Cutting to the chase
Cutting to the chase
News
News
Rams, directed by Gary Hustwit and edited by Kayla Sklar, is a New York Times Critic's Pick! The film is currently available on DVD, Blu-ray, and VOD formats.
”It’s unfussy, uncontrived functional filmmaking with everything in the service of the subject and the viewer, just like Rams would have wanted.“ – POV Magazine
“This film adheres to Rams’s aesthetics by being brisk, matter of fact, well lighted and composed of clean lines, metaphorically speaking.” - The New York Times
Additional press for Rams: Wired, The Boston Globe, Hollywood Reporter, and Architectural Digest.
REEL
REEL
Note: Some of the following scenes require a PASSWORD to view! If you haven't already received one, feel free to email hello@kaylasklar.com
Documentary Samples
For over fifty years, Dieter Rams has left an indelible mark on the field of product design and the world at large with his iconic work at Braun and Vitsoe. Rams is a design documentary, but also a rumination on consumerism, materialism, and sustainability.
Rams recalls his childhood fascination with the local funicular. (1:30)
Rams explains the mechanics and philosophy behind Braun’s portable radio/record player. (1:30)
A high school football coach attempts to balance his team's journey
to the State Championship with his teenage son's cancer diagnosis.
An important announcement is made about Austin's prognosis during halftime, and a Saturday afternoon practice reveals Coach Dale's concerns. (3:43)
In the film's closing moments, Coach Dale and his family enjoy a post-championship evening at home. (2:30)
Five voters across the country cast their ballots on November 6th, 2016.
Brenda visits a South Carolina detention center to collect ballots of pre-trial inmates. (3:16)
Brenda visits the home of two senior citizens who fought against South Carolina's voter ID laws. (3:58)
NARRATIVE SAMPLES
A young woman with a binge-eating disorder is sent to live with her estranged relatives.
After a fight with her best friend, a starving and drug-addled Sole seeks comfort. (6:00)
A troubled man returns home to rural Vermont and attempts to build a log cabin,
hoping to prove that he’s capable of leading a more virtuous life.
In the continuation of the opening sequence, a lonely and silent Dink revisits the home of his recently deceased father. (4:16)
Dink runs into his long-ago love interest at their old stomping ground. (2:34)
WEB SAMPLES
Artist Jack Whitten talks to Frieze about his life and work in his Queens studio. (3:25)
For the 2017 Future of StoryTelling Summit. By harnessing the powers of neurotechnology, Justin Sanchez and his team at DARPA have been able to help people overcome paralysis and gain independence. (4:17)
A moody bacchanal music video for singer-songwriter JD McPherson. (4:47)
Day One. A woman prepares for her day whilst on her period. (10:09) Premiered at Nitehawk Shorts Festival in 2019.
About
About
Kayla Sklar is the editor of the NYT Critic’s Pick documentary, Rams. A graduate of The Edit Center in New York, she studied with Oscar-nominated editor Geoffrey Richman (Murderball, Sicko, The Cove) and Betsy Kagen (From Nowhere, All This Panic). She also assisted Hannah Vanderlan (HBO's Going Clear, Emmy winner for Best Documentary) and Ron Dulin (Women Who Kill) in teaching the "The Art of Editing" course to the next generation of film editors. She served multiple years on the judging committee of the Peabody Awards and has worked at the Tribeca Film Festival.
She currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.
Email: Hello@KaylaSklar.com
Resume
Resume
Documentary
Rams - Editor
Feature-length. Director Gary Hustwit.
Synopsis: Rams is a documentary portrait of Dieter Rams, one of the most influential designers alive, and a rumination on consumerism, sustainability, and the future of design. New York Times Critic's Pick.
Power of the Dream - Associate Editor
Feature-length for Amazon Prime. Director Dawn Porter.
Synopsis: the empowering and unlikely true story of how a group of professional women's basketball players took on a WNBA team owner and rallied behind now-Senator Raphael Warnock, forever changing the landscape of their sport and the course of U.S. politics.
Cirque du Soleil: Without a Net - Associate Editor
Feature-length. Director Dawn Porter.
Synopsis: More than a year after an abrupt global shutdown, both performers and crew members face uncertainty as they work to return to their world-class standards in time for the (re)opening night of their flagship show in Las Vegas.
