Before You Book a Rapid Edit: A Checklist for News Producers

Before anything else, decide what the finished piece is for. A thirty-second package for a lunchtime bulletin is a different job from a ninety-second online explainer, even when the raw footage is identical. I ask every producer the same opening questions: where will it run, how long should it be, and who signs it off. If those three answers are vague, the edit will drift, and drift costs minutes you do not have on a developing story.

Write the answers down in a single message and send it with the footage. We work from that message throughout the edit, so it becomes the reference for pace, tone and running time. A producer who has done this once rarely skips it again, because the first round of notes shrinks noticeably when the brief is on paper.

It also helps to say what the piece must not do. Some outlets avoid music beds under serious reports, others want a specific caption style or no on-screen names until a family has been told. Stating those limits early is far quicker than finding them in review.

• Destination: broadcast bulletin, website, social cut or all three
• Target running time and any hard cut-off for delivery
• Named person who approves the final version

Fast editing starts with usable material. Look at what you are about to send: has it been shot in a format we can ingest without conversion, is the sound clean enough to carry the story, and are the clips labelled in a way a stranger can follow? Footage that arrives as a folder of unnamed files costs the first ten minutes of the edit in sorting alone.

If a crew has shot it, ask them for a short shot list: what each clip shows, which interview answers are strong, and any moments to avoid. A reporter's notes on the best soundbite will save more time than any shortcut inside the software. If you are sending phone footage from a witness or contributor, say so, because we handle frame rates and orientation differently.

Finally, confirm that you hold the right to broadcast everything you send. Archive clips, music and contributor video all need clearance, and it is much easier to settle that before the cut than to re-edit around a clip pulled at the last minute.

• File format and frame rate confirmed with the edit suite
• Clips named or accompanied by a brief shot list
• Rights cleared for contributor and archive material

Graphics are where quick edits most often go wrong, not because they are hard but because the details arrive late. Spellings of names, job titles, place names and figures should be supplied in text, never read off the screen by the editor. A misspelt surname in a lower-third is the kind of error that is remembered long after the story is forgotten.

Decide on captions at the start. Many online viewers watch without sound, so burned-in captions are often worth the extra few minutes, and broadcasters may need separate subtitle files. Tell us which you need, and whether the outlet has its own house style for fonts, colours and positioning. If it does, send the template rather than a description of it.

Keep the graphic content proportionate to the story. A simple map and one clear statistic usually do more for a viewer than a stack of animated panels. In my experience, restraint here is what lets a package go out quickly and still look finished.

• Names, titles and figures supplied as typed text
• Captions: burned-in, subtitle file or both
• House templates sent in advance if the outlet has them

A rapid edit can be cut in a quarter of an hour and then wait an hour for sign-off. The cost of that wait is not in the edit suite, it is in the story going stale. Settle the approval route before you commit: who watches the first cut, how they send notes, and whether one round of changes is realistic or two.

I find it works best when notes come back in one message from one person, with timecodes. Three people giving three conflicting reactions in three channels will turn a quick job into a slow one. If legal or editorial checks are needed, say so up front so the schedule includes them rather than discovering them at the end.

Be honest about how many revisions the deadline allows. If the slot closes in forty minutes, a single focused round of notes is the working limit. Agreeing that at the start keeps everyone calm and keeps the finished package accurate.

• One reviewer who consolidates notes with timecodes
• Legal or editorial checks scheduled, not assumed
• Number of revision rounds matched to the deadline

Ask where the finished piece is going and in what form. A broadcast gallery, a web content system and a social platform each want different files, and re-exporting under pressure is an avoidable mistake. Tell us the codec, the resolution and the delivery method your outlet uses, and we will check a test file with you if the route is new.

Think about the afterlife of the material too. Stories developing across a day often need an updated cut, so agree whether project files and clips will be kept for a short period so a second version can be turned round quickly. Say who owns the archive and how long you expect it to be held.

Lastly, name a person we can reach if the file does not play out properly on your side. Most delivery problems are small and fixed in minutes, provided someone is there to say what they are seeing on their screen.

• Codec, resolution and delivery route confirmed
• Retention of project files agreed for follow-up versions
• A named contact on your side for delivery problems

When comparing suppliers, ask for plain answers. How quickly can they turn a package from receipt of footage, and does that include graphics and captions? Who actually cuts it, and is that person available when your story breaks rather than only in office hours? A supplier who answers with specifics is usually one who has done the work under pressure.

Ask about their process for corrections. Mistakes happen on every desk, and what matters is how quickly a fix reaches air and whether the supplier tells you straight away when they spot one. Calm, direct communication matters more than any promise of speed.

Finally, ask to see a sample of their packages in your outlet's style, and check the sound as carefully as the picture. Clean audio is the first thing viewers notice and the last thing most rushed edits protect. If the answers to these questions are clear, you can decide with confidence.