Michael is an 'old school' online editor and has the discipline and depth of experience that comes with growing up in linear tape suites.

The first online suite we worked in edited onto 1" C tape and was largely an exercise in choreographing the edit controller, caption generator, DVE and decks to achieve the desired result. When digital decks came around, he became a demon of the Pre-Read edit building multiple pass sequences a layer at a time.

Whilst the advent of Non Linear Editing online suites has made such things a whole lot easier, having that tape experience comes into its own when it comes to a methodical approach to the onlining process and delivering programmes to broadcasters. Knowing the pitfalls of esoteric delivery specs means being able to deliver shows that have greater chance of passing tech review.

Avid Symphony is now the weapon of choice for online editing and, having used Symphony online for nearly two decades, Michael is steeped in the idiosyncrasies of the machine. Don't expect to see many buttons on his display settings. Do expect lots of keyboard action and speed!

With the advent of DPP file delivery, discipline in the online edit becomes more important, not less.