In the Blink of an Eye: A Perspective on Film Editing (2nd Edition)
by Walter Murch
Walter Murch's essay on why cuts work, built around his Rule of Six and the eye-blink as an emotional cue. Explains how editors judge a cut by emotion, story, and rhythm rather than mechanics; the second edition covers digital editing.
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More resources on Video Editing
No Film School
Editing section of the independent filmmaking publication, mixing craft articles with interviews of working feature and television editors. Useful for seeing how professionals structure scenes and make cutting decisions, rather than for step-by-step software instruction.
r/editors — professional editors community and wiki
Subreddit for working editors, with a maintained wiki covering hardware, codecs and proxy workflows, rates, and career paths. Threads focus on professional practice — client management, delivery specs, NLE-agnostic craft — rather than beginner software questions.
Casey Faris (YouTube channel)
Free tutorial channel dedicated to DaVinci Resolve, covering editing, color grading, and Fusion from first project through advanced node workflows. Videos track current Resolve releases; Faris also runs ResolveCon, the community conference for Resolve educators.
Every Frame a Painting — How Does an Editor Think and Feel?
Video essay by editor Tony Zhou and Taylor Ramos on editorial instinct — how editors judge timing and emotion rather than follow rules — using shot-by-shot breakdowns of Hannah and Her Sisters and The Empire Strikes Back and insights from Kahn, Schoonmaker, and Murch.
Art of the Cut (podcast and interview series)
Steve Hullfish's long-running interview series with the editors of major films and series (Oppenheimer, Barbie, Succession), available as podcast episodes and full transcripts. Covers structural decisions, director collaboration, and workflow on real productions.
The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing
Wendy Apple's 2004 documentary on the history and craft of film editing, with Walter Murch, Thelma Schoonmaker, Spielberg, Scorsese, and Tarantino explaining how editing shapes performance, rhythm, and story, including side-by-side recut examples.