Interview with Anne V. Coates
Oscar® winning film editor for LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
TCM: What was your first working experience as an editor in motion pictures?
Coates: "The Pickwick Papers" was my first film as film editor.
TCM: During the early '50s, how did one break into the profession of film editing?
Coates: In the early Fifties it was extremely difficult to get into films in any capacity. You had to be in the union to work in films and you couldn't get a job in films until you were in the Union! But there were certain back door ways in - via working in the laboratories, working in a small educational company or the way I got in by getting a job as a gofer in religious films - doing projection, sound and helping in the cutting rooms of the library which sent out films to church film societies. And making tea of course!
TCM: When you first began working in the film industry, did you have a desire to become a director one day?
Coates: One of the reasons I chose to go into the editing room was that I wanted to become a Director and that seemed the best place to learn. Later on I had several chances to direct, including an agent who wanted to promote me, but by that time I was married to a Director and had three children so I thought it was too difficult to give quality time to two such demanding lives.
TCM: Did your Oscar® win for "Lawrence of Arabia" greatly affect the types of work you were offered after that?
Coates: I think winning for "Lawrence of Arabia" helped me to get offered more interesting films, but in fact I was offered "Beckett" by Hal Wallis before we had finished shooting. It was after he saw a few cut scenes with Peter O'Toole for casting.
TCM: How do you initially choose your film projects?
Coates: I usually choose a film I would like to work on because of the Director (not only for his talent, but also because he is pleasant to work with) and of course very much for the script - I never cut ultra-violent films. And also last but not least I choose them for the location - I love exotic places!
TCM: What was the most challenging job of your career?
Coates: I suppose the most challenging film I cut was "Lawrence," because we had such a huge amount of film (I believe it was 31 miles!) which gave me an abundance of choices. Also "The Elephant Man" was quite a challenge because Mel Brooks ("The Producers") wanted to cut the film in such a way that you didn't see the Elephant Man's natural face until the nurse brought his food when in fact several scenes had been shot showing it, so I had to cut round these scenes.
TCM: Were you influenced by any directors or film editors in the development of your craft over the years"
Coates: I don't think I was particularly influenced in the abstract by many directors or editors, though here are some I greatly admire. But of course David Lean, his early editor Jack Harris and Michael Powell and his editor Reggie Mills had a huge direct influence on me.
TCM: Among your own films, do you have a personal favorite?
Coates: Amongst my own films I have many I love for various reasons, but apart from the large obvious ones a small English film I edited around 1970. Called "The Bofors Gun" directed by Jack Gold and starring Nicol Williamson, David Warner and Ian Holm was a personal favorite of mine (I don't think you will find it on video!).
TCM: Your filmography lists you as a producer on "The Medusa Touch." Was that your only experience as a producer and did you initiate that project?
Coates: Jack Gold found the book of "Medusa Touch" and asked me if I would like to produce it with him, so we set it up together. There were certain things I enjoyed about producing, especially in the early stages - i.e. working on the script, casting, location hunting. But editing, which is more hands on, is my first love.
TCM: Have you ever been called in to replace another editor on a film in the middle of cutting?
Coates: I have been called many times to come in and replace another editor, but I very seldom accept as I don't like taking over someone else's work, as for me cutting is a very personal thing and I like to be involved from the start. It is very lucrative to do this kind of work and sometimes I am tempted if this is in a great location.
TCM: Could you talk a little bit about your editing of "In the Line of Fire," which we are showing on Turner Classic Movies in February? How did you prepare for that project and did you collaborate closely with Wolfgang Petersen?
Coates: I loved working on "In the Line of Fire," and was excited about working with Wolfgang Petersen and also it was a wonderful script. I think it was the relationship between the men, "the goodie" Clint Eastwood and the "baddie" John Malkovich that appealed to me the most, the great cat and mouse phone calls they had. Also we did some very interesting Special EFX work; I think we were amongst the first people to put an actor from another film n a scene in our film, i.e. Clint Eastwood from "Dirty Harry" in between President and Mrs. Kennedy at Love Field (we had to first lose his sideburns and change his collar and tie). Also we replaced President Bush with our president - sometimes just his head! I got to know a great deal about the Secret Service during the film.
TCM: As a working member of the Hollywood film industry, do you actually go to the cinema and see films with an audience?
Coates: I mostly see films at private screenings, but I really enjoy seeing them with a normal audience; you learn so much from their reaction and you get carried away by the general emotion all around you. I saw "Pirates of the Caribbean" while I was on location in Montreal and I am sure I enjoyed it far more than I would at a small screening.
TCM: What is your next film project?
Coates: My next project is "Taking Lives," a suspense thriller directed by D. J. Caruso and starring Angelina Jolie, Ethan Hawke, Keifer Sutherland, and my old friend Olivier Martinez (from "Unfaithful"), which opens March 19th.
TCM: Are there any storytelling or narrative devices you'd like to use in a film via the editing process but never have?
Coates: No, but I'm sure I will use some when the right moment arises.
TCM: In terms of other editors currently working in films, are there any whose work you always make it a point to see?
Coates: No Editors, but a few Directors.
