EDITORIAL & CREATIVE
Avid Media Composer
My main editing platform for commercial and long-form projects. I use it daily for media management, sync maps, group cutting, and conform prep. Its the backbone of my offline workflow.
Premiere
I rely on Premiere being the most dominant tool in the social and branded content landscape. It’s my go-to for anything fast-paced: quick turnarounds, social edits, short-form content.
DaVinci Resolve Studio
I rely on Resolve for colour grading, conforming, and finishing. It’s also my go-to for QC checks and creating seamless online-to-offline turnovers when collaborating with post houses.
Final Cut Pro
While not my primary editor, I occasionally work in Final Cut for some London post houses running Final Cut/Avid-based workflows. I stay up to date so I can support those pipelines when required.
Shutter Encoder
My go-to encoding tool, perfect for extracting audio or video, rewrapping media, or reconforming files. It’s a hidden gem built on FFmpeg, fast, reliable, and essential for any editor’s toolkit.
Shutter Transcriber
Generate AI-powered captions with precise character-per-line limits, perfectly formatted for Avid Media Composer and professional NLEs.
ScopeBox
My essential toolkit for professional-grade scopes and real-time signal monitoring.
XtoCC
XtoCC converts Final Cut XML files into Premiere–compatible XML. My preferred lightweight tool for quickly moving projects into Premiere.
SendToX
SendToX converts Premiere XML files into Final Cut–compatible XML. My preferred lightweight tool for quickly moving projects into Final Cut.
Arctic
I use Arctic to effortlessly archive and manage my Final Cut Pro libraries. It ensures my media is perfectly consolidated and secure while keeping my workspace clutter-free.
Compressor
Essential for exporting masters, broadcast deliverables, and client review files in consistent, high-quality formats. I use it to automate repetitive export tasks and manage custom presets across projects.
Blackmagic Speed Test
I use this tool to check real-world disk performance. It helps me confirm drives, RAIDs, and delivery disks are fast enough for high-bitrate workflows, avoiding bottlenecks during editorial.
Keyboard Maestro
I use a handful of key macros to speed up repetitive editing and file management tasks, small automations that make everyday workflows faster, more consistent, and less prone to human error.
Name Wrangler
A small but powerful renaming utility that saves hours when dealing with camera cards and proxies. Perfect for prepping media before ingest or cleaning up naming conventions from set.
MediaInfo
My first stop when troubleshooting footage. I use it to check frame rates, codecs, and metadata before relinking or transcoding a must-have for smooth conforms.
QTChange
A utility I use during media wrangling to set accurate timecode and reel names. It helps ensure reliable round-tripping from offline to online and adds extra protection during the conform process.
BBEdit
I use BBEdit for batch-editing ALEs, XMLs, and EDLs. It’s also great for cleaning up bin data or tweaking project metadata that needs to stay human-readable and precise.
VisualDiffer
I use it to compare directories when building take-home packages for editors a quick way to spot missing files and avoid manual checks or human error.
MDVX
A companion tool for Avid that scans drives to reveal which projects own which media. I use it to quickly spot missing or duplicate files when cleaning up, archiving, or building take-home packages.
EasyFind
My go-to when Spotlight can’t index shared servers like Avid NEXIS. Perfect for tracking down project versions, missing assets, or buried exports.
OffShoot Pro
My DIT-level offload tool I use to verify and clone camera cards safely. Its checksum verification gives peace of mind before transcoding or ingesting into Avid or Resolve.
FoolCat Pro
I use FoolCat to generate clean camera reports with high-quality stills and full metadata straight from the rushes. It gives me a fast, reliable overview of every clip.
EditReady
EditReady it’s fast, reliable, and handles nearly every RAW and non-RAW codec without hassle. Its accurate manufacturer color science gives me clean, consistent transcodes that drop straight into Avid.
Wave Agent
A precision utility for managing BWF metadata and manipulating polyphonic WAV files. Essential for batch merging or splitting tracks while maintaining rock-solid timecode sync for post-production.
