• Edit Better

  • Hollywood-Tested Strategies for Powerful Video Editing
  • By: Jeff Bartsch
  • Narrated by: Jeff Bartsch
  • Length: 4 hrs and 52 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (222 ratings)

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Edit Better  By  cover art

Edit Better

By: Jeff Bartsch
Narrated by: Jeff Bartsch
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Publisher's summary

Imagine pushing a magic button in your video editing software labeled "better". Any project you edit turns out exactly how you planned, every single time. Your audience is absolutely spellbound, wiping tears from their eyes, laughing out loud, or sitting in stunned silence as they see the world in a different way for the first time.

Bad news: That button doesn't exist. Good news: Edit Better shows you how to get there anyway.

Edit Better was made for video editors who consider themselves advanced hobbyists or growth-minded professionals, artists who know that the tools of editing matter far less than the knowledge of how to use those tools powerfully.

This audiobook does not illuminate the workings of Avid, Final Cut, or Premiere, and is not a meditation on film editing. What it is: a provocative, wide-ranging collection of strategies and tactics for the creative application of TV and video editing, no matter your editing tools.

Author Jeff Bartsch lays out both big-picture strategies and practical, boots-on-the-ground tactics for powerful communication. Going far beyond mere button-pushing, Jeff good-naturedly blends communication theory, marketing, behavioral psychology, neuroscience, and nuts-and-bolts details of editing application from years of experience in Hollywood, the storytelling capital of the world.

©2014 Jeff Bartsch (P)2014 Resolve Entertainment, Inc.

What listeners say about Edit Better

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Skip this and watch Youtube videos instead.

What would have made Edit Better better?

I'm disappointed in the book largely due to the fact that the writer seemed credible and the reviews were great, but really, the author mentions that he's still working on this book and can use your help if you want to give him some of your ideas for future versions. It's like he's trying to get his audience to write his future book for him through this outline.

Would you ever listen to anything by Jeff Bartsch again?

Maybe version 20 of this book, once it's actually written with substance.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

He's sitting on his island in his kitchen.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Edit Better?

I'd cut all his quirky banter, self-aggrandizing, apologies, and disclaimers and just stick to the point of the book: Teaching. It sometimes feels like a one-sided hang out session.

Any additional comments?

Every other page, he says things like "Some people probably think this is too basic to mention..." Yes! Because it is!! And stop drawing attention to the fact. It doesn't help.

Here's a line from the book VERBATIM: "This book doesn't completely address anything on any subject." He's completely right. Everything just scratches the surface of areas you've already known about and it's disappointing when you're wanting to apply 'Hollywood-Tested Strategies'.

I finished the entire book by waiting and waiting for one little golden nugget, but never found it.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Finally an audiobook about editing video!

I have been looking for exactly a book of this kind for months now. All of a sudden; there it was in the New Releases section.

The narration by Jeff is great – he's fresh and frank – not too much, not too little.

What excites me the most, is this books focus on what makes an edit (i.e. the individual cut between two clips) work – or not work.

It's exactly the book I've been looking for.

I would give it 5 stars if it wasn't for the fact that I only give 5 stars for out of this world, life-changing books (like for example Nathaniel Branden's 6 "Pillars of Self-esteem" and such). On a regular scale, this book is definitely 5 stars!

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9 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Used what I learned, and I DID edit better

I'm a video editing hobbyist doing video projects mostly for fun and also for a few clients.

There were several things that I just learned from experience and just felt right when I do them while editing. Though I couldn't really put a finger on why I specifically do some things, e.g. cutting, choosing scenes, audio,etc. This book put those learnings out onto my awareness. Now I can consciously do better edits knowing the reasons behind my every action.

Narration was natural! and the bits of humor helped it not to be boring.

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7 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Fantastic

Killer book. Insightful and funny!
As a pro editor I was reminded of things I didn't know ans was tonight things I need to try.

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5 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Exactly what I was looking for.

I work on audiovisual projects as a hobby. The information offered in this book helped me get a better idea what I need to pay attention to when editing.

The book provides a set of ground rules for anyone who just started learning about editing, or anyone who feels like they are missing something fundamental when trying to edit a piece.

The rules and ideas are all explained well, it's not something that needs the followed blindly, the reasoning behind them also comes through and it's up to the readers judgment on how to apply them. All ideas are to the point, distilled from years of real life experience.

What I really like is that a broad range of subjects are covered, not just picture. None of them in depth, but the essential ideas that anyone can pick up and put to use are there.

Good job Jeff, and thank you for sharing your experiences.

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Self-Absorbed. Shallow. Boring.

What would have made Edit Better better?

Hard to finish. I kept wishing the writer would stop re-explaining the value of his points. He's a pleasant guy and probably a good editor. But advice was obvious and based on general observations.

Would you ever listen to anything by Jeff Bartsch again?

No.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

The narrator was the author.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Edit Better?

Cut the constant reasoning and preliminary explaining. Get to the point and stick to directives.

Any additional comments?

I kept feel that listening wasted my time. I wished I could get a refund.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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No BS guide

I love this audiobook ! Very straightforward and is a good first read / listen for anyone interested in the art of editing.

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Great Book (I already want to read it again.)

I recently got a minor in Screenwriting and that’s how I got into editing, because my professor felt like knowing how to edit well is a good way to break into the industry whether you want to write or direct.

This book really seems like it could be a master class in a screenwriting or film making degree. A must have for creative types.

I devoured it. I’ve been busy with work lately and haven’t been listening to audible or reading for that matter as much as I have in the last few years, but I still found time to listen and burned through it in a couple days.

Get this if you’re new to film editing, it helps clarify the basics, putting things you’ve probably been struggling with in perspective. I am definitely going to be reading this one again.

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Engaging, and fun but above all informative

This will definitely be a book I listen to multiple times. Having the author read this aids to the understanding of the content. Highly recommend.

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Great, holistic advice

Mostly needed help producing instructional videos for work. The advice in this book lands at the intersection between the technical and the artistic so, as some other reviews have said, novices like me can find the reasoning behind whether or not things we try work sometimes but not others. It gives a better approach and a better way to think through a project regardless of the tools in use. I won't be winning Oscars but my projects already flow better and just generally suck less.

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