37 Words - Associate Editor
Four episode ESPN series. Directors Dawn Porter and Nicole Newnham.
Synopsis: In commemoration of the 50th anniversary, the inspiring story of Title IX and the hard-fought battle to push for equal rights in education and athletics.
Luther: Never Too Much - Online Assistant Editor
Feature Length for CNN Films. Director Dawn Porter.
Synopsis: Chronicling Luther Vandross' Grammy® award-winning musical career, Never Too Much explores his personal life, health struggles, and a lifelong battle to earn the respect his music deserved.
Rise Again: Tulsa and the Red Summer - Associate Editor
Feature-length for National Geographic. Director Dawn Porter
Synopsis: Washington Post reporter DeNeen Brown chronicles the discovery of a mass grave in Tulsa and investigates the reign of racial terror and legacy of violence in 20th century America.
The Vow - Visual Effects Supervisor (Season 1)
Nine episode HBO series. Produced by The Othrs.
Synopsis: A multi-year chronicle of the self-improvement organization NVIXM, whose leader was convicted in 2019 of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.
Sandra Day O'Connor: The First - Associate Editor
PBS "American Experience" episode. Director Michelle Ferrari
Synopsis: During her 25 years on the Supreme Court, O’Connor was the critical swing vote on cases involving some of the 20th century’s most controversial issues. 40 years after her confirmation, this biography recounts the life of a pioneer who both reflected and shaped an era.
Atlanta's Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children - Assistant Editor
Five episode HBO series. Produced by Show of Force Productions.
Synopsis: Forty years later, with the official re-opening of the case, the series tells the inside story of the shocking murders of at least 30 African-American children and young adults between 1979 and 1981.
Soundtracks: Songs That Defined History - Assistant Editor
Eight episode CNN series. Produced by Show of Force Productions and Seven Bucks Productions.
Synopsis: From the March on Washington to the riots at Stonewall – Soundtracks will illuminate how music has played an integral role in celebrating, criticizing, and amplifying these seismic events in our collective history.
One Vote - Additional Editor
Feature-length. Produced by Stick Figure Productions.
Synopsis: One Vote chronicles the journey that six men and women across the United States took to cast their ballots on November 8th, 2016.
Fathers of Football - Additional Editor
Feature-length. Director Bradley Beesley.
Synopsis: A small-town Oklahoman high school football team struggles to maintain their highly unanticipated winning streak, with the help of their coach and father-figure, Dale Condict.
NARRATIVE
Day One - Editor
Short Film. Director Arielle Goldman.
Synopsis: A humorous look at the psyching up, warming up, and sucking it up required on the first day before facing the world. Period.
Solace - Additional Editor
Feature-length. Director Tchaiko Omawale. Starring Lynn Whitfield, Glynn Turman, Hope Olaide Wilson.
Synopsis: Following the death of her father, a 17-year-old girl is sent to live with her estranged family. She finds comfort in a questionable friendship with a self-destructive neighbor, leading both on a startling path to self discovery.
Major Arcana - Additional Editor
Feature-length. Director Josh Melrod. Starring Tara Summers, Ujon Tokarski, Lane Bradbury.
Synopsis: Dink, a long-troubled itinerant carpenter, returns home to small town Vermont and attempts to build a log cabin by hand, hoping to prove to himself and those closest to him that he’s capable of leading a more virtuous life.
Good Hair - Assistant Editor
Short film. Editor Jonathon Pawlowski. Starring Catherine Dee Holly, Fray Forde, Dedrick Flynn.
Synopsis: A conditioner bottle spawns what appears to be the argument of the day for couple Frankie and Khi. Good Hair explores a millennial long-term relationship and the split ends along the way.
OTHER WORK EXPERIENCE
Edited branded content for companies like Instagram, Frieze, and Future of Storytelling.
The Edit Center - Teaching Assistant
Assisted Ron Dulin and Hannah Vanderlan in TEC's The Art of Editing course.
TECHNICAL
Avid Media Composer, Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro X
EDUCATION
University of Georgia - BAJ Mass Media Arts, BBA Digital Marketing, 2014
The Edit Center - The Art of Editing, 2016