shots | Editorial company Papercut announces its debut
Founded by Biff Butler and Brandee Probasco, the LA- and New York-based outfit steps out of soft-launch mode
RESPECT THE PROCESS PODCAST
Papercut Founder, Editor Biff Butler Explains How Efficiency Can Kill Creativity.
CICLOPE Festival 2026 Silver Award Winner
Our work on KALSHI "Predict That" has earned a Silver Award at the CICLOPE festival this year—huge congratulations to editor biff butler!
CHECK OUT THE SILVER AWARD WINNING SPOT HERE
John Resner’s “Finely Sliced” interview
John Resner’s “Finely Sliced” interview is full of insight and great stories from his amazing editing career.
More on the controversial feature doc that never was, what real creative freedom feels like, and the thermal dynamics of filmmaking on LBBonline - Little Black Book:
https://lnkd.in/ggyy95az
Biff & Andy featured in LBB’s "Dream Teams"
Editor biff butler and composer Andy Huckvale used to be bandmates. That creative relationship laid the foundation for their cross-continental partnership that spans global brands and agencies.
They recently spoke with LBBonline - Little Black Book about how their nu-metal roots have shaped their ongoing collaborations. More on LBB’s "Dream Teams"
https://lnkd.in/ezdq-9Hp
A REVOLVING DOOR OF HEARTACHE
(AKA "It ain’t Show Friends it’s Show Business")
It was one of the first lessons I was taught in this business.
I had just walked out of an edit feeling elated, having spent time with a producer my age, having a deep conversation, a real connection. "It was just like talking to a friend," I told the woman who, along with her husband, served as my mentor in this industry.
"Well," she corrected me. "They are not your friends." I rarely even read scripts anymore. When a new project is on the table, my first curiosity is "Who will I get to hang out with next?" The commercial we are about to make might be cool or lame or for a car or for a sneaker. It might be funny, or a music-driven thrill-ride. All of this matters, but to far less a degree than who I’ll be spending my time with for the next couple weeks.
For the last twenty years, I’ve spent days on end, sometimes weeks at a time, in close collaboration with a revolving door of pretty rad people. Initially, all of these people were older than me, far more experienced in the biz. Eventually, they were my peers; same age, same life stage, figuring it out together.
Those people don’t come into the edit much anymore. Many have moved up, moved on. New titles, less time in the room. A younger generation has taken their place; talented, open, genuinely exciting to work with.
What hasn’t changed is this: for however long a project lasts, I am fully in it with these people. Their creative vision, their anxiety, their ambition. Every project is like a trust fall with a stranger. We push and pull, we stay late, we crack it open and put it back together. It gets intense. It gets personal. It feels like something.
And then it’s done.
Somebody somewhere approves something, and just like that, it’s over. It just stops. And on Monday, a new group walks in.
I get sad every time. Maybe there’s a german word for this? The mourning of a temporary, rather transactional relationship? And the whiplash of beginning again for soon.
Not that I’d change it. There’s something rare about a connection that exists entirely within a creative context. Pressure-cooked, temporary, and real. The key word is TRUST. Honestly, I think that’s the real currency. That’s what we deal in.
I will admit to having made some close friends in this business over the years. People who have given me opportunities not only to make a living, but to love the process along the way. It’s frustrating that I am not in a position to hire them, to pay it all back. But I hope I can continue to repay their trust.
Here’s to the next group of temporary non friends. Thank you.
