In this episode of No Film School, we dive into the editing process behind Daughters, the heart-wrenching and beautifully crafted documentary that follows four young girls preparing for a father-daughter dance with their incarcerated fathers. Editors Troy Lewis and Adelina Bichis take us inside their process, from shaping the raw footage to balancing the film’s emotional weight and ensuring the story was told ethically and collaboratively.
Daughters premiered at Sundance, is shortlisted for the Academy Awards, and is now streaming on Netflix. If you haven’t seen it yet, this conversation will give you a whole new appreciation for the craftsmanship behind the film.
In this episode, No Film Schools’s GG Hawkins, Troy Lewis, and Adelina Bichis discuss::
- The unique editing process, with Troy shaping the early cuts and Adelina refining the final version
- How they structured the massive amount of footage into a cohesive story
- Using index cards, beat sheets, and writing techniques in documentary editing
- The challenges of weaving together multiple character arcs
- Ethics in documentary filmmaking and ensuring psychological safety for subjects
- The portrayal of masculinity and fatherhood in Daughters
- Editing tools and techniques that helped shape the final cut
- Advice for aspiring editors and documentary filmmakers
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This episode of The No Film School Podcast was produced by GG Hawkins.
