Finely Sliced: Sam Allen on Putting His 10,000 Hours In
Sam Allen has had an impressive first year at The Assembly Rooms! Since joining the roster in 2023, Sam has continued working with longstanding clients such as Will Hooper, editing his most recent spot for Mercedes x League of Legends, as well as cultivating new relationships with directors such as Alex Wilde Eoin Glaister at Stink.
LBB> The first cut is the deepest: how do you like to start an editing project?
Sam> When it was very early doors in my career, I got a vital bit of advice that I’ve stuck by ever since. Nick Allix, an editor I used to assist for at The Playroom, told me that a good way to start is by piecing together the edit loosely with the last take of each slate because that way, you take the pressure out of getting bogged down in specifics, when really the very first pass is more of a vibe check.
Once you have your edit structured out, you can then go back and rewatch all your rushes with a sharper eye towards what type of action or movements you actually want / need for the edit, and build from there.
An empty timeline is a daunting thing, but when you approach it like this you alleviate the ‘where do I begin’ feeling. Chances are the whole thing will change by the time the first assembly is ready and all the takes will be switched out – but it’s definitely a good way to start.
LBB> Non-editors often think of editing just in technical terms but it’s integral to the emotion and mood of a film. How did you develop that side of your craft?
Sam> Developing the emotion and mood of a film is definitely a huge part of editing, even for the most technically gifted editors out there – if you haven’t got a grasp on how to evoke emotion with the cuts, you aren’t going to get very far. I think this is something that comes mostly with time and experience, but spending time really watching and analysing the ads / films out there is key.
There’s nothing wrong with drawing reference in order to understand technique. So really, in answer to the question, I became a student of the game and put my 10,000 hours in.
LBB> How important is an understanding of story and the mechanics of story?
Sam> I think editing simply boils down to visual storytelling. Yes, it’s a technical job and you have to know your software, but being able to understand storytelling is crucial to developing a good edit.
The thing I’ve found to have been the most useful for me over the years is listening to people tell real world stories, whether it’s your mate talking about what happened that day or an old guy in a pub reminiscing on days past – if you pay attention to anyone, you begin to understand the rises and falls, the things that leave you on the edge of your seat or make you want to pull your hair out etc.
Perhaps it sounds cliché but everyone has stories, and I’ve found the more people’s stories I’ve listened to the better I’ve become as an editor.
Understanding the mechanics of a story is the majority of the job, and it’s what I believe to be the most important thing in an editor’s arsenal. I really have to give credit for my understanding of story to the fact I grew up within such a melting pot of people and cultures..
LBB> Rhythm and a sense of musicality seem to be intrinsic to good editing – how do you think about the rhythm side of editing, how do you feel out the beats of a scene or a spot? And do you like to cut to music?
Sam> Rhythm is essential to any edit, and I think most viewers feel it whether you are a part of the making or just a general viewer. In regards to how I approach rhythm changes dependent on the project with a script I tend to read…and reread…and reread again to really feel out the more significant words or emotions evoked from the script. I tend to then make notes on all of that, and that helps influence how long or short of a beat the shots need.
In terms of music videos, I tend to have the track on an empty timeline, whack the volume up full blast and I dance around the suite with my keyboard in hand setting a marker on the track every time I move. I feel with editing, particularly with music videos, you want your film to feel like it's dancing to the track.
We don’t dance in a singular rhythm – there’s slower parts and faster parts etc – and I have always felt listening to how my body naturally responds to the song helps influence where the cuts are the most effective.
LBB> Tell us about a recent editing project that involved some interesting creative challenges.
Sam> The Mercedes commercial we just finished involved such a hefty story. There were so many peaks and troughs story-wise, and yet we only had 70 seconds to tell it. It certainly becomes quite the task, to consolidate such a massive story of huge losses and wins into that time, without it just being a singular pace montage!
Making sure we had room to breathe in moments of that film was quite tricky, but I think myself and Will Hooper out in Berlin were able to find that beautiful balance.
LBB> How important is your relationship with the director and how do you approach difficult conversations when there is a creative difference of opinion?
Sam> My relationships with directors is one of the most important parts of the job. In particular, director / editor relationships require the utmost trust and faith in each other. To me, when I’m working on that initial cut with the director, there’s no such thing as a difficult conversation – every idea whether it be bad or good is key in this stage.
