HOLLYWOOD — Hula Post Production (http://hulapost.com) provided editorial systems and support to Selma, the Paramount Pictures release chronicling the historic civil rights march led by Martin Luther King, Jr., in Alabama in 1965. Directed by Ava DuVernay, the film stars David Oyelowo as King, and is nominated for two Academy Awards: Best Picture and Best Original Song.
Hula initially supplied Avid Media Composer systems and Avid Unity shared storage to editor Spencer Averick and his crew while they were working on location in Atlanta, where principal photography took place. Later, Hula set up identical editorial facilities on the lot at Paramount Pictures in Hollywood. The company provided round-the-clock technical support at both sites.
Selma marks Averick’s ninth collaboration with DuVernay. He first worked with the director on her 2008 documentary This Is the Life.
“We felt a great obligation to get the story right,” says Averick. “We knew that there were a lot of people who were in the movement who were going to see this film.”
The editorial team faced a tight schedule, with just six months from the start of production to deliver a finished film. Averick says their goal in Selma was to create a film that was more than a history lesson and provided unique insight into the people who shaped the events.
“We get inside the heads of the characters,” he insists. “It’s an epic story, but it’s also a personal story.
“The pace is methodical,” he says of the edit. “I like to spend time in each moment. If I don’t need to make a cut, I won't. This gives the audience time to soak it in and lends to a more realistic scene.”