Post Production - where to start?

[Vedat]

Try to get your hands on simple editing jobs.
Audio Book editing would be a good start.
Once you learn how to edit sound efficiently, your chances of landing an internship or assistant position will increase. And that's where you can learn the ins and outs of different aspects of post production.

[kol12]

Thanks everyone for the constructive and encouraging replies. Unfortunately I've become sidetracked with an Operating System issue on my main PC but looking forward to get back to this thread with the suggestions and useful information.

[kol12]

Originally Posted by Vedat

Try to get your hands on simple editing jobs.
Audio Book editing would be a good start.
Once you learn how to edit sound efficiently, your chances of landing an internship or assistant position will increase. And that's where you can learn the ins and outs of different aspects of post production.

Hi Vedat,

Would I need to prove to an employer that I have editing skills to land an Audio Book editing gig? What would such an employer be looking for in terms of skill or experience?

[Bob Olhsson]

Originally Posted by mgoorevich

I am writing from my experience derived from observing of trainees passed through my studio.
1. It is much easier for everyone when a person comes from some film education.
Its important to understand - were are in post production are not just the sound people, we are a part of the movie making process.
You must learn, love and live cinema.
2. I personally don't believe that being an intern, guarantees you something or even speeds up the thing. Don't think only about yourself. Ask what makes people working in post for so long. Try to be a part of it.
3. Stop thinking of Pro Tools, plugins, consoles, machines as of creative tools. They are not. They are just tools. Sometimes amazing tools...but still tools. Learn what should be achieved first in term of movie making. You'll find the right tools for it later.
4. Go study in a film school. You'll meet there people which might be your clients one day or your links to the industry. Again - we are film makers nothing less.

This is all very true in music work too. My experience with interns has been that only a tiny few "get it" and most don't. The job is really all about solving problems. No two projects are ever the same so there can be no formulas. In fact I'll often throw a wild card in to make sure that I remain objective.

[Vedat]

Originally Posted by kol12

Hi Vedat,

Would I need to prove to an employer that I have editing skills to land an Audio Book editing gig? What would such an employer be looking for in terms of skill or experience?

Sorry, just saw this.
Audio book jobs are very budget conscious. So you'll need to prove you are efficient and thorough. They'll usually have a set budget, say 30 hour edit for a 80,000 word book. But if you can work remotely on your own time then you can afford to take your time and hone your skills.
You'll need to get yourself familiarised with NR tools like Izotope RX to remove pops and clicks.
You should practice editing on podcasts or similar material. Just download something and start hacking.

[albee1952]

You might also consider offering to do 1 or 2 projects for free as a way to show what you can deliver(your local studio owner might hate certain projects and jump at the chance to hand something off to an eager upstart(you). Sort of an internship(but hopefully much shorter)

[kol12]

Originally Posted by Vedat

Sorry, just saw this.
Audio book jobs are very budget conscious. So you'll need to prove you are efficient and thorough. They'll usually have a set budget, say 30 hour edit for a 80,000 word book. But if you can work remotely on your own time then you can afford to take your time and hone your skills.
You'll need to get yourself familiarised with NR tools like Izotope RX to remove pops and clicks.
You should practice editing on podcasts or similar material. Just download something and start hacking.

Ah just saw this too! I was thinking tonight where I could find an audiobook that needs editing that I can practice on? Everything out there is already mixed and mastered... Do you mean hacking an already mastered audio book? If it's already edited, mixed and mastered what can I do with it? Try to find poorly recorded/mixed podcasts?

I also came across ACX audio submission requirements. Are these the requirements for pretty much any audio book and what you should work to?

[kol12]

Originally Posted by albee1952

You might also consider offering to do 1 or 2 projects for free as a way to show what you can deliver(your local studio owner might hate certain projects and jump at the chance to hand something off to an eager upstart(you). Sort of an internship(but hopefully much shorter)

Could I sign up with something like Upwork, say that I'm new to editing and offer to work for free on some projects?

[Mike Thornton]

At Production Expert, we have a ton of post-production resources. We have a dedicated post-production page on which you will find a raft of audio post content. We also have a dedicated article for people like you called What Is Audio Post Production. Hope that helps.

[kol12]

Originally Posted by Mike Thornton

At Production Expert, we have a ton of post-production resources. We have a dedicated post-production page on which you will find a raft of audio post content. We also have a dedicated article for people like you called What Is Audio Post Production. Hope that helps.

Hi Mike,

Beat you too it! I've been learning a lot from pro-tools-expert.com over the past few weeks and have watched some of your videos too! The resources there are extensive and hugely helpful. Thanks!