麻豆约拍

Editing is about engaging with the footage in front of you, and in collaboration with the producer, shaping it into the most compelling film possible. As soon as I started viewing the footage for Snow Wolf Family & Me, I knew this was something special.

Gordon had already formed relationships with the pack in the summer, and this film, the , charted how those relationships grew when he returned in the autumn. As soon as his helicopter landed, the whole pack approached. The three tiny pups he had seen leave the den were now transformed into sturdy, leggy youngsters. They took centre stage in the film, as the big question for all of us was what the future would hold for them.

Strong characters are important in any film, and as well as the pups we were blessed with Scruffy, their curious, older brother, who had already given Gordon a few heart-stopping moments in the summer. Scruffy was now even more interested in Gordon, and challenged his fear of wolves by getting closer and closer until he was only inches away from him in a sequence which still makes the hair stand up on my neck.

In putting this film together I was very fortunate to work with producer Patrick Evans who’d been with Gordon on Ellesmere Island, and had experienced all that happened first hand. Patrick is not only a talented film-maker but a gifted writer who brought the best out of the footage by telling the story in a sensitive and compelling way. Importantly, he understood how Gordon felt about the events as they unfolded and we worked closely together to get the right balance of drama, emotion and humour.

The most nerve-wracking time in the editing process is the day we show the film to the executive producers. Will they like it or will they ask for many changes? Luckily our first cut got a thumbs up, but they encouraged Patrick and I to make it even better both visually and emotionally.

It was quite late in the edit when Patrick suggested looking again at a sequence that we had initially thought too weak to include. It’s a scene where Gordon joins the pack for a walk on the tundra. The shots are quite distant, as Gordon didn’t film it with his own camera - I think he was too much in the moment. This short scene is I think one of the film’s most powerful, it is a turning point as Gordon realises he has been accepted as part of the pack.

I have been fortunate to work on many fascinating films in my long career, but this one stands out for the way it presents a completely different side to these animals that have been so vilified and feared that we nearly wiped them out.

I love the job I do, and it is wonderful to have been part of such a talented team, but more than that I like to think this film will change the image of the wolf.