Renowned amongst her peers, Kate Amend has thrived as a film editor in Los Angeles since 1982. Her first feature was “Metamorphosis: Man Into Woman,” during which she had the opportunity to work with the great Johanna Demetrakas, a filmmaker. The experience taught her a lot, and propelled her to projects like “Legends,” “Asylum,” “Skinheads, USA,” “Spread the Word,” and “Arrested Development: In The House.” Ms. Amend put her heart and soul into every film she worked on and, soon enough, word of her excellence began to spread. She became highly sought-after, and was called upon to participate in a wide variety of editing endeavors. Some of these include “Tobacco Blues,” “Some Nudity Required,” “Pandemic: Facing AIDS,” “Crazy Wisdom,” “Birth Story: Ina May Gaskin and The Farm Midwives,” and “Serena: The Other Side of Greatness.” Her two most recent films, “Feminists: What Were They Thinking?” and “Foster,” were released in 2018.
The highlight of Ms. Amend’s career was when a film she worked on, “The Long Way Home,” won an Academy Award in 1997. It was her first time at the Oscars, and she found it extremely exciting. Ms. Amend was also proud when “Into the Arms of Strangers” earned an Academy Award in 2001, “Beah: A Black Woman Speaks” earned a Peabody Award in 2004, and when “The Case Against 8” earned an Emmy nomination in 2014. In her eyes, “Beah” is one of the strongest films she worked on.
To prepare for her professional journey, Ms. Amend obtained a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1969 and a Master of Arts from California State University in 1973. She then joined prominent organizations like the International Documentary Association, American Cinema Editors, and the American Motion Picture Academy, which helped her keep in touch with her peers and community. In recognition of her efforts, Ms. Amend was honored with an honorary doctorate from the Academy of Art at the University of San Francisco, IDA’s Outstanding Achievement in Editing Award, and the ACE Eddie Award.
When Ms. Amend isn’t editing, she enjoys gardening, tennis, cooking, and jazz. She has also served as an adjunct professor in the School of Cinematic Arts at the University of Southern California since 1992.