Film Editor Alexandra Savu Discusses the Complexities of Editing and Directing

Alexandra Savu (website here) is an award-winning filmmaker, editor, and director who has worked at NBC Universal (NBCU), BRAVO, E!, and as an editor/sound mixer and graphics designer at multiple post houses in Dallas, Atlanta, and Los Angeles.

A graduate of Southern Methodist University with a BFA degree in Film and Media Arts, Alexandra has freelanced her own productions, worked in post (colour correction/grading, sound mixing, aftereffects, and editing), directed crews, conducted cinematography for various film genres, and produced short films. She has mainly focused her career on editing quality art pieces, from short-form promotional content for BRAVO shows to feature documentaries and short internationally acclaimed independent films.

Born in Bucharest, Romania, into a family of engineers and math teachers, Savu pursued her passion for film despite the prevailing conventions and surmounted financial limitations by expanding her career in film in the US. We spoke with Alexandra Savu to discuss the role of a film editor, how she learned her craft, her influences, and female participation in the entertainment industry.

To open up, perhaps you could explain the role of a film editor. I have never really understood what they do.

Alexandra Savu: “Hi, V13! Thanks for having me here! Editing a film is like solving a puzzle because there are all these great pieces that are isolated from each other, and they just need to be assembled to create a final product. I see a film editor as someone who is left alone with some rough bricks. When you come back later, you find they have built a castle from them! Film editors gather all the footage shot during production, including video and audio materials, and put it together in specific software so that a final, artistic, comprehensible piece of content can be released and distributed to the public.”

Where did you learn how to edit, colour, and mix sound?  

“I have been drawn to this side of the entertainment industry since a very young age. Before my formal schooling, I would film any kind of clip and then work on my own, editing them in different ways to understand the editing process, learning by doing and by watching tutorials.

“I then learned the intricacies of editing, sound mixing, and colour grading while earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film and Media Arts at SMU. I have had the opportunity to really experience the art and set the foundation of editing through my work on a variety of different projects, including films, trailers, music videos, and promotional clips.”

Alexandra Savu, photo courtesy of Alexandra Savu

What would your dream editing job look like? 

“Editing trailers and independent films for studios that support quality art and advocate for talented, dedicated, and enlightening artists in the industry.”

Where are you from? 

“I was born and raised in Bucharest, Romania. I graduated high school there, and then moved to Dallas, Texas for my higher education.”

How do you think your upbringing has influenced your editing oeuvre?

“I understood quite early on that the essential part of conversation is shared through details, most of which can be easily overlooked. My Romanian upbringing influenced me to lean heavily towards the more emotional, less outspoken or exposed parts people have while maintaining a certain realism.”

What’s the hardest artistic choice you’ve ever had to make?  

“Working for BRAVO and E! at NBCU, I would often cut promotional materials for their shows. Finding that balance between emphasizing the more artistic decisions taken to show the creativity of certain reboots/franchises and leaning into the more commercial side that would always appeal to the audience was always a challenge. I am not sure I can pinpoint one. But probably for Real Housewives of Atlanta, I had to choose among various representative moments of the cast showing their personalities for a teaser. I would say I made the right decision by including a mix of commercial and artistic sequences.”

What was your favourite part about working at NBCU? Do you see yourself continuing with this kind of promotional editing work?

“I loved the people I was surrounded with. They were all very passionate about the projects and shows. They were all very knowledgeable, experienced professionals, who understood the industry’s strongest and weakest parts. I think that’s what makes the spots so successful.

“I also really loved the marketing strategy behind every promotional video I edited. Whether it was a ten-second ad featuring a show or a two-minute teaser for an entire season of Real Housewives, I got to really grasp the strategy and sort of algorithm that needs to be followed thoroughly for each spot. It was a lot of creativity too. But I was truly fascinated by the thought put behind the scenes into the editing process of these spots. Definitely something I took with me on future projects in creative marketing.”

Which other directors, filmmakers, and editors have influenced you?

“I know this will be a more unusual answer, but I am really influenced by actors’ lives because they tend to share more information about their personal lives with the public, and seeing so many celebrities mastering the art of succeeding in both personal and professional domains is quite inspiring to me.

“When it comes strictly to the career, I would say Gary Dollner is an inspiration for me because he had the best timing as an editor throughout the entire two seasons of Fleabag. I felt a very unique connection to the show because of the editing work that gave the audience a vibrant experience watching the show. This is what I always aspire to do.”

What qualities make a good editor?

“The attention to detail is critical, openness to new suggestions and alternative plot developments, the ability of an editor to connect with the content and with the creator’s theme/message, and the technical skills to operate efficiently under tight deadlines and loads of footage that needs special handling. I would also add the creativity an editor has to take risks and explore how the edit can tell the story in more moving ways. In the end, the editor is the director of the film in post-production.”

What do you like most about editing trailers?

“I am always taken aback by how much of an impact trailers have on a large audience in such a short time. I appreciate the strategy that goes behind creating one, the editing experience it takes to understand the purpose and intentional aspect of each part of it, and how much information trailers contain in under three minutes. And I like piecing together the most important parts of the original film/show and assembling them in a way that they tell a new story.”

What is your career goal? Do you want to edit Hollywood films, trailers, etc., or what?

“I want to continue to edit trailers, teasers, and promotional spots for various quality pieces of content within the entertainment industry. But my passion is long-form editing of independent films that tell a compelling story and music videos whose artists I support and admire.”

What is your definition of success?

“Feeling fulfilled with the work you do, both during the process and with its outcome. Being passionate and believing in the work. And being surrounded by people you can trust, you can learn from, and you like working with. This is how I view a successful career.”

Are women readily accepted as editors/filmmakers? Or is it a male domain that’s difficult to break into? 

“Since I moved to the U.S., I noticed a lot of female involvement in the industry, at all stages on the pyramid. But I still believe when it comes more to the production and business decision-making process, women tend to be more excluded.

“Internationally, I feel like these differences are even more accentuated, but I believe there has been major progress in that regard from a few decades ago. I plan to carry the progress we have seen to new levels, both through my own work and by supporting other females who work at every level of the industry.”

What’s been the highlight of your career so far?

“Working at NBCU and editing successful promotional teasers and clips for franchises like Below Deck and Real Housewives is definitely a big highlight of my career.”

What are you working on right now? 

“I am working on promotional spots for a documentary I edited, A Million Smiles: The Story of Baseball Without Borders. It just premiered in San Francisco, California in July.”