The Fantastic Four - First Steps

Aug 4, 2025

Tim Roche, an Emmy-nominated editor known for comedy and Marvel work, and Nona Khodai, a USC-trained editor with Emmy nods from WandaVision and The Boys, discuss cutting the 1960s-set Fantastic Four reboot. They talk about reuniting with director Matt Shakman, balancing feature versus series workflows, Saul Bass–inspired montages, IMAX scale editing for Galactus, mocap challenges, and shaping cuts through test screenings.

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INSIGHT

Feature Vs. Episodic Workflows

Feature and episodic workflows overlap in process but differ in structure and collaboration. Editors on features often share and swap reels constantly, unlike episodic work divided by episodes.

ADVICE

Alternate Days To Manage Dailies

Pace dailies to avoid overload: alternate cutting days between editors to keep progress steady. Divide sequences so one editor owns a sequence for the week to maintain continuity and avoid backlog.

ANECDOTE

Hero Baby Delivered One‑Take Magic

The baby actor delivered standout, nearly one‑take performances that reduced reliance on CG or composites. Editors praised the hero baby's presence and used real baby plates extensively.

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Editors - Nona Khodai ACE and Tim Roche

The Fantastic Four: First Steps sees editors Nona Khodai and Tim Roche reunite for the 37th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and the second reboot of the Fantastic Four film series. The film also marks the first time the two have worked together since Marvel's live action series debut, WandaVision. Although each had worked with him separately before, WandaVision was the first time both Nona and Tim worked with director Matt Shakman on a Marvel project. The Fantastic Four: First Steps takes place in 1964, as the world celebrates the fourth anniversary of astronauts Reed Richards, Sue Storm, Johnny Storm, and Ben Grimm becoming the superhero team known as the Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch and the Thing). But the celebration doesn't last for long as the four face their most daunting challenge yet as they defend Earth from Galactus and Silver Surfer.

NONA KHODAI ACE

A Southern California native and graduate of USC's Cinematic Arts school, Nona started her career as an assistant on such films as the Bad Robot production, Super 8. Her first foray as an editor on a "superhero" project came courtesy of showrunner Eric Kripke who brought her aboard the The Boys, where she would work with director Matt Shakman for the first time. Nona was twice nominted for an Emmy award for her work on Marvel's WandaVision, and nominated for another Emmy for Marvel's Ms. Marvel.

TIM ROCHE

Known for his work on comedy series like Silicon Valley and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, as well as for his contributions to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, including WandaVision, Thor: Love and Thunder and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, Tim has received five Emmy nominations for his work, including one this year for Welcom To Wrexham, a show that has already brought him an ACE Eddie Award.

The Credits

Visit ExtremeMusic for all your production audio needs Streamline your postproduction pipeline with Shade Listen to Nona and Tim talk about cutting WandaVision Hear Nona share her experiences editing The Boys Check out Tim's podcast about the post workflow for Hawkeye Check out what's new with Avid Media Composer Subscribe to The Rough Cut podcast and never miss an episode Visit The Rough Cut on YouTube