Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/855478
48 CINEMONTAGE / Q3 2017 It is also one of the most Jewish shows (TV, web or otherwise) around. This is by design. Based on Soloway's own life experience of her father coming out as a transgender woman later in life, the show is set in Los Angeles, much of it on the Eastside, where Soloway is the co-founder of the Eastside Jews, a project now based at the Silverlake Independent Jewish Community Center. That center is also the link between Soloway and her longtime editor, Catherine Haight, ACE. The two met through a mutual friend, Bill Macomber, who was on the board of the SIJCC with Soloway. As Haight tells it, Soloway asked Macomber if he knew anyone who could cut some scenes she had shot. "Bill said, 'You should meet Cate; I think you guys would get along.' And the rest is history. We did in fact get along," recalls Haight, who cut Soloway's short film Una Hora Por Favora (2011) as well as her first feature, Afternoon Delight (2013), which earned the Directing Award at the Sundance Film Festival. When Soloway began working on Transparent, she and Haight already had a great working relationship; the shorthand was there and the editor understood her style and directorial voice. This was helpful as Haight cut the series pilot (for which she was nominated for an ACE Eddie Award), and 14 of the 30 episodes in the first three seasons. What's more, she worked closely with Soloway and screened every single episode to make sure the editorial style was consistent among the series' other editors. Haight's key involvement in the series earned her an associate producer credit on Seasons Two and Three. Although acknowledging that working on Transparent was a very special experience —"It's a really supportive, awesome environment where everybody really helps each other out" — Haight left the show last year after the third season. "I had been working with Jill for so long, I felt like I needed to leave the nest and try something different; I wanted to move into features," she concedes. "But I loved working with Jill and all the editors on the show." The show's fourth season — which will drop September 22 — is edited by Hilda Rasula, Sunny Hodge and Christal Khatib. It continues to be a close-knit post-production team, as the editors have worked together in different permutations on other shows. Rasula, who began as Haight's assistant on the pilot, was bumped up to editor at the end of Season One, when she was given a chance to edit an episode. Rasula (Chef School, 2008; Ruby, 2008-11; Rectify, 2013-16) credits Haight as both her mentor and a good friend who encouraged her to become the editor she is today. She has taken the reins of overseeing all the shows since she too has been there since the beginning. Hodge (Melrose Place, 1992-99; The Big C, 2010-13; Private Practice, 2007-13) began working on Transparent with Season Two. A musician- turned-editor, she landed the gig through Haight. They met on Good vs Evil (1999-2000); when Hodge was bumped up to editor on the show, Haight was brought in as an assistant. Filling the position vacated by Haight, Khatib is the newest addition to the Transparent editorial team. Most recently, she cut three episodes of I Love Dick (2016-present), Soloway's latest project for Amazon. Before that, she spent many years editing shows like Commander in Chief (2005-06), The Big C and Private Practice. Catherine Haight. Transparent. Amazon Studios