Top film editors Nitin Baid and Antara Lahiri worked with top filmmakers and production houses in Bollywood has shared about actors acting in terms of editing. The editors revealed how a poor acting of an actor is to be enhanced, manipulated through editing.
Antara said, “One of the basics of editing is that you will be enhancing , improving, manipulating performance in some way or the other. It’s never a surprise that you have to end up doing that. But the multi-camera system has made some things very easy, because if something isn’t working, you have tonnes to cut to. Most directors also get a sense of the performance very early on. There are flags that are raised early on.”
Editors continued, “Even with weak actors, I look at it differently. They have a certain range, and even the audience has certain expectations from them. It’s interesting to try and surpass that expectation. And that’s something I discuss with directors also, that a certain actor is being perceived in a certain way, and how do we shift that perception… When the director is very, very clear, they will know how to handle a performance that isn’t the strongest.”
The editors also shared about actors performances are always based on directors demand. Nitin shared, “When you’re doing a Karan Johar or Rohit Shetty film, there’s a different kind of acting you’re aiming for. There’s an amped-up aspect to it, compared to the same Ranveer in a different film.”
Further, the film editors has also mentioned Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt scenes are always enjoyable.