Meet Annette Davey

Today we’d like to introduce you to Annette Davey.

So, before we jump into specific questions, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I’m a film editor, originally from Australia. I went to film school in Sydney, the Australian film & TV school. As I was graduating, I won the Qantas Award which was a ticket to anywhere in the world to further your career. I met a very successful academy award-winning Italian editor, Gabriella Cristiani and she invited me to work with her in the United States. So I used that award to come to Los Angeles and work in the film industry here. I arrived in Los Angeles not knowing a soul except for the editor I was going to work for and I had never been to the US before.

Originally I wasn’t sure how long I would stay but once arriving, I realized what an amazing industry there was in Hollywood and decided to stay. I had previously worked in Rome as an editor on a TV show called Notte Rock for Rai TV which had been very successful and as this had been such a great experience, I decided to stay in LA.

Since then, I have worked in LA, NY, London, Europe, Asia & Sydney. My job has allowed me to travel and it’s an exciting world to be involved in. I’ve edited many feature films of all different genres, including recently Poms, starring Diane Keaton & Jackie Weaver, a fun screwball comedy to serious period films such as the Seagull starring Annette Bening, Saoirse Ronin, Cynthia Nixon, Elisabeth Moss, Billy Howle, Brian Dennehy & Mare Winninghaam. I’ve also been fortunate to work on lots of amazing TV shows, including Transparent, Glow, Better Things, Hung, and recently Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist. I’m currently editing a feature film starring Ed Helms, Patti Harrison, Tig Notaro and a slew of amazing LA comedians. The movie is directed by Nikole Beckwith who’s earlier film Stockholm, Pennsylvania starred Saoirse Ronin.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It’s definitely been a bumpy ride. Starting in Australia, the industry is much smaller and it’s very hard to get started there, but once you do the level of work and artistry is really high. It’s really the kind of work you need to love to do and filmmaking in Australia is a great training ground. I recently went back to Sydney and was a consultant on an Australian/UK production produced by SeeSaw films and Sky Atlantic (UK). It was so fun and an amazing opportunity to go back and use all my US experience back in Australia.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I have my own company as a film & TV editor. I specialize in comedies, but often quirky comedies & dramedies. Deep down, I love to do really dramatic pieces, which is why The Seagull was so exciting for me to edit, to do a period drama (even though its comedic as well) with such an amazing cast was really a wonderful experience. The director of the seagull was Michael Mayer who is an acclaimed Tony Award-winning NY theater director and it was so inspiring to work with someone of his calibre as a collaborator. Sometimes I think it’s being Australian that sets me apart, it certainly doesn’t hurt to have an accent!

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
I have had several mentors during my career. Initially in Australia I had a mentor in the film industry, Rhonda Macgregor (one of Australia’s top editors) who suggested I should think about editing as a career. She felt I had the right kind of personality for it (I like to work alone often!) and she felt I had a natural ability and really encouraged me to pursue this as my career.

Secondly, I had the Italian academy award-winning editor Gabriella Cristiani whom I met as I was graduating from the Australian film school, who suggested that I come to the US and work with her which was an incredible honor and I learnt so much from working with her.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nettsdavey/?hl=en
• Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0202697/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0

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