arts & life

prof i le

Power
Station

Suzanne Chessler | Contributing Writer

A Detroit native

layers technology

to help sell our

favorite TV shows.

TOP RIGHT: Joshua Teicher on his
editing bay. ABOVE: Filming a
documentary on location.

T

alk and tech power up
Joshua Teicher’s main
career — helping to sell
upcoming TV programs.
Collaborating with teams putting
together both one-time shows and
series, Teicher labors at elaborate
equipment and fine-tunes promos

planned to attract curious viewers.
Anyone drawn into watching
The Walking Dead, Better Call Saul
and Mad Men — among many
other favorites — likely has seen
teasers finished by Teicher, an
independent creative promo editor
who mixes layers of visuals, voices,
music and graphics while working
at computers.
Teicher, who grew up in
Southfield, has established Giant
Films Editorial, mastering various
generations of operating equip-
ment available at his home studio,

media leasing suites or offices of
production companies.
“I work for multiple produc-
tion companies, networks and ad
agencies,” Teicher says in a phone
conversation from his home in
Brooklyn. “I work with creative
directors, producers, writers, post-
producers, graphics persons and
assistant editors.
“I’m hired to add creativity to
projects and bring video pieces to
the completion of what they’re sup-
posed to be. As an independent, I
must adapt to the individual work-
ing style of each company.
“Sometimes I have a script, and
sometimes I do not. The producer,
writer or another team member
will break down what the company
is hoping for, and there always
is some type of collaboration, a
give-and-take among everyone
involved.”
Teicher, 47, did not antici-
pate this career while attending
Southfield High School, major-
ing in English literature at the
University of Colorado or accept-
ing production assistant jobs
after moving to California as a
new graduate. He learned as he
went along and was energized as
technology got less expensive and
easier to use.
“A lot of my jobs are short-term,”
Teicher explains. “They can run
as quickly as a couple of days or
two weeks. In June alone, I was
at five or six different companies.
I’ve been working on a promo
for the new show Roadies, and I

was at BET [Black Entertainment
Television] working on promos for
an awards show.”
Other types of assignments
have placed his skills within shows
themselves, and he has edited seg-
ments of reality TV.
Teicher turned 30 before
becoming interested in video edit-
ing. While he was a feature film
production assistant taking on
all kinds of tasks from delivering
scripts to handling phone calls, a
friend suggested he could advance
his industry opportunities with a
try at editing.
“I got an internship at an inde-
pendent film company and, after
six months, I learned enough to
become an assistant editor,” Teicher
recalls. “I started to freelance on
commercial projects and worked at
a post-production house.
“After a couple years of editing
films, I became a video editor. In
2001, I moved to New York and
picked up contract work. When I
started as a video editor, it wasn’t
a well-known job, and equipment
was expensive. Today, digital equip-
ment makes editing so accessible.”
Once Teicher has examined
specific material that needs to be
adjusted, he experiments with
background music and tweaks it
to fit into the expected time frame.
Next, he will add any voice-over
material and sound design.
Getting more involved with the
video at hand, he looks at camera
moments as they relate to the over-
all arc of the video and modifies

them by analyzing the pacing and
mood.
“I watch the piece over and over
again looking for flaws,” he says.
“I also look at the framing of each
image. Around that time, I put in
rough graphics and work out those
timings. Finally, I need to make the
material unique.
“The creative team and I often
try multiple variations until we like
what is ready to be sent for ulti-
mate approval. Revisions can cover
a wide range. I have to take what
is being asked and make it hap-
pen or communicate alternative
suggestions to make it better than
expected.”
While taking on commercial
assignments, Teicher also allots
time to work on documentaries he
hopes to market in the future. One
has to do with the long-term effects
of rebuilding the Twin Towers in
New York, and the other explores
Yiddish culture.
Teicher’s wife, Julie, shares his
career interests and works as a
project manager for digital agen-
cies. They have two children:
Max, 1s3, and Mischa, 8. Walking
around Manhattan is a favorite
means of relaxation.
Considering himself culturally
Jewish, Teicher enjoys returning to
Michigan to celebrate holidays with
his family, including sculptor Lois
Teicher, his mom.
“I played the alto sax when I was
very young, so I love that music is
involved in editing,” Teicher says.
“The work I do reminds me of
video games, so I love hitting the
buttons.
“I also love being at the center of
a project and cutting tracks to fit
into required time frames so that
everything flows while looking
and sounding good. It’s all like
putting a puzzle together while
collaborating.”

*

July 28 • 2016

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