Archive - The Rough Cut

The Cut That Changed Everything: Backup, But Not Background: How B-Roll Took Center Stage

And when filmmakers f-up, B-roll was the safety net.

Jul 2

June 2025

Star Trek, a Basement, and a Broken Spine: The Origin Story of Hollywood’s Favorite Editing Software, Avid

Where Bill Warner saw friction, he gave editors flight

Jun 27

Every Frame, Every Fix, All at Once: The Silent Power of Invisible VFX

In every frame. Every fix. All at once.

Jun 20

Will H. Hays, the Preacher Who Saved Hollywood by Lying to America

The man who showed filmmakers how to beat censors by becoming them.

Jun 13

Jim Cummings: One-Man Band Against the Hollywood Machine

From self-funding to Sundance

Jun 6

May 2025

Ed Pincus, the Documentarian Who Turned the Camera on Himself

Plus a new initiative to support documentary filmmakers

May 28

The One-Take and the Cult of the Cutless Cut

Why the long take isn’t as cinematic as you think, and what it’s hiding

May 22

An Untold Look at the “Debacle” of FCP7 to X

A rollout that split the editing world in two

May 16

Cannes Confidential: Badges, Backrooms, and Blacklists

For all its talk of celebrating artistic freedom, Cannes itself is a fortress of gatekeeping

May 14

Video Stack: How David F. Sandberg went from No Budget to Hollywood

If you’re waiting for someone to hand you a golden ticket to the industry… buckle up.

May 9

Muybridge: The Man Who Shot a Horse, His Wife’s Lover, and the First Frame of Cinema

Before he made a horse fly, he made a bullet fly through a man

May 2

April 2025

The Cut That Changed Everything: Supercuts

Before the supercut was a style, it was survival

Apr 25

#nojs-banner { position: fixed; bottom: 0; left: 0; padding: 16px 16px 16px 32px; width: 100%; box-sizing: border-box; background: red; color: white; font-family: -apple-system, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; line-height: 13px; } #nojs-banner a { color: inherit; text-decoration: underline; } This site requires JavaScript to run correctly. Please turn on JavaScript or unblock scripts