Creative Editor Haansol Rim Nails the Mark for MATTE and FNT
The beating heart of every visual production is a story with a purpose, and it’s one that countless talented individuals join forces on, often working grueling hours, in order to make it into a reality. After the shoot has wrapped and the cast and most of the crew have gone home, it becomes the editor’s job to translate the multitude of takes and countless hours of raw footage into a story that will resonate with viewers.
The job of an editor can be intense and arduous, but for Haansol Rim, it’s a labor of love. Rim’s ability to sift through hours of footage, select the best shots, create the sequences, transitions, and determine the perfect rhythm to unite the story as a whole is a talent and skill that’s been honed by experience. Rim as worked extensively as a creative editor for several production companies over the years, including MATTE, an innovative creative agency and production company whose clients include Adidas, Alexander Wang, Chanel, Cartier, Prada, Red Bull, Under Armour and more.
Over the years Rim has been the creative editor on numerous high profile projects for MATTE, such as the Chainsmokers’ video campaign for their World War Joy Tour, Prada’s 2019 Chinese New Year digital film and photo campaign, the promo commercial for FNT (Friday Night Throwdown) NY VOL. IV, the Under Armour X AWGE Launch Event for A$AP Rocky’s SRLo sneaker, the CB2 Holiday Grand commercial campaign and more.
MATTE associate creative director Danny Yirgou says, “Whenever I hand a project to [Haansol], I know it’s in great hands. Haans is great at pitching ideas to the creative team regarding the editing. He’ll suggest changing the tempo, or adding some effects and fast paced transitions, or edit in ways that add value to the final film.”
One of the reasons that Rim has become such a powerful and sought after force in his field is due to the vast range of skills and creativity that he brings to the table. Aside from his vast technical ability when it comes to using editing software and various other tools of the trade, Rim spent some of his early years as a music producer and composer, and he studied fine art in college. Rim’s strong connection to music and his sense of pacing combined with his fine art background all serve as compliments to his editing work and give him the capacity to think outside of the box.
“My aesthetic, first and foremost is to highlight the visuals. My style is heavily visual. But as a filmmaker and editor, the ‘key thing’ depends on the project,” Rim explains. “For example, in a commercial or music video, sometimes more focus is required on the visuals. But on a narrative film, the storyline tends to be the main focus. There’s no one answer to all. A good filmmaker is one who knows what to put his focus on depending on each project.”
Though he’s Korean, Rim was born in Munster, Germany where he spent a good portion of his childhood before moving to South Korea at the age of 6. His multicultural upbringing has undeniably endowed him with a rare perspective on life, people and cultures, and that’s something that shines through in his work. As a child Rim describes himself as an ‘artsy kid.’ An avid painter and professional cello player, it didn’t take long for him to discover that he could combine his passion for visual imagery, music and storytelling through film.
“My life would be completely different had I not chosen to pursue film. I might not even be here working in New York City, and maybe be a fine artist, or maybe a music producer, but definitely everything would be different,” Rim assures us. “I am a very career and passion driven person, and I always wanted to pursue what my passion was, which is what I am doing. Film has allowed me to combine all kinds of art media — photography, art, music, everything. I am able to edit, which involves a lot of sound mixing, and direct, which is visual. Film is my life so far.”
Rim’s capacity to translate what the director envisions into an effective story on screen is second to none. When it comes to editing projects in the world of commercials, he not only has to meet the desires of the director, but those of the client as well, so it is imperative that everyone is on the page with the overall goal of the story. Rim is a master of creating a ‘vibe’ with his edits, and though that vibe will invariably change as per the project, his boundless creativity allows him to continually deliver projects that wow the client and capture the attention of their audience.
Earlier this year Rim was the editor on the promo video for the FNT event that took over 30 Wall Street with a bang during New York Fashion Week in February. Formerly known as Friday Night Throwdown, FNT is an underground fight series started by Bekim Trenova nearly a decade ago. In the years since its inception FNT has become a cultural phenomenon in the way that it bridges fight culture and nightlife through a unique underground party centered around a boxing ring.
With FNT’s NY VOL. IV edition, their first event of 2019, taking place on Wall Street in the midst of Fashion Week, the promo campaign had to depict the rawness of FNT’s underground vibe, the unique contrast of Wall Street’s formal atmosphere, and entice audiences to attend a party like no other; and Rim managed to do exactly that in a matter of seconds with his edits. Weaving together clips of NY skyscrapers and life on Wall Street and swiftly transporting viewers underground to the FNT event where glistening fighters go toe to toe in the ring surrounded by an amped up audience partying and dancing the night away, Rim created the perfect promo video to attract attendees to the event. Proving to be a major success, the event had a massive turn out and garnered attention from media outlets such as the popular Paper magazine and Kulture Hub.
MATTE associate creative director Danny Yurgou says, “In [Haansol Rim’s] editing, he is able to very quickly understand what needs to be done, or what needs to be added. He can switch shoes and see things from the perspective of a director, or art director, without overstepping his boundaries, and will edit accordingly.”
Rim’s seasoned experience taking on various roles in film production gives him a strong edge in the industry in the sense that he can bring so many different skills to his work as an editor and creative editor. Earlier this year Rim’s work as the creative editor, director and art director of the flawless music video “The Light” for the electronic band Sailli was recognized with esteem when the video was chosen as an Official Selection of the Atlanta Film Festival. The video, which Rim marks among one of his favorite projects to date, was also chosen as an Official Selection of the 2018 San Francisco Dance Film Festival, in addition to garnering international media attention from outlets including Visla Magazine, Rhythmer Magazine, HDUP and more.
“There are a lot of things that make cinema, the story, cinematography, editing, art direction, casting, etc. Cinema involves all these aspects, and that makes good cinema. But in my personal opinion, the essential part of any good cinema is storytelling. Good cinema sheds light on any and every story in a unique perspective that is also relatable by many,” says Rim.
“I want my viewers to have a like a deja vu moment when they see my work. I want them to think ‘I’ve never seen this before, but there’s something familiar. I felt this before…’ something like that.”
