Film editing is a major facet in filmmaking that could sometimes be overlooked. As a film’s ‘first audience’ (Matthieu Laclau), the film editor has the vital job of finessing elements of a story, playing with different narrative structures and most importantly, forming an emotional connection between the film and the audience. As Thai filmmaker Lee Chatametikool aptly puts it, film editing is like doing ‘a final rewrite’ - bridging the world that exists on the script pages with the reality captured on camera. 

In this section, we select five films featuring two of the most prolific film editors working in Asian Cinema today. A film editor and director who oscillates between mainstream and art-house cinema, Lee Chatametikool is perhaps best known as a long-time collaborator with Palme d’Or-winning director Apichatpong Weerasethakul. French cinematographer and editor Matthieu Laclau’s love for independent Chinese films had led to his long-standing working relationship with auteur Jia Zhangke, with whom he has worked on five films, including the Golden Horse award-winning A Touch of Sin.

Aside from their works with established auteurs, both Lee Chatametikool and Matthieu Laclau also frequently team up with new independent filmmakers. The five selected films in this section are all debut and sophomore features by emerging directors from Thailand, Inner Mongolia, United Kingdom and France. Beyond looking into Chatametikool and Laclau’s distinct approaches to editing, we hope to shine light on the working relationships between experienced editors and budding directors, and the indispensable role editing plays in realising a director’s vision.

Alongside film screenings, we are honoured to have invited Lee Chatametikool and Matthieu Laclau to give a virtual masterclass, a talk and participate in an online panel with fellow filmmakers and the audience. Through which, they would share their experiences of working with both renowned and up-and-coming directors from different countries, and explore further possibilities in intercultural collaborations.