Ever wonder if there was a generic name for mythical creatures like a unicorn, the Loch Ness monster or Sasquatch? Well, there is, and it’s cryptids … and they play a large role in the film Cryptozoo, which premiered at Sundance this year
This fantastical animated feature for adults was directed by animator Dash Shaw and takes viewers on a journey toward multispecies justice. Focusing on these mysterious creatures and where they fit into society, Cryptozoo explores the complex relationship between idealism, utopian visions, the call to duty and the alluring power of controlling dreams.
Editor Lance Edmands
Lance Edmands was editor on the film along with Alex Abrahams, both of whom worked with Shaw before. We reached out to Edmands, who got involved at the script stage, to talk about the process of editing an animated feature.
How did you work with the director? How often was he taking a look at your cut?
Cryptozoo was totally unique from a post standpoint. It was almost more of a collage process than an editorial one. We didn’t have traditional “footage” to work with; we had pieces of animation. But it was much more than just putting those pieces together. We would actually rewrite the movie as we went along.
Based on how I’d manipulate these chunks of animation, speed them up, slow them down, crop out sections — Dash would redraw characters, change the dialogue, swap backgrounds, etc. The film was always evolving. Editorial was going at the same time that the animation was being done and voice recordings were being made, so editing and production were really happening simultaneously. I’d be positing bits and pieces as we went along.
The process was very back-and-forth over the course of almost five years. It takes a really long time to paint and draw. Another editor also worked on the project, Alex Abrahams. He was present throughout the process and was key to keeping the workflow going over such a long period of time.
Was there a particular scene or scenes that were most challenging?
There is an action scene in the film that takes place in Russia and is supposed to feel like Indiana Jones, with the chaos of several competing groups going after the same McGuffin. It was super-difficult to parse all the various motivations and double-crosses, but Dash said it didn’t matter — it was supposed to be confusing and nonsensical to the audience. So I gave up trying to make sense of it and structured it so you just watch all these awesome images, soak in John Kirby’s amazing score and go along for the ride.
Director Dash Shaw
I succumbed to the idea that the dream logic at the core of the movie was more important than being super-clear about all the backstories. That said, I do feel like we made enough changes to that section that you can actually follow what’s happening on your fourth of fifth watch, once the technicolor euphoria wears off. Working with Dash taught me that sometimes it’s more rewarding to sacrifice story clarity for dream logic and hazy associations. It makes for a trippier, more engaging experience and, ultimately, one that is more truthful to what the film is about.
Did you do more than edit on this film?
This was so unconventional that I’d almost describe my role as a story fabricator rather than an editor. I’d take the various pieces and assemble them according to a blueprint and a vision, but it was up to me how they moved in concert.
For example, the audio recordings of actors were all recorded separately, so the entire rhythm and emotional temperature of the scenes were created in post. If I felt like a beat was missing, I’d suggest dialogue changes and Dash would go and rewrite and re-record. This allowed us to alter the meaning of scenes as we put the pieces together.
The voice performances were like these little shards of emotion that could be rearranged and recontextualized, much more so than with live action because it was totally disconnected from the visual element. The characters’ lip sync was the very last step of the process, so we could adjust timing up until the last minute. It was like adding another plane or dimension to what you have control over as an editor.
Was the edit done during the pandemic? If so, how did that affect the workflow?
Dash and the animation director and producer, Jane Samborski, were in Richmond. I was in Brooklyn, and Alex was sometimes in New York and sometimes traveling. So we were all over the place, and all of the collaboration was done over the computer for the most part. I was only in Virginia once before the pandemic hit, so it was about 90% remote. But Dash usually works that way anyway because he has people from all over the world painting backgrounds and creating other visual elements.
One of the awesome things about this project was that, while everything else was frozen, we just kept chugging along. I was so grateful to have a project to work on when the entire film industry had shut down. The film is so epic in scale, but we actually made this in our various bedrooms and home offices.
Lance Edmands
What system did you use to cut and why?
Adobe Premiere. I learned on Final Cut Pro, but when Apple decided to redesign the whole thing, I didn’t have the patience to learn a whole new concept of time. Premiere had a setting that mimicked the FCP keyboard shortcuts. Premiere integrates so well with Photoshop and After Effects, which tend to get used on every project and were integral to Cryptozoo.
Is there a tool you use within that system that most people might not know about?
One of the things I used a lot was the text tool for overlays so that we could ID all of the shots. That was specific to our process and essential for passing things back and forth.
How did you manage your time?
There was a lot of passing back and forth, with lots of down time while animation changes were being made. We had a shared Dropbox for when the new renders would come out. Then I would download the new pieces and keep going. It wasn’t a sprint; it was more like a marathon of incremental movements. I loved that element of it because it gave me time to work on my other projects and allowed lot of new ideas to find their way into the film over many years. I love a long, slow post process.
Did you have an assistant editor on this?
There was no assistant on this project, but Alex was able to do a lot of the assembly, organizing and ingesting, which helped tremendously with the workflow. We worked together on Dash’s previous film, My Entire High School Sinking Into the Sea, so we’d figured out a lot of the kinks in this process and had a good idea of how to best organize the project.
How do you manage producers’ expectations with reality/what can really be done?
There were a lot of free-flowing discussions throughout the process, and we were always adjusting our goals. It had to be that way. But Jane Samborski came up with a really intricate system that tracked every element of every shot in a spreadsheet that was constantly updating. I didn’t even fully understand her system myself, but I completely trusted that the animation team had everything under control and would finish the renders when they said they would.
I was really impressed with her system when she showed it to me. This was born out of our previous collaboration on Dash’s first film, My Entire High School Sinking Into the Sea, which was a much more freewheeling and chaotic process. By the time we were about to begin work on Cryptozoo, it was clear that a more refined workflow was needed. On this film the expectations and deadlines were all managed really well. Of course, there are always some last-minute crunches, but that would be true of any project.
How do you take criticism? Do you find yourself defensive or accepting of other’s ideas (good and bad)?
My favorite part of filmmaking is the collaborative part, so I don’t take any kind of negative feedback personally. I take it as a challenge. When I feel passionate about my ideas, I’ll definitely fight for them, but in the end, I trusted Dash’s vision because I respect him so much as an artist. He’s a sort of genius, in my opinion. There are things in the movie I don’t agree with and wanted to be different, but that’s part of the game. And with art, there is no correct answer anyway; it’s not an algorithm or an equation. That’s what I love about it.
When someone who is starting out asks what they should learn, what do you recommend?
Learn them all, if possible! Because a lot of times, someone will come to you with a cool project and you don’t always have the clout or the time to get them to migrate the whole project over to your system of choice. You kind of have to roll with it. When I cut on Avid, it’s like I’m batting left-handed. I learned to be a switch hitter, but I’m weaker on the left side, and sometimes you have to step into the other batter’s box. You have to be able to do that as an editor. You might be a little slower, which can be frustrating, but in the end, your creative goals are the same. It’s just the tools that are different.
