Film crew hire/Manchester/Editor
Hire a video editor in Manchester. Hours of rushes in, the film you meant to make out.
Freelance editors for brand films, documentaries, corporate films and social cutdowns, booked from our office in Ancoats. Book an editor to work with your team, in your suite or remotely, or hand the whole edit to our post-production team. From £350 a day, paid to the editor in full.
- 54 five-star Google reviews
- 48 hrs from enquiry to confirmed crew, on most Manchester bookings
- £10m employers’ liability on every crew member we book
- 2,800+ freelance crew on our books
Photos: Mark Cruz, Ryan Snaadt, Nejc Soklič, TourBox and Here Now Films
The role
What an editor does on your film
An editor turns the rushes into the film. They watch everything, log it, find the story, build the cut and take it through rounds of notes to picture lock. Then the online, the grade, the mix and the deliverables finish it, by the same editor on a small job or by specialists on a bigger one.
Our own post-production team cuts, grades and mixes our films in DaVinci Resolve, mostly remotely.
- The story found. Hours of interviews and B-roll watched, logged and built into a structure.
- Notes handled. Two rounds of amends as standard, each turned round fast.
- Ready for every screen. Masters, cutdowns, subtitles and the right ratio for every platform.
- Your software, or ours. Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Avid or Final Cut, in your suite, ours or remote.
What’s included
What the day rate covers
In the day rate
- A full edit day, in your suite, ours or remotely
- Syncing and logging the rushes
- Building the cut to your brief and notes
- Review exports whenever you need them
- The project and media handed over at the end
- Premiere Pro, Resolve, Avid or Final Cut
On top, each on its own line
- Our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, on the whole quote
- An edit suite or kit, if you need one, at a day rate
- Grade, sound mix, music and stock, each quoted separately
- Travel, if they work from your office outside Manchester
How our rates work, and the two ways to book: crew rates in Manchester.
Two ways to edit
Book an editor, or hand us the edit
Two ways to get a film cut: an editor working for you, or our post-production team doing it for you.
Editor hire
You run the edit.
£350 a day for the editor, paid in full, plus our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance.
We do
- Find and book the editor, brief them and pay them
- Book a suite or kit, if you need one
- One person to call if anything changes
You do
- Direct the edit and give the notes
- Supply the rushes, music and branding
- Own the project and sign off the cut
Best for agencies and teams with their own producer, who need an extra editor for a week or a fortnight.
Our post-production
We run the edit.
£550 a day for an edit with our post-production team: the editor, the suite and two rounds of amends. Grade from £600 a day.
We do
- Cut it, grade it, mix it and deliver it
- Music, subtitles and versions for every platform
- One team from the rushes to the masters
You do
- The creative calls
- Notes on each cut, and sign-off
Our post-production team: offline, online, colour and sound.
Not sure which you need? If you have a producer and want an extra pair of hands in the edit, book an editor. If you want the film finished for you, hand it to our post team.
On the day
A day in the edit, rushes to first cut
Day one on a two-minute customer story, from a day’s shoot with two interviews. Times are an example.
- 09:00 Ingest Rushes copied from the drive, synced to the sound, and organised by interview and scene.
- 10:00 Watch it all Every answer watched and the best lines marked, with timecodes, in a selects sequence.
- 12:30 Lunch An hour away from the screen.
- 13:30 The radio edit The interviews cut for story first, as if for radio: beginning, middle and end, in the client’s own words.
- 15:30 Pictures B-roll laid over the interview, and the pace set with music.
- 17:00 First cut Exported with burnt-in timecode and sent for notes on a review link.
- 17:30 Wrap Project saved and backed up. Tomorrow: the notes.
Which kind
Which editor do you need?
The edit has several stages, and on bigger films a specialist for each.
Offline editor The creative cut From £350 a day
Builds the story and the cut, and takes it through notes to picture lock.
Best for brand films, documentaries and customer stories.
Online editor Finishing and deliverables Quoted on the brief
Conforms the locked cut at full quality, adds titles and makes the deliverables. See online editing.
Best for broadcast and anything with strict delivery specs.
Assistant editor Ingest, sync and logging Quoted on the brief
Organises the rushes, syncs the sound, logs and transcribes, so the editor can start cutting.
Best on long-form and multi-camera projects.
Colourist The grade From £600 a day
Grades the film so every shot matches and the look is right. See colour grading.
Best for anything shot on a cinema camera.
Motion designer Titles, graphics and animation Quoted on the brief
Animated titles, lower thirds, data and explainer graphics.
Best for corporate, explainer and social films.
Social editor Cutdowns and versions Quoted on the brief
Turns a master into 9:16, 1:1 and 16:9 cutdowns, with subtitles, for every platform.
