Well, I don’t disagree with that. But the reality is that we just cannot hold back a tidal wave by simply holding up a small bucket (hmmm, I missed something with that metaphor, didn’t I?). The days of our high wages are going away. In television, for instance, the economics are simply not there to support both the size and the cost of a crew in the way it used to. Syndication is GONE. 24 episode orders are GONE. High advertising rates are GONE. As a result, the days of 3-5 million dollar pattern budgets are… you guessed it… GONE.

Unfortunately, that means that our lives as editors are changing Big Time. We need to compete on a much more basic level than we ever have. There will absolutely be producers who are completely bottom line driven (I think we’ve both worked for people like that) and they will go where the cost of living is less, even if it means less quality control. But there will also be producers who hire us because we bring more to the project than someone who charges 10% of our rate. That having been said, I’ve worked with filmmakers from Vietnam and the Middle East who are awesomely talented. Lower dollars doesn’t necessarily mean less talented. That is going to affect what we can charge and, therefore, how we work. (For instance, I can see editors working on multiple projects at one time for one rate, and soloing for a different rate.)

So, you’re right, the receding tide is also going to produce some rocky waters for those of us who are used to floating around in expensive boats. But I think we’re all better off when we look around for all kinds of boats to pilot, rather than sticking with our old ones.

And that, my friend, is a metaphor way to broken to make any sense any more. So, I’d better move on.