* Interview conducted by Jeff Stafford
Coates: "The Pickwick Papers" was my first film as film editor.
TCM: During the early '50s, how did one break into the profession of film editing?
Coates: In the early Fifties it was extremely difficult to get into films in any capacity. You had to be in the union to work in films and you couldn't get a job in films until you were in the Union! But there were certain back door ways in - via working in the laboratories, working in a small educational company or the way I got in by getting a job as a gofer in religious films - doing projection, sound and helping in the cutting rooms of the library which sent out films to church film societies. And making tea of course!
TCM: When you first began working in the film industry, did you have a desire to become a director one day?
Coates: One of the reasons I chose to go into the editing room was that I wanted to become a Director and that seemed the best place to learn. Later on I had several chances to direct, including an agent who wanted to promote me, but by that time I was married to a Director and had three children so I thought it was too difficult to give quality time to two such demanding lives.
TCM: Did your Oscar® win for "Lawrence of Arabia" greatly affect the types of work you were offered after that?
Coates: I think winning for "Lawrence of Arabia" helped me to get offered more interesting films, but in fact I was offered "Beckett" by Hal Wallis before we had finished shooting. It was after he saw a few cut scenes with Peter O'Toole for casting.
TCM: How do you initially choose your film projects?
Coates: I usually choose a film I would like to work on because of the Director (not only for his talent, but also because he is pleasant to work with) and of course very much for the script - I never cut ultra-violent films. And also last but not least I choose them for the location - I love exotic places!
TCM: What was the most challenging job of your career?
Coates: I suppose the most challenging film I cut was "Lawrence," because we had such a huge amount of film (I believe it was 31 miles!) which gave me an abundance of choices. Also "The Elephant Man" was quite a challenge because Mel Brooks ("The Producers") wanted to cut the film in such a way that you didn't see the Elephant Man's natural face until the nurse brought his food when in fact several scenes had been shot showing it, so I had to cut round these scenes.
TCM: Were you influenced by any directors or film editors in the development of your craft over the years"
Coates: I don't think I was particularly influenced in the abstract by many directors or editors, though here are some I greatly admire. But of course David Lean, his early editor Jack Harris and Michael Powell and his editor Reggie Mills had a huge direct influence on me.
TCM: Among your own films, do you have a personal favorite?
Coates: Amongst my own films I have many I love for various reasons, but apart from the large obvious ones a small English film I edited around 1970. Called "The Bofors Gun" directed by Jack Gold and starring Nicol Williamson, David Warner and Ian Holm was a personal favorite of mine (I don't think you will find it on video!).
TCM: Your filmography lists you as a producer on "The Medusa Touch." Was that your only experience as a producer and did you initiate that project?
Coates: Jack Gold found the book of "Medusa Touch" and asked me if I would like to produce it with him, so we set it up together. There were certain things I enjoyed about producing, especially in the early stages - i.e. working on the script, casting, location hunting. But editing, which is more hands on, is my first love.
TCM: Have you ever been called in to replace another editor on a film in the middle of cutting?
Coates: I have been called many times to come in and replace another editor, but I very seldom accept as I don't like taking over someone else's work, as for me cutting is a very personal thing and I like to be involved from the start. It is very lucrative to do this kind of work and sometimes I am tempted if this is in a great location.
TCM: Could you talk a little bit about your editing of "In the Line of Fire," which we are showing on Turner Classic Movies in February? How did you prepare for that project and did you collaborate closely with Wolfgang Petersen?
Coates: I loved working on "In the Line of Fire," and was excited about working with Wolfgang Petersen and also it was a wonderful script. I think it was the relationship between the men, "the goodie" Clint Eastwood and the "baddie" John Malkovich that appealed to me the most, the great cat and mouse phone calls they had. Also we did some very interesting Special EFX work; I think we were amongst the first people to put an actor from another film n a scene in our film, i.e. Clint Eastwood from "Dirty Harry" in between President and Mrs. Kennedy at Love Field (we had to first lose his sideburns and change his collar and tie). Also we replaced President Bush with our president - sometimes just his head! I got to know a great deal about the Secret Service during the film.
TCM: As a working member of the Hollywood film industry, do you actually go to the cinema and see films with an audience?
Coates: I mostly see films at private screenings, but I really enjoy seeing them with a normal audience; you learn so much from their reaction and you get carried away by the general emotion all around you. I saw "Pirates of the Caribbean" while I was on location in Montreal and I am sure I enjoyed it far more than I would at a small screening.
TCM: What is your next film project?
Coates: My next project is "Taking Lives," a suspense thriller directed by D. J. Caruso and starring Angelina Jolie, Ethan Hawke, Keifer Sutherland, and my old friend Olivier Martinez (from "Unfaithful"), which opens March 19th.
TCM: Are there any storytelling or narrative devices you'd like to use in a film via the editing process but never have?
Coates: No, but I'm sure I will use some when the right moment arises.
TCM: In terms of other editors currently working in films, are there any whose work you always make it a point to see?
Coates: No Editors, but a few Directors.
* Interview conducted by Jeff Stafford
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