Cartoon Network’s Editors In The House

Like most people, We all grew up watching cartoons. Tom and Jerry, Scooby Doo and Popeye the Sailorman, just to name a few. Now, with Dexter’s Lab and Ben 10, they are all part of the Cartoon Network family of cartoons that continue to entertain the next generation of viewers. We had the pleasure of having Cartoon Network’s Graphics Department at FatBars before, when they came in for customized Apple Shake Training. This time is the Editors. Editors from Cartoon Network are in the House at Fatbars for Final Cut Pro Workshop.

Cartoon Network is a cable television network created by Turner Broadcasting (Time Warner Inc.), which primarily shows cartoons programming. Most editors in broadcasting have at one time or another used Avid as their primary editing tool. With the ever growing accessibilities of Final Cut Studio, it is now necessary for all current and new editors to be comfortable using Final Cut Pro as well. 

This is no different for the editors from Cartoon Network. As mentioned in our early Cartoon Network Story, most people do not realized how much promotional graphics you see on Cartoon Network, are actually done inside the Cartoon Network office, right here in Hong Kong. The same can be said for editing. With multiple feeds coming from Cartoon Network Asia, their editors work around the clock, using different software and hardware to do versioning. Versioning is the terminology used when creating multiple versions of the same project for different feed or purposes. Versioning job often falls into the hands of editors. Today editors not only know how to use one single editing software or hardware. They also need to know how to work around other software like After Effects, Motion and Final Cut Pro for their daily workload. Besides understanding EDL and video file formats, they also have to bring clips and graphics from other sources beside footages from videotape. Constant knowledge catch up is a must to stay ahead.

Even though the editors from Cartoon Network were mainly Avid Editors, an understanding of Final Cut Studio’s workflow and proficient with of Final Cut Pro 6 was important, in their daily editing workload. The multi format editing function in Final Cut Pro 6 comes handy when combining different graphics formats onto a single edit.  Armed with new knowledge, we send best wishes to this new batch of “Editing Superheroes”.