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Film/video editor : Salary and conditions

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  1. Job description
  2. Salary and conditions
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Case studies

  • Range of typical starting salaries: £18,000 - £25,000 for those employed by a television or post-production studio (salary data collected July 2010). This is not typically an entry level/graduate job; entrants start at a lower-paid level (which can be around national minimum wage) working as runners and then assistant editors before reaching this post.
  • Range of salaries with experience: £20,000 - £35,000 (salary data collected July 2010).
  • Range of typical salaries at senior levels: £37,000 - £70,000 (salary data collected July 2010). The higher end of this scale will only be available to senior editors working on high-status projects.
  • The majority of editors work as freelancers and are paid on a contract basis. The Broadcasting Entertainment Cinematographic and Theatre Union (BECTU) advise rates on their website.
  • If you acquire work through an agency they negotiate rates and then take a percentage or flat fee.
  • Hours vary depending on the production and may be standard office hours. Shift work may be involved if editing studios are booked at night. When there are deadlines to meet, long hours and overtime may be required.
  • Freelancing involves periods of intensive work, but there may also be times of inactivity between projects which may be used to follow up on potential work. Freelance editors often compete for work and may be involved with several productions of different sizes at any given time.
  • Work is conducted alone or with a director. On a large project an editor may also work with a sound effects editor, music editor and assistant editors. The role may be pressured, for example, when working intensively to strict deadlines on limited studio time.
  • Editors spend most of their time in editing suites, which are mostly small but comfortable environments. A lot of time is spent working on computers. It is possible for freelance editors to work from home if they have their own equipment.
  • While the majority of television and film editing work in the UK is London-based, post-production and facilities houses and independent production companies can be found in most cities.
  • Freelancers may have to travel to different editing suites, but it is unlikely this will involve working away from home. There may be opportunities abroad for experienced and established editors.
 
AGCAS
Written by AGCAS editors
Date: 
July 2010
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