Egos aside, we need to experiment as much as possible. Some things land, some things don’t, but that’s why you can duplicate sequences… Exploring every inch of possibility (particularly at the start) is essential, and that only happens when you have enough trust in the person you’re collaborating with, and aren’t afraid to throw any idea at the project.
This is quite often the case when you experiment with an initially bad idea. It makes you see things in a new light and opens up a gateway to new ideas, that nine times out of ten are super creative and exciting. I would say your relationship with the director is arguably one of the most important things in a project.
LBB> What’s harder to cut around – too much material or not enough?
Sam> Both too much and too little material present their own challenges. I’d say too little material is a touch trickier because you really have to push the creativity of the project in order to make the film work, which can be very challenging, but also very fun. When you have too much material, it’s a lot easier to keep the edit exciting and evolving, but you run into the trouble of getting all the best bits from every set up into the film.
It’s a sad reality, but often with too much material you end up with some real good stuff left on the edit floor, and it’s just a damn shame.
LBB> Which commercial projects are you proudest of and why?
Sam> There are two, really. The first one was when I was given a Dove spot called ‘Bench’, an eight-day shoot with two cameras just pointed at a bench in South Africa, catching natural moments of touch between people that happened to sit there. It was quite the sight watching producers run down to the bench with release forms for people to sign so we could use the footage!
There were close to72 hours on it, and after weeks of whittling it down, I feel as though we made such an authentic film that captured every natural moment that was shot.
The other is Guinness’ ‘Singing Pints’ ad. Guinness of course has always been known for being the crème de la crème of advertising, and to be involved in an ad for them was dreamy. When it won a Silver Arrow last year, my mind was truly blown.
LBB> There are so many different platforms for film content now, and even in advertising something can last anything from a few seconds to a couple of hours. As an editor, are you seeing a change in the kind of projects you’re getting from brands and agencies?
Sam> With all the different platforms now coming into play for advertising, there’s definitely been a bit of a change. I’d say perhaps the most significant is the leeway on length, for example 30-seconds doesn’t have to be to the exact frame, and you can quite often make it 32-seconds if there are just a few shots that need that little bit more time, but you don’t want to sacrifice any frames from other shots.
With social advertising, there are less regulations to follow in general, so it allows us to be a bit more bold with what we are putting out there… client permitting, of course.
LBB> Who are your editing heroes and why? What films or spots epitomise good editing for you?
Sam> I have so many editing heroes, most of which I’ve had the immense luck to work with over the years, including Adam Spivey, Nick Allix, Matt Choden, Gareth McEwen and Leo King. Across these guys, there’s a vast amount of varied work that I hold in such high regard, but to pinpoint one person, who has had by far the most influence on my career – not just in style but also mentality – is Sam Sneade, the boss man of Speade when I was an assistant there.
The amount of time I spent getting to know the legend, watching him work and collaborating with him on edits during my time assisting him was so valuable to me. All of his work from the early days with Glazer, the likes of Guinness’ ‘Surfer’ and with Jonny Green the ‘Manny’ spot for Hennessy in particular, to the more recent Armani Code with Reed Morano.
Amongst the many more ads over the years, Sam’s work has always epitomised what curated and stylised editing is, in my opinion, so to have learned from and worked as closely with him as I did, has had the most impact on the style that I have developed for myself. He is an absolute legend to the game, and I can’t thank him enough for the time, effort and trust he put into me.
LBB> How does editing in the commercial world differ from the film world and TV world?
Sam> The fact that adverts are a fraction of the time length of a film or TV show makes the difference between the two really night and day. In my opinion, the biggest difference comes with how long you actually have with the project – you can have weeks or sometimes months on a film / TV show before anyone sees it, but for an ad or music video sometimes you only get half a day before having to show your director.
Both come with uniquely complex challenges of their own but for me personally, the intense short timelines of advertising makes it just that little more exciting.
LBB> Have you noticed any trends or changes in commercial editing over recent years
Sam> Advertising is a constantly evolving medium. Over the past ten years, I’ve seen a fair amount of varied work. With the development of social media ads really coming in hot nowadays, the most significant change I’ve seen is to do with pace.
Our attention spans grow shorter, and our ability to absorb information quickly has developed a lot with the rise of Instagram reels and TikTok The knock-on effect is that I’m tending to make a lot more cuts to bring that pace right up.
We do still get the odd total antithesis to this where we want to draw shots out for as long as we possibly can, but it’s 100% in trend right now to get real choppy with the films!
