Ot Louw (1946), Dutch film editor, co-owner of the film editing company Het Materiaal, “The Material”, in Bussum and author of several books on film: “A cameraman and an editor are in fact, equally subservient. They both try to grasp and understand what a director wants, and use their own knowledge to achieve this. That is their job, their function. And you have to want that, if you work in this field. If you cannot be subservient, then you shouldn't work in that area.”

Film editor Ot Louw in his editing room: “I don't mind being outside of the spotlight. There are always a lot of pictures taken of the crew. I am never in them, of course, of course not! Or maybe by accident, sometimes... If by any chance I am on the set. But that is almost never the case, on the last day of filming, because that is when I am working the hardest. That is why as an editor, you often hear, “oh yes, we have a wrap-party, would you like to come?”, only a half an hour before it begins. You don't fit in completely, and I understand that very well. It is of course obvious why that is! All the film crew, as a whole, spend so much time together. And the person in charge of editing, who is he really? “Oh yeah, that is the grey one. Oh that's the editor.” (photo: Bart van Broekhoven).

Bart: How is Het Materiaal, “The Material”, set up?

Ot Louw:Het Materiaal has just celebrated, very quietly, its 25^th anniversary. So, we have actually not celebrated. This is because we are in the process of closing everything down...quietly. We are very busy. Hans and I will go further as ZZP's, starting January 1^st, in principle (2011, ed.). A beautiful experience will then be coming to an end, here in this nice building.

The telephone rings. Ot: Hè, sorry, sorry.

Introduction

Ot Louw is one of the most experienced editors actively working in the Netherlands. The material that lies on his table forms a cross-section of about 40 years of Dutch film and TV history, including documentaries, films and TV drama. Ot Louw started his carrier at the Film and Science Foundation in Utrecht. In 1973 he went to the NOS, where he was happy to work. In 1985 he and his colleague, Hans Dunnewijk, started the film editing company “The Material”. On January 1^st, after 25 years of operations, the company will close.

November 2010. Your interviewer sits for a couple of days at “The Material”, behind a Steenbeck, to view and edit rushed camera tests on 16 and 35 mm. During the couple of days that I am here, Ot is working in his editing room on an Avid-set. A room with a window, that like a penthouse offers a view of the city, looks across a skyline of machines with flickering lights; the hardware of the Avid editing-set. Ot's wife Marian keeps her eye on the ongoing business, in the front room of the building.

Steenbeck 16 - 35 combi-table at Het Materiaal (photo: Bart van Broekhoven)

The history that took place in this building hangs on the walls: dozens of posters of films that have being edited here, a kind of Imdb, where you can walk through. Kilometres of material flew through the hands of editor Ot Louw: “That is from here to Madrid, and that is only on 16”. In the beginning he edited mostly documentaries, but in his NOS-time he edited two films: The Power Broker ( De Mannetjesmaker) and The Field of Honour (Veld van eer).

At the end of my last day at the editing table, there was an opportunity to talk to Ot about his work. I was very curious to know how the material laying on his table had changed.

Ot finishes his telephone conversation: Where were we, where was I?