link to a nice video for beginners.
Jimmy Falinski with Walter Murch, IBC 2015, photo credit Thomas Frank
Premiere Bro: If you could ask yourself any question about editing, what would it be and how would you answer?
Jimmy: How did top-editors like Art Jones, Dustin Robertson, Luis Moreno and many more, become that good at editing? Is it a natural talent? School? Or just practice practice, practice?
Follow Jimmy Falinski on Twitter where he regularly shares his latest work. Stay tuned for an exclusive Premiere Bro interview with Jimmy Falinski on his work on the Abu Dhabi sports channel "AD Sports TV" campaign.
