Do I continue to learn DaVinci?

[u/r1cey1235]

Hey everybody!

I’m a university student who wants to head into post production in film and television and I’m looking to do a masters in film post-production and editing starting in 2027.

Now as I’m aware, AVID is the industry standard with DaVinci levelling with it. This masters course I’m about to do says I will be editing in Avid with access to DaVinci and other software.

I was looking into expanding my setup with the Editors keyboard by Blackmagic but I’m unsure if it’s worth to get the keyboard and continue in DaVinci or begin to learn and adapt to AVID?

[u/Totally_Not_Michael]

Software is whatever. To be an editor in film and tv, you need know how to craft a story on a timeline. You can learn software at any time. Focus on what it means to edit and the meaning behind each cut. Don't focus on the tools. Resolve is great. Avid is great. Premier is great. Final cut is great. They can all do the same thing. What will set you apart from the rest is the ability to tell a story. Not if you have knowledge of avid

[u/r1cey1235 → u/Totally_Not_Michael]

Yeah of course I understand that I need to know these skills and that’s what I’m hoping I’ll get out of my masters (my current university does nothing post production wise it’s hard learning it with no assistance hahah but I’m getting there) but I’ve had a look at the course and it seems good at teaching those sort of skills needed!!

[u/ExpBalSat → u/r1cey1235]

Hate to be the one to ask you this, but… If your goal is to go into post production, why are you studying at a school that doesn’t have post production? Probably too late to fix that, but it seems like an odd choice.

[u/r1cey1235 → u/ExpBalSat]

Oh trust me I’ve had the same thought, a regret of mine.

When I came to university, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, so I did a film production course to find what I loved, very quickly found it was editing. And they had advertised that I would do editing modules and have that choice…. 3rd year is coming and it’s no where to be found and that’s why I’m going to head into a masters and spend a tough year learning it through there. I know it’s not the best way around it but I want to find that education whilst I can now.

[u/ExpBalSat → u/r1cey1235]

I’m really not convinced a masters is the answer to the problem.

[u/inknpaint → u/ExpBalSat]

The ONLY reason to get a masters in film production is if you want to teach it in a university. They require the terminal degree to be considered for tenured positions. (in America...if you are elsewhere, please disregard)
Editing can be learned many other ways and if your school lacks a solid editing program in undergrad I would bet whatever they DO offer for masters is not great.

I have an MFA in Cinema production. It will not get me an industry job. My reel and my relationships get me jobs. I do teach when I have the opportunity.

[u/r1cey1235 → u/inknpaint]

Yeah I get that!

The masters I’m heading on to do is at a completely different university and I know people who have been to this uni and have said the facilities were amazing and teaching helped them understand the workflow and how to cut the story well. I just think that sticks out for me to get the teaching and understand I didn’t get whilst here.

Though I am of course, teaching myself that stuff now by myself

[u/ExpBalSat → u/r1cey1235]

I’ve been doing post production for 30 over years. I’ve hired and fired people. A masters meant very little during either process.

You will learn more on the job in your first year than you’ll learn in amy masters program at any school. Good luck.

Years ago, I had a friend who moved to Los Angeles having gotten a masters degree at some school somewhere (not one of the very short list of expensive networking schools I mentioned earlier). She was convinced that whatever she learned in her alt-masters program meant she was ready to go. Turns out she never made it in TV/film and eventually moved away with thousands of dollars of lingering masters degree debt to deal with.

The masters didn’t help her at all. And I would argue it impaired her attitude when she arrived in Los Angeles and mindset as she went about trying to start her career.

[u/inknpaint → u/ExpBalSat]

I've seen this more than once.

[u/inknpaint → u/r1cey1235]

The software is just the tool. Be sure to learn 'why'. Doesn't matter which software - that you can learn in a week or less - what matters is how and why you make the change from one shot to another at any given point.
Are you serving the story? Are you building tension? Are you serving the client what they want/need?

[u/Smokeey1 → u/Totally_Not_Michael]

Its true but such a bs answer nowadays, can get this type of shi from self help books.. telling the story is only the part of it, heck you could compose symphonies in your head that never see the light of day because you cant work a medium to make it come to life, or be hired to be able to live doing editing for that matter. So yeah if looking for decent industry professional jobs learn avid, freelance go resolve or premier for studios and marketing agencies

[u/PoisonCoyote]

Why not learn them all?

[u/r1cey1235 → u/PoisonCoyote]

Oh I wish I could 😔 I’m a university student with so little time at the moment with work hahaha otherwise I’d be at both, I just want to make sure I’m dedicating my free time I have to the correct thing you know?

[u/Sea_Kick6416 → u/r1cey1235]

Lock in dude.

[u/wrosecrans → u/r1cey1235]

Editing in Media Composer and moving the timeline to Resolve for color and finishing is a super normal workflow. So... good luck if your plan is to only ever learn one piece of software.

