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Film editing is recognised as the conceptual innovation that, at the dawn of the twentieth century, helped transform the novelty of moving images into cinema. Despite this acknowledgment, misconceptions about the art form linger. Surprisingly, there is still limited public discussion of the contribution made by editors to creative authorship during the filmmaking process. Arguably, this absence has impeded deeper investigations of the craft and contributions of significant editors, their artistic achievements and the nature of their professional lives. 

This artistic research project proposes that the essential contribution of film editors to filmmaking can begin to be better appreciated and understood by careful exploration of a prominent practitioner’s art and creative influence. Accordingly, the researcher has undertaken the production of a companion pair of long-form biographical documentary films portraying the life, career and practice of the acclaimed Australian film editor, Jill Bilcock. It is contended that use of the film medium in Jill Bilcock: Dancing the Invisible and Jill Bilcock: The Art of Film Editing proves to be a highly effective mode of analysing a leading film editor’s finely tuned practices. Moreover, this portrait of the working life of a celebrated editor promotes greater awareness of the craft of editors and challenges more traditional, auteur-focused perceptions of filmmaking. 

It also demonstrates that this independently funded two-part study benefits from the negotiated inclusion of substantial footage as visible evidence of an editor’s work. The project outcomes are designed for wide public dissemination and to circumvent normally prohibitive licensing demands, two of Bilcock’s high-profile collaborators (Baz Luhrmann and Shekhar Kapur) were recruited as intermediaries in archival negotiations. This achieved more favourable licensing terms and the development and use of this novel licensing arrangement is analysed in the study.