Digger: Stephen Mirrione on flexibility and watching dailies
On Art of the Cut, Oscar-winning editor Stephen Mirrione and Conor O’Neill talked through cutting Alejandro G. Iñárritu's Digger, including the value of screening dailies with the director. Mirrione also retold how he almost lost the job years ago by joking that he was not flexible, then earned a second interview after Iñárritu heard his Traffic commentary.
The joke was a bad answer to a serious question. Iñárritu wanted to know whether an editor would explore. Mirrione's real position, once he got to say it, is that he cares less about defending a version than about learning a director's process.
Watching dailies together is part of that education. It keeps the cut from becoming an argument with footage the director never got to react to in the room.
Go deeper on Kingdom of Dreams
- → EP 329: Dody Dorn on Heart of the Beast
- → EP 225: Eric Kissack on long takes in The Studio
- → EP 313: Dan Attias on directing The Sopranos and Alias
We have not sat with Stephen Mirrione yet. Go deeper with editors and directors who talk about process, dailies, and knowing when to try another version.
Headline inspired by reporting at Art of the Cut (Steve Hullfish's interview with Stephen Mirrione, ACE, and Conor O’Neill). Full article remains on their site; this page is our craft lens and episode guide. Read the source at Art of the Cut ↗