The Making of a Motion Picture Editor. Thomas A. Ohanian

      TO: Francoise, you are an Academy Award recipient for best film editing for the motion picture, Z. Over a period of three decades you edited eight films for the renowned film director, Costa-Gavras and it is my great pleasure to speak with you, in person, in Paris. Your mother was a very accomplished film editor.

      FB: She was an editor and a widow—my father died when I was seven. And she was working, sometime late hours, sometimes during the weekend. And I used to go to the cutting room and I would play with the (film) cores and make splices. And you know at that time you had to scratch the film…

      TO: You had to scratch the film so that the glue would adhere to it…

      FB: Yes, and so I was going there just to play. When I was a little bit older, I would say to her, ‘If I come, can I do something to help you so you wouldn’t have to stay so late?’ And that was the beginning of mag (magnetic) sound and syncing on mag.

      TO: Right. So, you’d come in and sync dailies for her?

      FB: My mother would say, ‘Do you want to try cutting?’ So, I learned editing as you learn how to write and read. When I was 18 years old, I said that the one thing that I did not want to do was to have my mother’s job! (Both Laugh)

      TO: How funny…

      FB: Because I thought you can’t have a private life and I still think that’s true. I wanted to be an architect. In fact, I think that editing is not so far from architecture. My mother was in Italy, editing Barrage contre le Pacifique (This Angry Age) for Rene Clement. There was a person who was doing a documentary who called and I said, ‘Well, maybe I can do what you want.’ And that’s how it started.

      TO: But in a very short time, you moved on to your first full picture editing credit.

      FB: Yes and I had married the director, Henry Verneuil.

      TO: He was an amazing film director and won the National Cinema of France Academy Award and he won a César Award for Lifetime Achievement.

      FB: Yes.

      TO: I want to show you something. When I got on the plane from the States to come here, my father gave me some newspapers to read. I brought it with me so I want to show it to you. It’s The Armenian Reporter and it had an article about Henry Verneuil…

      FB: He was Armenian—his name was Ashot Malakian.

      TO: In 1962, you were editing Any Number Can Win.

      FB: Yes, in French it was Mélodie en sous-sol.

      TO: And then you followed very quickly with Guns for San Sebastian and The 25th Hour. Were you intimidated at all?

      FB: When I start a film, even today, I still ask myself, ‘Will I be able to edit this film properly?’

      TO: You still have butterflies?

      FB: Yes. (Both Laugh) Each film is different and then once you start, it’s easier.

      TO: But we’re only talking about seven years and then you start working on Z. And how did Costa-Gavras come into your life? You did eight films with him.

      FB: The editor who Costa had been using was not available. And by then I had gotten separated, so I called Costa and said, ‘Well, if you want me, I can edit your film!’ (Both Laugh) And that’s how I did Z.

      TO: Amazing. And that you then went on to win an Academy Award for it. The film is as timely and relevant to what is happening in the world today.

      FB: Yes.

      TO: And it is timeless. Slow motion, flashbacks, flash forwards, the retelling of things from different perspectives a la Rashomon. It’s a narrative feature film, which looks every bit like a documentary.

      FB: For each film, I have a different style. To me, it’s the material that you have that provokes or creates the style. The editor doesn’t create the style. It depends on the story you are telling. If it needs to be fast, if it needs to be slower, you stay with a shot longer.

      TO: The point of view shots are incredible in Z. For example, when the senator is in the back of the truck and you see his point of view of the gang coming forward. You don’t see a lot of those shots these days. It’s a visceral thing where they’re coming right at you.

      FB: Yes, yes. I can tell you that the thing about having the slow motion, fast, not fast—I had a lot of fun, but at that time, there was no machine that could do this. So, I had to decide which frame I would have to ask the lab to print for three feet. And then I was trying to put this frame in for three frames in still and then the next one in motion for this amount of frames and so on.

      TO: Sure. You were sometimes step printing but really, you’re describing speed ramping up and down.

      FB: Yes. So I wound up with splices on every frame. (Both Laugh) And in the screening room, it was almost impossible to see it because there were too many splices.

      TO: Were you editing while he was shooting?

      FB: No. He had already shot everything when I started. He had shot in Algeria and they used the lab in Algeria and brought back everything to Paris. And then I started.

      TO: Were you working with him at the start or did you work alone?

      FB: With his previous editor, he was used to being there and trying things with his editor. And after the first day of working like that with him, I said, ‘Costa, I can’t work like that. I would like to look at the dailies several times with you and you can tell me what you like and don’t like for shots and actors and reactions and then go away.’ But he loves being in the cutting room.

      TO: Were you prepared for the reception the film would get or of your possibility of winning?

      FB: I was sure I wouldn’t get it.

      TO: Really?

      FB: I didn’t even hear my name.

      TO: Well, here are the films that were nominated that year for Best Editing. Hello Dolly!, Midnight Cowboy, The Secret of Santa Vittoria, They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?, and of course, Z.

      TO: Did you think you had a chance?

      FB: No. Well, Claudia Cardinale and James Earl Jones were the presenters. And she said the names of the nominees and it was in alphabetical order by the film name. And she said, ‘And for Z, Françoise Bonnot’. And then she opened the envelope and said, ‘The winner is Françoise Bonnot’. But it was so close to what she had just said that I didn’t hear it. (Laughs) So, I’m there and the American distributor who was next to me says, ‘Françoise! You’ve got it! You’ve got it!’ (Both Laugh)

      TO: That’s great.

      FB: So, the editing was the first award for Z and I got up and I didn’t