Conrad Buff IV (born July 8, 1948) is an American

film editor Film editing is both a creative and a technical part of the post-production process of filmmaking. The term is derived from the traditional process of working with film stock, film which increasingly involves the use Digital cinema, of digital ...

with more than 25 film credits since 1985. Buff is known for winning an

Academy Award for Best Film Editing The Academy Award for Best Film Editing is one of the annual awards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). Nominations for this award are closely correlated with the Academy Award for Best Picture. For 33 consecutive year ...

and an ACE Eddie Award for Best Edited Feature Film for ''

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British ocean liner that sank in the early hours of 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers a ...

'' (1997); the awards were shared with his co-editors

James Cameron James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker, who resides in New Zealand. He is a major figure in the post-New Hollywood era and often uses novel technologies with a Classical Hollywood cinema, classical filmmaking styl ...

and Richard A. Harris. He also won the Satellite Award for Best Editing for '' Thirteen Days'' (2000).

Life and career

Buff was born in Los Angeles, the son of architect Conrad Buff III, and the grandson of children's book creators Mary and Conrad Buff (painter Conrad Buff II). He attended Eagle Rock High School in Los Angeles and

Pasadena City College Pasadena City College (PCC) is a Public college, public community college in Pasadena, California. It was founded in 1924 as Pasadena Junior College. History Pasadena City College was founded in 1924 as Pasadena Junior College. It originally o ...

for two years before joining the U. S. Navy. Buff learned film editing while working for the Navy's Motion Picture Office in Hollywood. In the first phase of his civilian career Buff was the "visual effects editor" on several successful films, ranging from ''

The Empire Strikes Back ''The Empire Strikes Back'' (also known as ''Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back'') is a 1980 American epic film, epic space opera film directed by Irvin Kershner from a screenplay by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan, based o ...

'' (1980) through ''

Ghostbusters ''Ghostbusters'' is a 1984 American supernatural comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. It stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis as Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Egon Spengler, three eccentric ...

'' (1984). Buff was an assistant editor on ''

Return of the Jedi ''Return of the Jedi'' (also known as ''Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi'' is a 1983 American epic space opera film directed by Richard Marquand from a screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and George Lucas. The sequel to '' The Empire ...

'' (1983); he worked with editor Sean Barton and director

Richard Marquand Richard Alfred Marquand (22 September 1937 – 4 September 1987) was a Welsh film and television director active in both US and UK film productions, best known for directing the 1983 space opera '' Return of the Jedi'', the final film in the or ...

. His first editing credit was as the co-editor with Barton for '' Jagged Edge'' (1985), which was also directed by Marquand. Buff is noted particularly for his editing of four films directed by

, including ''Titanic''. Buff edited ''

The Abyss ''The Abyss'' is a 1989 American science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron and starring Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Michael Biehn. When an American submarine sinks in the Caribbean, a US search and recovery tea ...

'' (1989) with Joel Goodman. Buff was nominated for an Oscar and an Eddie for the editing of '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'' (1991 - with

Mark Goldblatt Mark Goldblatt is an American film editor and director. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Film Editing for his work on '' Terminator 2: Judgement Day'' (1991). He is a former President of the American Cinema Editors. Life and ca ...

and Richard A. Harris). He was again nominated for an Eddie for ''

True Lies ''True Lies'' is a 1994 American action comedy film written and directed by James Cameron. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as Harry Tasker, a U.S. government agent, who struggles to balance his double life as a spy with his familial duties, ...

'' (1994) (also with Goldblatt and Harris). In addition to its actual awards, ''Titanic'' was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Editing. Buff has edited four films with director

Roger Donaldson Roger Lindsey Donaldson (born 15 November 1945) is an Australian and New Zealand film director, screenwriter, and producer. His 1977 debut film, ''Sleeping Dogs (1977 film), Sleeping Dogs'', is considered landmark work of Cinema of New Zealand ...

: '' The Getaway'' (1994), ''

Species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

'' (1995), ''

Dante's Peak ''Dante's Peak'' is a 1997 American disaster film directed by Roger Donaldson, written by Leslie Bohem, and starring Pierce Brosnan, Linda Hamilton, and Charles Hallahan. The film is set in the fictional town of Dante's Peak where the inhabitant ...

'' (1997; co-edited with Tina Hirsch and Howard Smith), and '' Thirteen Days'' (2000), which won the Satellite Award for Best Editing. Since ''Thirteen Days'', Buff has edited eight films directed by

Antoine Fuqua Antoine Fuqua (; born May 30, 1965) is an American film director known for his work in the action and thriller genres. He was originally known as a director of music videos, and made his film debut in 1998 with '' The Replacement Killers''. His ...

: ''

Training Day ''Training Day'' is a 2001 American crime thriller film directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by David Ayer. It stars Denzel Washington as Alonzo Harris and Ethan Hawke as Jake Hoyt, two LAPD narcotics officers followed over a 24-hour period ...

'' (2001), ''

Tears of the Sun ''Tears of the Sun'' is a 2003 American action thriller film directed by Antoine Fuqua. It depicts a fictitious U.S. Navy SEAL team rescue mission amidst the 21st-century version of the civil war in Nigeria. Lieutenant A.K. Waters (Bruce Will ...

'' (2003), ''

King Arthur According to legends, King Arthur (; ; ; ) was a king of Great Britain, Britain. He is a folk hero and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In Wales, Welsh sources, Arthur is portrayed as a le ...

'' (2004; with Jamie Pearson), '' Shooter'' (2007; with Eric Sears), '' The Equalizer 2'' (2018), '' Infinite'' (2021), ''

Emancipation Emancipation generally means to free a person from a previous restraint or legal disability. More broadly, it is also used for efforts to procure Economic, social and cultural rights, economic and social rights, civil and political rights, po ...

'' (2022), and '' The Equalizer 3'' (2023). Buff has been elected to membership in the

American Cinema Editors Founded in 1950, American Cinema Editors (ACE) is an honorary society of film editing, film editors who are voted in based on the qualities of professional achievements, their education of others, and their dedication to editing. Members use the ...

Filmography

Filmography based on the Internet Movie Database.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Buff, Conrad 4 1948 births American Cinema Editors American film editors Best Film Editing Academy Award winners Living people Film people from Los Angeles

Life and career

Filmography

References

Further reading

External links