The Day Of The Jackal is the latest version of the classic novel and film that has captivated audiences since the series debuted last fall. It is the story of a ruthless assassin and his nemesis, an intelligence officer hot on his trail. It was a massive international production with the best cast (Eddie Redmayne, Lashana Lynch) and crew – all at the top of their game. Episodes 1-3 were directed by Brian Kirk and shot by Christopher Ross. To make the suspense, tension needed the production brought on editor Luke Dunkley (Slow Horses, Patrick Melrose). They collectively created an excellent setup for this iconic series. Dunkley recently spoke to Immersive via Zoom.
[This conversation has been edited for clarity and length.]
When did you get started on this, and what was your approach? Also, talk about your workflow.
It’s a long series. I was brought on five days before filming in Budapest started so we could set up the cutting room and have the assistants all working when the footage came in. We were based in London and had to ensure the workflow was good. As soon as they started filming, I was cutting.
You did two episodes. Did you work on them simultaneously?
I was initially brought on to do three episodes. Brian Kirk directed the first three, but then he had a film coming up, so we had to shorten the post on his episodes. We had to bring on a second editor, Sam Hodge, for episode two. They shot the first three across 90 days. The schedule was pretty tied down pretty early on. If they were shooting on a bridge in one and three, they’d shoot them on the same day.
These episodes have not only great sound design but a great score. Talk about working with those elements.
I like to put in as much sound as possible during the first edit so that Brian and the execs know what it will feel like in the mix. It’s never gonna be as good as the mix because the sound guys when they come on board, and do a much better job than me. I like to give the feeling of how much sound we need, whether we need a lot of crowds, or whether we’re muting the crowd or the heightened effects of the bullet going through a glass table.
Volker Bertelmann delivered a great score, and there were some great songs…
It’s an excellent score for building tension. The songs are interesting because Brian told me early on, “I’d like to use needle drops. I dunno if they’re gonna work, but if they are gonna work, we need to get them in early on.” He left me to my own devices to choose the songs. All but one I sourced myself.
I had placed Radiohead’s “Everything In Its Right Place” early on—it’s at the beginning of episode one. The producers weren’t sure about it because it’s slightly unusual, and they thought it might alienate the audience. They said, “Try and find something else.” We went through a ton of tracks. We had a music supervisor on by then. They would feed me many tracks until it returned to the original cue.
The Jackal’s first sniper scene is a powerful, important scene that shows how good he is at his job. Talk about constructing it in the editing room.
It was very cool. I worked backward. I built it starting with the sound of Eddie breathing at the end. Eddie had talked about it at Sniper School with the SAS (Special Air Service) in Harford. That’s where we finish. We end very calmly. Then, I put the pieces in before it.
The assembly of the gun is unique…
Eddie had learned to assemble and disassemble it like a piece of classical music. He found it easier; it almost looked like he was orchestrating when he was doing it. It took him nine minutes to assemble and disassemble it.
We can’t have nine minutes to do that. I will build the sequence of him actually doing it, and then I will find the active shots. Walter Murch famously spoke of the importance of finding active shots, so I made sure that I could tell this story of him building the gun as efficiently as possible.
It’s been said, “Don’t confuse the audience, and don’t bore them.” Seeing Eddie in person was revelatory. He seemed very in tune with the material on and off-screen.
He was also an executive producer, so he was always looking at the big picture. He would want to see assemblies before scenes so he could methodically match his performance.
This series is a protagonist/antagonist piece. Discuss the dynamic of the world of the Jackal and his nemesis.
It’s a cat and mouse for our episodes, and they never meet. We tried to make sure that whenever we were cross-cutting, we would increase the feeling of cross-cutting between them, so one was coming outta one room, and the other was coming into a room. Quite often, one would go that way, and then the other would begin the other way, which must be cut between them.
Any favorite moments of the episodes that you worked on?
I love the end of episode three. It feels like we’re really enjoying it. The music’s great. The shots are amazing. I really love the back of Eddie’s head coming down those escalators, the way Chris shot it, and Brian directed it as a sequence. I love the first assassination because of the way we completely removed all the sound and waited for the shot.
When did you know that this was something special…
Early on, I felt that it was going to be pretty well received. To start with, I was cutting it at home, and I’d show bits to my family, and they absolutely loved it. I thought, okay, they don’t work in the industry. If they like it, it’s gonna be good. I’m really pleased with the project, and everybody who worked on it has been super pleased. I’m pleased and can’t wait until they start shooting the second one.
The Day Of The Jackal season one is streaming on Peacock.