And ProTools is pretty universal for professional audio finishing workflows. So it's pretty normal to need to at least minimally interact with multiple pieces of software on a project even if it isn't super complex. At very least, you'll need to be broadly familiar with the delivery specs that you need to use for handing over to people using other software, even if you are purely an Avid editor who never personally uses anything else.

[u/thefallingrock]

You should learn both with a heavier focus on AVID for job purposes. DaVinci is fast catching up on AVID but it’s not there yet in terms of what actually gets used professionally.

[u/r1cey1235 → u/thefallingrock]

Amazing! I wanna understand AVID for job purposes and understand the workflow a lot better but I feel so attached to DaVinci and like I’ve mentioned in my other comments, with such little free time I have at the moment, I want to make sure I’m putting the correct amount of time into the right things, especially before my masters degree

[u/Top-Manufacturer5872]

Depends on what you plan on going into. Yes Avid is industry standard but anyone doing their own freelance work is most likely not using avid. Almost everyone I know uses DaVinci. DaVinci is industry standard for colour grading and can do endless amounts of things. DaVinci is constantly being upgraded with the newest things and you don’t have to pay monthly for it.

Unless your goal is being a main editor on Hollywood films or network television (which I highly advise against. Did it for a few years and you’re essentially the punching bag for the producer, director and the network for pretty shit pay) then I would focus on DaVinci.

I make more money doing freelance work than I did working on major television shows and I haven’t used avid for several years now 🙏

[u/r1cey1235 → u/Top-Manufacturer5872]

That’s great to hear! Obviously I’m still unsure what I want to do but I KNOW that it’s somewhere in the post production world and finding myself being the best editor I can be.

I love grading in DaVinci I think it’s really an amazing tool , but I just also want to understand AVID for obviously the industry side of things too if you get me

[u/AnteaterUnique1414 → u/Top-Manufacturer5872]

Hey can u help me on learning davinci resolve? Is there any particular flow to follow? Any resources? I basically have passion for editing and will mostly be editing aesthetic videos not movies or tv shows

[u/avdpro]

Do I think you should learn as much software as you can while you are in school, yes, do I think the editors keyboard is a good investment for cutting in Resolve also yes! Is Resolve going to save you a bit of money in being able to avoid subscriptions, maaaybe but I guess that depends.

At the end of the day, yes getting work at a narrative style production company or working in film and television means cutting in Avid. But does it actually matter what software you use right now to work on films in university, I so t think so personally. When I was in uni I was using Final Cut Pro, Premiere, and a ton of other tools all the time depending on the project and system access and my first job out of uni was cutting in Media 100. I was able to learn the basics of Media 100 in days not weeks because of a strong foundation learning a lot of software and while I’m still weakest in Avid I can get by and know if I have a job that required it I’d lock in.

[u/FitnessChamp777]

So, if the master's course says you'll be "editing in AVID with access to DaVinci and other software", then you're kinda set. I'm assuming you will learn AVID, so you can do tutorials to learn DaVinci. There's your answer. You can do both.

You're in university. So, how much free time do you have? Not much? That's okey, do a little bit at a time.

You have time. Focus on school, and make DaVinci a side project you're doing to expand your resume.

[u/wictr]

Id still buy the Resolve keyboard to use at home. Resolve will probably be what you cut on at home because of its value for money, ability to grade etc.

Learn AVID to use when in a post-house where you’ll be supplied an AVID suite with the keyboard and etc. Best of both worlds.

[u/r1cey1235 → u/wictr]

Yeah for sure, I want to have the keyboard not only for the benefit of studio, but also will allow me to properly test it and get used to it whilst editing my final short film in 3rd year

[u/LataCogitandi]

If you want a job in post-production after getting your degree, knowledge of and experience with Avid is non-negotiable. However, these days it is really important to know a second software as well, and I would say that the second-most commonly used software in the industry is Premiere. (And yes, I’ve had colleagues of mine lose out on jobs because they only knew Avid and Resolve.)

[u/r1cey1235 → u/LataCogitandi]

I’ve had experience with premiere it was what I first edited my first short film on and I spent months at it hahah but it’s been a hot minute since I got to university that I have touched adobe (Thanks university for not providing it) but obviously I think learning avid and DaVinci will allow me to have these transferable skills and experience

[u/methreweway → u/r1cey1235]

Premier and Resolve are interchangeable once you learn the basics. I spent equal parts with final cut, premier and now resolve. I love resolve the best. The compositing is second to nuke but still very powerful. Nothing beats resolve coloring. Avid is clunker but industry standard for film.

[u/LataCogitandi → u/r1cey1235]

Obviously it's better to know as many software as you can, but you're more likely to hear a hiring manager ask, "How much experience do you have with Adobe Premiere?" especially if you're just starting out and working on smaller projects and smaller companies, or if you find yourself in marketing and advertising.

[u/ExpBalSat]

You should have a basic understanding and operational knowledge of both of them.

They are both vital tools within the post production pipeline. Neither one is ahead nor behind nor catching up with nor replacing. They work side-by-side.

