Jazzy Kettenacker is an editor at St. Louis-based Bruton Stroube Outpost. They provide cinematography, editing, color grading and sound design. “We also have worked on a variety of projects such as commercials, documentaries, branded content, and narratives,” she explains. “And we have a coffee shop and whiskey fountain in-house.”

Talk about what goes into your role as editor.
I cut together sequences of visuals and sounds to tell a story. It feels as if I’m putting a puzzle together with different pieces, making them fit perfectly. I’m blessed to work on such a dynamic breadth of work, everything from the six-second commercial to the long-form documentary.

Pepsi Lab

What would surprise people the most about what falls under that title?
It’s interesting to see how much creative direction an editor has control over. We’re not cutting by numbers; we’re brainstorming ideas and collaborating with directors. Sometimes a director will hand you footage and not know how to go about a project; it’s up to us to figure it out. We’re problem solvers; we make the process as seamless as possible.

What’s your favorite part of the job?
I love figuring out ways to tell a story creatively. There are so many ways to tell one story, and that moment where I get to figure out how I’d like to tell a story based on pacing and tone is so freeing. It gives room for creative expression and a chance to put a little bit of myself into the edit.

What’s your least favorite?
Legal notes. Period. Sometimes it can take away from the creative, but, understandably, it’s important.

What is your most productive time of day and why?
I’d say afternoon and evening. I’ve never been a morning person — everyone in my life will tell you that —  but I’ve gotten much better about it. When I was in college, I used to work on my student films after midnight. Now, I can’t stay up as late anymore; I need my full eight hours of beauty sleep.

Free to Run

If you didn’t have this job, what would you be doing instead?
I’d be a music producer. I love the process of building something and creating art. Just like film, music is another art form of expressing myself.

How early did you know this would be your path?
I knew I wanted to be a filmmaker when I was 13 years old, after becoming obsessed with films and the process of how they’re made. I wanted to be an editor when I was 22 years old, after I learned to edit in college. I realized editing came naturally to me.

Can you name some recent jobs?
I recently cut a 30-minute documentary for North Face, titled Free to Run. The film follows an ultra runner taking on a 330km trail through the Aosta Valley in Italy while running an organization that helps women in areas of conflict run freely.

I also cut a mini-doc for the Pepsi Music Lab, a program that gives the next generation of music artists an opportunity to work with the best in the business and produce new music. This totally satisfies my music producing desires.

Do you put on a different hat when cutting for a specific genre? Can you elaborate?
Yes! Longer projects, such as documentaries, give you the time and freedom to explore. These types of projects demand the editor to have more creative input in how to tell the story. It feels like a collaborative experience with the director.

Free to Run

When it’s a shorter project such as a 30-second spot, you still need your creative hat on, but it’s a  more-defined sandbox.

How did your process change during COVID?
When the pandemic first hit, I was working from home, but now that things are somewhat normal again, I work at the studio every day. I actually prefer coming in to work. I have my editing suite set up the way I like it, and, at the end of the day, I am able to mentally leave work at the studio. I try not to take work home with me.

Interestingly, I do stream more since the COVID crisis. Clients don’t have to physically be in the editing suite while I work. They can hop on to Evercast and watch me edit in realtime. I also use Frame.io to share rough cuts and assets. It’s one of my favorite apps, because it allows for easier collaboration.

Do you expect these workflows to stay with us going forward?
Most definitely. I can foresee even more clients streaming editing sessions in the next few years. A client wanting to hop on Evercast and talk through things at any moment while watching you edit is super convenient. It speeds up the process of a client seeing how an idea comes together quickly versus just communicating via email or phone.

Rolling Stone

What system do you edit on?
I learned how to edit on FCP7 in college, but I’ve been cutting on Adobe Premiere for the last nine years. I also dabble in After Effects. The Adobe Creative Cloud is hard to beat.

Do you have a favorite plugin?
All things Boris FX! Their plugins allow me to add some unique textures to archival footage. I also love Neat Video’s noise reduction as well. It’s saved me a few times.

Are you often asked to do more than edit? If so, what are you asked to do?
Definitely. Depending on the project, we’re asked for our input on narrative and vibe. We can also have a lot of say on the music and graphics if these assets aren’t decided by agency beforehand. Basically, we can have a lot creative control. That’s why I love doing research on the project’s topic in hopes of finding inspiration and bringing that into my cut.

What are three pieces of technology you can’t live without?
Stating the obvious, my desktop computer. This is the place where I can actively get my creative thoughts out. I also have three monitors, which is a game changer when editing. Trying to edit on just a laptop is a terrible experience.

Purina

My record player, which I consider old-school technology. Listening to music inspires me creatively, especially ‘90s hip-hop. It’s the samples and the heavy beats; sometimes I try to edit the same way… where you feel it in your chest.

Any type of tv/movie streaming service. Film is my first love, and I enjoy getting lost in a great story. Lately, it’s been fun watching great docs and breaking them down scene by scene in order to figure out how the filmmakers crafted a story from start to finish.

What do you do to de-stress from it all?
I get the best results when I’m working out. I usually forget what I was worried about five minutes into my workout. What also helps is listening to artists such as Sade and Kali Uchis — it calms my anxiety.