Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/832212
61 Q2 2017 / CINEMONTAGE The participants at the 2016 Sundance Edit and Story Lab last July. Lillian Benson is front row, fourth from left. Standing directly behind her is Tabitha Jackson, Direc- tor of the Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program. Front row, far right, is Kristin Feeley, Director of Labs and Artists Support for the program. Photo by John Hickerson © Sundance Institute valuable skill in the contemporary media world. Editors themselves are often invisible, alone in the dark. Lillian articulates the emotional difficulties of being an editor in a way that a male counterpart might not grasp or feel comfortable saying aloud. She knows that it is sometimes hard to keep going when no one recognizes, let alone praises, your work. For her, the isolation of being in the editing room and not getting encouragement from directors, producers or even ratings can be the most challenging aspect of the job. Such candor particularly suits her position as a female role model, and partially explains why she is so generous with her time and talents to everyone, regardless of her or his age, race or gender. Often, too, women and people of color are "invisible" — even to those in the industry who hire them. Lillian chooses work that fights such prejudices. She recognizes the power of moving images to explain and possibly change the world. That is why she is keen to represent African Americans and women on the screen and also to serve as a real-world mentor. Generosity of spirit runs deep in Lillian. Just one small example: While dining at one of her favorite San Fernando Valley restaurants, Marmalade Café, recently, she chats with actor Leslie David Baker, best known for his continuing role as Stanley Hudson in the TV comedy The Office (2005-13), who stops by her table to pay his respects. She confides to her lunch date, "I edited his reel for him as a favor. He is so talented; I hope he becomes a star." Apparently, she has set him on his way; when Baker heads for the door, he is stopped by two giggling girls who want to take a selfie with him. Few fans may ever request a photo with an editor — even if she is Lillian Benson — but the millions who see her work, and the many who cross her path, will know how significant she is to the field. In her they recognize, as Lillian puts it, "the value of seeing someone who looks like you." f Opposite, clockwise from top, left: Lillian Benson, left, with Congressman John Lewis (D- GA) and Get in the Way: The Journey of John Lewis writer/ director Kathleen Dowdey at the Holman Methodist Episco- pal Church in LA in 2016. Photo by Leroy Hamilton Lillian Benson, left, with Patricia Cunliffe, production manager for Bridging the Divide: Tom Bradley and the Politics of Race, in the editing room in 2014. Lillian Benson, left, with editor Jean Tsien at the 2013 ACE Eddie Awards. Lillian recognizes the power of moving images to explain and possibly change the world.