Evolution of the Cut

philosophy of film editing that views the process as a methodical, step-by-step progression from a raw first assembly to a polished final version. It posits that there are no effective shortcuts; an editor must go through each stage of refinement—from broad structural changes to fine-tuning individual cuts—to arrive at the best version of the film. As editor Steven Mirkovich puts it, "If the final movie is Z in the alphabet... you have to understand you start at A and you go through to B, C, D and so on."