In this episode of Editors on Editing, host Glenn Garland talked with John Axelrad, who has edited such films as “We Own the Night”, “Two Lovers, Crazy Heart”, “The Lost City of Z”, “Papillon”, “Ad Astra”, “Antebellum”, “Chevalier”, and “Spaceman”. His latest work is “The End of Oak Street”, which blends a wide range of genres, including family drama, action adventure, horror, comedy, and ’80s satire.

To manage the rapid shifts without creating unintentional humor during serious beats, Axelrad focused on establishing a strong emotional foundation in the family drama first. Additionally, the editing team navigated unique visual setups from director David Robert Mitchell, such as dialogue scenes shot with a split diopter lens, changing character perspectives, and wide bird’s-eye camera angles.

Visual effects played a massive role in the post-production process, accounting for roughly two-thirds of the director’s cut. The filmmakers opted for scientifically accurate dinosaur designs featuring feathers and fur, which led to a humorous moment when a test audience member claimed the creatures looked too “woke” compared to classic cinematic monsters. Throughout the project, Axelrad relied heavily on strong teamwork, praising his post-production crew and composer Michael Giacchino while noting that in-person collaboration provided an essential creative spark that remote work simply could not replicate.

Thanks again to ACE for partnering with us on this podcast, check out their website for more.

Want to see more interviews from Glenn? Check out “Editors on Editing” here.

The Art of the Frame podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Anchor and many more platforms. If you like the podcast, make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss future episodes and, please leave a review so more people can find our show!