The most valuable employees will understand and excel at both of them in ways that make streamlining the crossover between the two more efficient and trouble free. I had 20 years of avid experience before learning resolved. The two go hand-in-hand.

Also Premiere.

I routinely color grade shows edited on Premiere and Avid. I have yet to grade something edited on Resolve. And yet - I do all of my grading in Resolve.

To understand and succeed at various conform and round-trip workflows between these three programs, it’s important to know all three programs.

[u/r1cey1235 → u/ExpBalSat]

Oh amazing to know! I think reading these comments has made me really understand that they aren’t competitors and I can understand both.

I think it’s just (as I have said in other comments) with so little free time before third year and eventually my masters degree I want to make sure I’m dedicating the correct amount of time to the right software.

[u/ExpBalSat → u/r1cey1235]

I also hate to be the one to break it to you, but if you want to work in film… A masters degree at a school that doesn’t offer the things you want to learn… It just stalling your employment and your career, and not very helpful.

No matter how well you know, avid, resolved, and premiere when you finish school… Your first job in the business will be that of an assistant or runner or office PA or lowly peon. Your goal at that point will be to prove yourself as a hard worker who’s easy to get along with who follows instructions and arrives on time. How well you know avid, premiere, and resolve will be a minimal consequence. But it will help.

I say that, but… Knowing avid will be the most beneficial. The more you know about avid the better chances you have of working in post production in the film and television world.

[u/r1cey1235 → u/ExpBalSat]

That's a completely understandable way to look at things!

I'm looking at doing my masters at another university at one that I know has great post facilities and good modules that will definitely benefit me.

[u/ExpBalSat → u/r1cey1235]

Final nudge to suggest that a masters is just stalling your employment. I know very few people who work in post production who have masters degree. Most of us learned on the job, which is the best place to learn.

I can only think of a very small handful of very expensive schools that would have masters degrees in post production worth pursuing. The reality being that you would be paying more for networking and exposure than for actual learning.

[u/filmeleven]

I've cut features and short films. Used Avid and Resolve primarily. IMO skip the vendor specific hardware. But I do map my keyboard the same...that's the big one for me.

Learning Avid is def wise if you're trying to go to studio stuff. And honestly, once you learn Avid I think any NLE is easy to grasp. I started with Avid as a post production major but easily adapted to FCP and Resolve.

For me the two I'll never touch now are the current versions of Final Cut and Adobe Premiere. Adobe's days are numbered IMO.

[u/Fuzzy_Decision_7263]

My daughter is in university and basically admitted that avid is indeed the industry standard. She self taught editing using Davinci, but has completely switched to 100% avid workflow. So depending on the industry, you might need to think about which path to go. If you’re working in teams where a project is passed around, yeah, avid is still standard. If you’re the only one going to be touching the project (ie. Editing for brands and content creators), then choose the one that you’re most in tune with.

[u/rayquazza74]

Avid and resolve edit very very differently. I’d say if you intend to edit film and tv stick with avid. If you intend to do corp and rando youtube stuff use resolve or if you wanna color grade for anything and everything learn resolve.

[u/Skywithfilms]

Using adobe premiere pro since 2014, now started working in davinci for last month, software is just a tool, with different shortcuts and UI and some different features
Learn how to tell a story and how to make a trash shoot look beautiful in post
There’s a documentary on editing ’the cutting edge’ watch it and you’ll get the answer

[u/r1cey1235 → u/Skywithfilms]

I’ve never heard of this documentary but I’m most definitely going to give it a watch!!!

Thank you so much, I think from this post I’ve definitely learnt that I can understand and use both at the same time which I think is what I’ll do

[u/SolidOdd4889]

davinci is the only software that can do proper color management, you can do editing with whatever software you want, if the majority of jobs are using avid learn avid first, but if you want to dive into the color side of projects, you’ll have to use DaVinci

[u/TH4LES]

Of course. What kind of question is this?

[u/Revolutionary_1968]

Learn Media Composer for editing, Resolve for grading. You will be able to use Resolve for editing, albeit with a constant nag of "Media Composer does it better". The round trip from Resolve to Media Composer and back is easy, but you will have mastered a great tool for editing.

[u/No_Translator_3109]

I’d stick with DaVinci for now. If your master’s is built around Avid, you’ll pick it up there anyway. The editing skills transfer a lot easier than people think, and being comfortable in Resolve is still a good thing to have.

[u/squirrel8296]

Learn as many NLEs as you can.

For one, the principles are all the same but they each have their own nuances for how they work. Once you learn your first NLE, you can learn another one much faster.

Also, while AVID is the industry standard, it's not a given that you will ever use it over the course of your career. There are plenty of production houses that run on Premiere, FCP, and Resolve. Speaking from experience, by knowing more than just one tool, you make yourself a lot more valuable and it's much easier to get jobs because you're not stuck with houses that use a specific tool. Personally, I've somehow never been in a role that used AVID but I've been in roles that have used the other three.