Like Monsieur Jourdain of Bourgeois Gentleman de Molière wrote prose without knowing it, the general public knows Paul Hirsch without his name being familiar to them. This editor, whose fascinating memoirs Long ago in an editing room far, far away were published in June by the Editions Carlotta, received an Oscar in 1978 for the first Star Warsa new hope by George Lucas. Honored at the Valenciennes Festival, he looked back on his memories for 20 minutes.
“Editing is the art of drawing the viewer’s attention to specific points and giving a rhythm to the images”, analyzes the man who also knew how to attract the attention of directors. Because Star Wars, Paul Hirsch found himself putting it together a bit by chance. “It was Brian de Palma who recommended me to George Lucas,” he explains. Marcia Lucas, his wife, had started editing Star Wars but had to abandon it for New York New York because Martin Scorsese’s editor had suddenly died. ” Luck ! And Star Wars finished launching the career of an editor who still had a little experience, having cut his teeth on the brilliant Phantom of the Paradise (also available from Carlotta).
Hands in the film
“ A new hope was a special experience, explains Paul Hirsch, because the editing had already begun. So I had to refine what had been done before my arrival. The Empire Strikes Back of Irvin Kershner on which I worked from the beginning was very different. It must be remembered that at the time, digital did not exist. We worked with real film and mechanical special effects. The assembly was then manual work. Paul Hirsch did not edit the last part of the trilogy, Return of the Jedibecause the director Richard Marquand had arrived with his own team.
“I continue to follow the saga Star Wars from afar,” says the editor, who hardly ever sees the films he worked on again. “You have to understand that I’ve had my nose on them for weeks and that I know them so closely that I can’t look at them once they’re finished,” he explains.
Fan questions
After his experience on Star WarsPaul Hirsch notably worked on Footloose (1984) by Herbert Ross, Ferris Bueller’s Mad Day (1986) and A ticket for two (1987) by John Hughes, as well as two Impossible mission for Brian De Palma and Brad Bird. He was also nominated for the Oscar for Ray (2004) by Taylor Hackford.
“Obviously it was impossible to imagine the success that Star Wars, he says. Even today, fans ask me about details that I absolutely can’t remember after all these years. The film has passed us all. » Paul Hirsch’s triumphant welcome at Valenciennes confirmed that the Force is still with this great gentleman, who is now 74 years old. To sign his books, he writes “QLFSAT” (May the Force be with you). A true Jedi, even after fifty years of a brilliant career.