Cutting rooms are only dark and gloomy places if you make them so. Hard work, educated taste, sharp instincts, and a flair for the absurd have been essential to my career as an editor as well as important ingredients for my life.
— Claire Simpson, editor
I’m a writer and video editor based north of Boston. I have 12 years of experience editing and producing, and an interest in understanding why some moments stay with you.
We’re all storytellers. But most of us aren’t very good at it. “Storytelling” is a word I’ve come to avoid, partly because it has become so broadly used and marketable that it can mean almost anything, or worse, nothing.
Creating a narrative starts with a good conversation, not just a sheet of interview questions. It means observing how a piece takes form, how one moment leads to another without a torrent of light leaks, and what happens when you resist the temptation to spell everything out.
The “flair for the absurd” matters, too. It isn’t about constantly trying to be weird or quirky for the sake of it, but knowing when to keep a moment that’s naturally funny, awkward, or unexpectedly human.
I write personal essays that range from my own childhood mischief to the strange everyday rituals that make us who we are. They tend to be humorous and voice-driven, grounded in close observation and specific detail. Writing has sharpened many of the same instincts I bring to editing: find the first thing that creates an emotional response, and follow it.
I’m drawn to projects that have a point of view and feel observed rather than manufactured, where the writing and images come from an actual understanding of the people, places, and ideas involved. The best work can have a strategy behind it without ever feeling like strategy.
If you’re working on a brand film, a short doc, an editorial piece, or anything else where writing and editing overlap, say hello: rhidianp [at] gmail.com
Experience:
Senior Video Editor, Matter Communications; Boston, MA November 2016 - present
Video Editor (freelance), Small Mammal Advertising; Boston, MA 2014 - present
Customer Engagement Coordinator, EditShare; Boston, MA July 2015 - November 2016
Video Editor (freelance), Matter Communications; Boston, MA September 2016 - October 2016
Video Editor (freelance), Skyscope Creative: Boston, MA October 2014 - September 2015
Video Editor (freelance), Small Army; Boston, MA July 2014 - March 2015
Production Assistant (freelance), Skyscope Creative: Boston, MA September 2014
Video Editor (volunteer), YMCA: Boston, MA August 2014
Video Editor (freelance), Plus Et Plus: New York, NY July 2014
Post Production Intern, Small Army; Boston, MA 2014
Video Production Intern, SCATV; Somerville, MA 2013
Script Supervisor, Connecticut FITP; Hamden, CT 2012
Awards:
2021 The Telly Awards - Gold Telly Winner
MENTOR “Mentoring Amplifies” - Branded Content General
Monotype “The Making of Toyota Type” - Branded Content General
2020 The Telly Awards - Silver Telly Winner
Hitachi Vantara “Vironova’s Enterprise Business Transformation” – Branded Content General, Science and Technology
Thermo Fisher Scientific “Decade Anthem: 2020 and Beyond” – Branded Content General, Science & Technology
Cisco Webex “Northland Pioneer College Success Story” – Branded Content General, Business-to-Business
American Advertising Federation - New England Gold Winner
Zero Gravity Tables: “Stand Fast” Brand Video
NYX Video Awards - Gold Winner (Consumer Products/Services & Business-to-Business)
Zero Gravity Tables: “Stand Fast” Brand Video
Cisco Webex: Connecting Students to the Classroom