Editor Graham Fortin is a ‘BOSS’ for acclaimed commercial

Graham Fortin remembers the first time he fell in love with film. At the time he was just a child in Chilliwack, British Columbia, and went to the theater for the first time to see Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. To this day, he vividly remembers being swept away by the experience, recreating

scenes from the movie on the playground to replicate the excitement he felt in the theater. He knew that he too wanted to create that feeling for others, and now, as an industry leading editor in Canada and abroad, he is living that childhood dream.

“I like to see the shape of a story progress over time. My least favorite part is putting the material together during production, but once that part is over, I love showing my first pass to a director and getting into things from there. Collaborating with a director and coming up with new ideas every day is a pleasure, but also intimidating if nothing sticks. When a breakthrough idea comes through, it’s a thrilling moment. It’s a domino effect of one thing leading to another,” said Fortin.

Fortin’s thoughtful and distinctive style of editing has been appreciated by fans all over the world. He has been pivotal to the success of many acclaimed productions, including the award-winning feature Pour Retourner, which premiered at the iconic Tribeca Film Festival, and the music film Free Spirit, created by six-time Grammy winner and icon Khalid and hit British Music Video Director Emil Nava, as well as popular television series such as The Wrestlers, Mister Tachyon, and more. His newest film, BÀBÀ, recently premiered at the Oscar qualifying Festival du Nouveau Cinema in Montreal, one of Canada’s oldest and most renowned film festivals.

“I feel extremely fortunate to be consistently working in the film and tv industry. It’s a dream come true, and I’ve been lucky to have learned something different from each director or collaborator on every single project. The lessons, tricks and experiences build on top of another. Over the years, it’s clear that this is a field where there are endless things to learn,” he said.

Outside of the entertainment industry, Fortin also lends his editing talents to the world of advertising, taking on commercials for internationally recognized brands such as Adidas, Amazon, WestJet, and BOSS, the iconic apparel line by Hugo Boss, a company valued at almost USD$5 billion as of April 2023. Working with renowned cinematographer Jeremy Cox, Fortin was excited for the challenge of turning around the project with a tight deadline, showing just how precise he works under stress and pressure. 

The campaign for BOSS was produced during the height of COVID-19 pandemic, meaning a lot of the work was conducted over Zoom sessions. There was a lot of back and forth between the director, client and Fortin. There was a lot going on with the project that needed a high level of communication and organization during editing. Fortin’s past work in narrative, documentary and animation all came into play for the spot, featuring the work of Artist/Illustrator Justin Theodoro. Adding the animation after the edit was locked was an intricate and challenging task for the editor, but one he far excelled with from his extensive experience.

The project was a major component of the Hugo Boss Holiday Global Campaign #BOSSxJustinTeodoro. It received stellar reviews in the media, mentioned in such publications as British GQ, Because Magazine, Flaunt Magazine, Elle Hong Kong and Neo2 Magazine. Fortin is proud to know he was such a major part of this success.

“It was cool knowing I was part of a campaign of such a well-known brand. It was a little surreal to be asked to work on a project like this. I’m always grateful to work with extremely talented collaborators and knowing that this would be seen by a worldwide audience was a cherry on top. It was fulfilling to use the skills acquired over the years for a project that drew from them all at once,” he concluded.