Best after a brand film or an event, when the content needs to go out fast.
What it’s for
What people book an editor for in Manchester
Brand films and customer stories
A day or two of rushes cut into two minutes that hold.
Event highlights
A conference at Manchester Central cut the same night, for the morning after.
Social cutdowns
Vertical, square and subtitled versions of a master.
Documentaries
Long-form cuts over weeks, with an assistant editor on the rushes.
Agency overflow
An extra editor in your suite, or remote, for a busy fortnight.
Recent work
Edits on our jobs
Freelance editor · Remote · 2025
AimHi Earth × PepsiCo
A freelance editor we booked cut this film remotely, from the rushes of a shoot at County Hall in London, over four edit days.
Before you book
Things to know
The day
- A full edit day, in a suite or remotely.
- Overtime agreed with you before it happens.
Working remotely
- Rushes sent by drive or secure transfer, with proxies for speed.
- Cuts shared on a review link, with notes on the timecode.
Paying and changes
- Nothing to pay until you confirm the editor.
- 50% by card when you book, 50% on receipt of the final rushes.
- Every line on the quote: day rate, booking fee, kit, travel.
- Cancellation terms are on every quote.
What our insurance covers
- Employers’ liability for the editor we book: £10m.
- Kit we hire in for you is insured. A large kit rental may need extra insurance, as its own line on the quote.
- Nothing else on a crew hire. Public liability, the location and your own kit stay with you, and your venue will want your certificate. When we’re the producer of record, our policy covers the shoot.
From £350 a day
There’s no APA/Bectu card rate for editors: post-production isn’t on the APA crew card.
| Editor, a day | £350 |
| Booking fee, 10% | £35 |
| Insurance, 2% | £7 |
| One edit day, before kit | £392 + VAT |
The 2% is employers’ liability for the editor we book, and cover on kit we hire in. What it covers
You won’t pay anything until you confirm the editor.
- Most Manchester bookings confirmed within 48 hours
- 50% by card at booking, 50% on the final rushes
- Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours
Or call us on 07412 543822.
Reviews
What clients say about our crews
Straight from our Google Business Profile.
Book an editor in Manchester.
Tell us how much footage, how many films, the software, and whether you want our suite or yours. Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours. Or call us on 07412 543822.
Check availability
The whole crew
Every role in Manchester, booked the same way
One brief, one quote, every role on its own line. Our day rates in Manchester, paid to the crew member in full:
Production 05
- Producer From £450
- Production manager £504–627
- 2nd AD £355–448
- Production assistant £400
- Runner £245
Camera 07
- DOP From £850
- Camera operator £529–656
- Focus puller £461–575
- Clapper loader £355–448
- Steadicam operator From £950
- Gimbal operator £529–656
- Drone operator From £750
Data and playback 02
- DIT £527
- Video playback £334–518
Sound 01
- Sound recordist £550
Hair, make-up and costume 02
- Hair and make-up £398
- Costume £519–694
Art department 02
- Art director £675–878
- Set builders £341–512
Post-production 01
- Editor This page From £350
How our rates work: crew rates in Manchester. Or start from a set-up: interview crews and units in Manchester.
Production support
Everything around the crew
An edit starts with the rushes. Here are the guides for everything around the crew, from DIT and data to logistics.
Questions
Hiring a video editor in Manchester: questions
How much does a video editor cost in Manchester?
Our freelance editors start at £350 a day, paid to the editor in full, plus our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance: £392 + VAT. If you’d rather we ran the edit, our post-production team cuts from £550 a day, with the suite and two rounds of amends included.
What does the insurance on a crew booking cover?
Two things. Employers’ liability for every crew member we book, up to £10m, and insurance on the kit we hire in for you. That’s what the 2% pays for. A large kit rental may need extra insurance, as its own line on the quote. The 2% doesn’t insure the rest of the shoot: public liability, the location, your own kit and anything you book yourself stay with you, because you’re the producer of record. If you’d rather we were, it’s quoted as a full production, and our insurance covers the whole shoot, public liability included.
Can an editor work remotely?
Yes. Most of our edits run remotely: rushes by drive or secure transfer, proxies for speed, and cuts shared on a review link.
What software do your editors use?
Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Avid Media Composer and Final Cut Pro. Tell us what your project is in, and we’ll match the editor.
How long does it take to edit a two-minute film?
For a customer story from a day’s shoot, usually three to five edit days, including two rounds of amends. A documentary or a series takes weeks.
Do you grade and mix as well?
Yes. Our post-production team grades and mixes in-house, from £600 a day for the grade. See our post-production.
Can the edit start on the day of the shoot?
Yes. Send the rushes to us and the edit can start the same day; for urgent jobs, proxies go up while you shoot. See DIT and data in Manchester.