BEST PRACTICES – WORK FROM HOME GUIDE
INTRODUCTION
Until 2020, a minority of professional editors and assistant editors were consistently working from home. With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing the closure of studios and traditional office spaces, editing from home became mandatory for an increasing number of professional editors and assistant editors. The need to work from home hastened the development of technologies associated with remote editing and also created a new paradigm for editors, pushing to the foreground a variety of work-from-home issues for which there were no clear guidance.
American Cinema Editors, recognizing the need for editors and assistant editors to have guidance related to work-from-home issues, conducted a survey of its members in October 2020. The purpose of the survey was to gain a better understanding of the extent to which its members were working from home, what methods and technologies were being used, how editors were being compensated and/or reimbursed for the use of their home office space and equipment; and other issues of central importance to editors with regard to working from home.
The ability to work from home is here to stay and the goal of American Cinema Editors is to help ensure that editors’ rights and responsibilities are respected and that they are compensated fairly. Therefore, the purpose of this guide is to help educate editors and assistant editors regarding financial considerations related to working from home and set forth recommendations for producers, productions companies and studios on how to compensate editors and assistant editors for the use of their home office and equipment.
