“It’s your duty as a professional working with a director & producer that you tell them when it becomes impossible to do the job on your own.”

Eddie Hamilton, ACE is the editor of Top Gun: Maverick, the last 3 Mission: Impossible films, Kick-Ass 1 & 2, and X-Men: First Class, just to name a few. And in my second interview with Eddie (here’s part 1 if you haven’t listened yet), he and I candidly discuss his experience editing Top Gun: Maverick and what drove him to asking for help before it was too late.

The grueling work hours required to produce blockbuster content can literally be deadly if you don’t care for yourself properly. When your livelihood depends on your creativity, your mental health is no longer a luxury, it’s a job requirement. But many of us have spent so many years (maybe our entire lives), ignoring our self-care needs at the expense of our jobs - no matter the cost - we don’t actually know how to care for ourselves when the time comes we have no other choice. Eddie recognized early in his career that he would have to take control of his mental health and set boundaries if he was going to survive working in Hollywood at the highest level, but not even that was enough on this job.

In this conversation (which as a crazy aside was actually recorded before the pandemic, and I had to wait to release this interview until the film released!), Eddie honestly shares the immense challenges and responsibilities he bared working on Maverick and he gives an inside look into challenges like managing burnout, summoning the courage to ask for help, and whether or not working at the highest level in the business is worth the sacrifices.

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Here's What You'll Learn:

How Eddie got started in editing.
Eddie went from being his own assistant for his first ten movies to having 7 AE’s for Top Gun: Maverick.
What a typical day looks like while Eddie is cutting dailies on Mission Impossible and Top Gun: Maverick.
Why Eddie had to ask for help on Top Gun: Maverick
The challenge and responsibility of being an editor on high budget films and how listening to Optimize Yourself reminded him to stay healthy.
My story of the pressure I felt on Burn Notice when I had to cut a season opening montage with found footage from past dailies.
Eddie’s healthy habits of running and watching movies keep him fit and creatively informed to do his job well.
Fever dreams of close ups of actors in his head wake him up at 3am.
The hours Eddie worked when he went on location with the film.
When burnout kicked in and he found himself frozen in front of his laptop unable to cut dailies.
The foresight Eddie had to mention he was going to need help to the producers early on.
Not only could Eddie not keep up to camera in cutting dailies, he couldn’t keep up to watching all the dailies.
Eddie values having another editor to bounce ideas off of and get immediate feedback.
Does Eddie think the work is worth all the sacrifices he make?
Eddie insists his team attends all important events in their lives.
Why Eddie took a week off to do a personal development course and what changes it brought about in his life.
The importance of asking lifestyle questions in job interviews.
Eddie sees an appreciation for mental health growing in the past few years.
Finding employers that respect your mental wellbeing is essential and should be prioritized whenever possible.

Useful Resources Mentioned:

Eddie Hamilton previous episode

Hoffman Process

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Guest Bio:

eddie-hamilton-bio Eddie Hamilton

Eddie Hamilton, ACE is currently editing the next chapters in the Mission: Impossible movie series. Before that, Eddie cut Paramount Pictures' Top Gun: Maverick, directed by Joe Kosinski, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, and Mission: Impossible - Fallout and Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation for director Christopher McQuarrie. Other credits include Kingsman: The Secret Service, Kingsman: The Golden Circle, X-Men: First Class and Kick-Ass for director Matthew Vaughn. After 23 years in the industry Eddie has cut over 20 feature films (both indies and studio movies) in a wide variety of genres as well as TV dramas, documentaries and award-winning short films. His enthusiasm for big screen storytelling is matched only by his total dedication to the craft of film editing, his nerdy technical expertise and his undisputed love of chocolate. He has given presentations on Avid Media Composer editing at NAB and IBC. Eddie is a member of the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, American Cinema Editors and BAFTA, and was on the feature film panel at EditFest London in 2013 and 2018.

Show Credits:

This episode was edited by Curtis Fritsch, and the show notes were prepared by Debby Germino and published by Glen McNiel.

The original music in the opening and closing of the show is courtesy of Joe Trapanese (who is quite possibly one of the most talented composers on the face of the planet).

Ep177: Mental Health is Not a Luxury…Even For “Top Guns” | with Eddie Hamilton, ACE [Pt 2]

The Zack Arnold Podcast