Christy Shigekawa (Alum, February 2016)

Assistant Editor, The Travel Channel

Prior to taking the 6-week Art of Editing course at The Edit Center, I had literally never touched Avid Media Composer, nor had I had any training or experience in professional video editing. I had been working as a graphic designer (mainly print-based) for years but was feeling the need for a change. I’ve always loved film and thought it would be amazing if I could do something professionally in the film world. The idea of totally changing careers was daunting, but after much careful deliberation, I decided to take a chance on The Edit Center. It was a big investment for me considering the cost and full-time commitment and honestly, I was a bit nervous not knowing how things would work out…

Within a couple months of finishing the course, I got an internship at Jigsaw Productions through an Edit Center connection. Shortly after the internship, I got a Assistant Editing gig on a feature documentary through an Edit Center recommendation. Following that, I got my first full-time, full-pay AE gig working on 24 short documentaries for Al Gore's Climate Reality Project (again through a chain of Edit Center connections)! I am currently working as an AE on a new show for the Travel Channel. Each gig has been a boost in my knowledge, experience and career.

Before all this, I had heard about the importance of connections and networking in the film industry, but I had no idea how directly the Edit Center network would affect my trajectory thus far… It’s been more than I could hope for! Edit Center connections and recommendations absolutely expedited my entry into the film world.

The Art of Editing course itself gave me the foundation for editing in Avid with daily (all day), hands-on editing of real films. The fact that we were working on real, in-production films (not classroom examples) and working with the actual editors and directors is one of the things that sets The Edit Center apart from other schools (and one of the main reasons I chose it). When looking for editing classes in NYC, there was a lot of options to choose from. After my experience at the Edit Center, as well as from talking to people who took edit courses at other NYC schools, I’m very sure I made the right choice!