Post Haste
A project-templating tool I use to create consistent folder structures for every job. It keeps my editing workflows organised, speeding up handovers and removing guesswork in asset management.
Tuxera Disk Manager
A simple but crucial tool for managing external drives across Mac and PC workflows. Keeps formatting clean and transfers smooth when dealing with multiple editors or DITs.
Free FileSync
Fast and open-source file synchronisation that detects moved files and performs bit-by-bit comparisons across all my drives.
POST-PRODUCTION INFRASTRUCTURE & PIPELINE
PostLab Pro is the heartbeat of my post-production process. It’s where every project begins and every version is protected. By centralizing my metadata and automating the boring stuff.
I use ScriptSync to instantly link every take of my footage to the script. It lets me find and compare different performances of any line with a single click.
Avid NEXIS
I used Avid NEXIS as the central shared-storage backbone in post houses, giving editors instant access to media and bins without any drive copying or slowdown.
Avid Symphony
Avid’s advanced finishing toolkit for grading, online conforms, versioning, and broadcast-safe QC. I use its expanded toolset for precise picture conforms and reliable final deliverables.
Avid Interplay
I’ve used Avid Interplay, Avid’s shared media-management system, for collaborative editing. Its centralised workflow let me turn around multi-version projects quickly under tight deadlines.
Edit Share
Many post houses use EditShare because it’s flexible, works seamlessly across multiple NLEs, and supports both offline and online teams without locking them into a single ecosystem.
MASV
I’ve used MASV as a high-speed large-file transfer platform, built for sending huge media packages securely and without the usual transfer headaches.
Media Shuttle
I’ve used Media Shuttle, Signiant’s accelerated file-transfer platform, for moving media between DITs, editors, and production teams.
WireDrive
I’ve used Wiredrive as a secure review-and-approval platform for sharing cuts, gathering client feedback, and presenting work professionally.
ClearCast
UK’s ad-approval platform to ensure commercial spots meet broadcast standards before delivery.
Frame.IO
My go to cloud-based review and approval platform, making it easy to share cuts, track notes, and collaborate with editors, directors, and clients in real time.
Media Silo
A secure platform I’ve used to share cuts and gather client feedback during post-production. It keeps comments, approvals, and versions organised in one place for a smooth review process.
PLUGINS
Excalibur
A Premiere productivity extension that automates repetitive editorial tasks. It speeds up bin creation, renaming, timeline operations, and effect application.
Grave Robber
Premiere extension for decomposing sequences and "un-merging" clips back to their original components.
Dagger
A free Premiere extension that simplifies finding, applying and organising video and audio effects, with favourites and hide controls for faster editing.
Watchtower
A folder-sync plugin for Premiere that automatically imports new media from watched directories. Ideal for shoots or shared workflows where assets appear throughout the day.
CommandPost
A powerful automation and workflow extension for Final Cut Pro, adding custom shortcuts, macros, and advanced controls.
iXML Renamer
An indispensable Premiere extension bridging the gap in iXML metadata support. It automates renaming timeline clips and multicam sequences using on-set track data.
ALE Metadata Toolkit
My solution for skipping manual data entry. It’s how I instantly pull all ALE columns into Premiere and keep my metadata perfectly synced.
BLend-X
An Avid Media Composer compositing plugin that expands blend-mode and channel-mixing options. It enables more creative control over layer interactions than the native toolkit.
Batch Rename
A bulk-renaming tool for Premiere/After Effects that handles search/replace, numbering, and metadata-based naming. Helps keep rushes and assets consistently organised.
RSMB
A motion-blur plugin that generates natural blur using optical-flow analysis. Licensed for Avid, Premiere and Resolve, and use it to smooth speed ramps or enhance motion in footage without vector data.
Captioneer
Fast tool for generating accurate subtitles and captions across multiple formats, ideal for quick turnarounds, social versions and accessibility delivery.