Behind the Scenes of Clean Hands: Editor Owen Jackson Builds a Realistic Narrative with Adobe Premiere

When Owen Jackson first read the script for Clean Hands, he was struck by its raw honesty and the real‑world impact of Kevin Simmers’ advocacy. "When I first read the script, I was blown away; it was an immediate, easy sell," Jackson told the production team.

A long‑time collaborator of director Jake Allyn, Jackson had cut Allyn’s debut feature Ride and shared a friendship that made the partnership feel inevitable. Their shared history gave the editor a deep understanding of Allyn’s visual language and a trust that would prove essential.

Jackson’s day began with a meticulous inventory of the raw footage. Working with assistant editor Robby Sykes, he built initial timelines that synced all cameras and audio by timecode. Each scene was carved into its own timeline, and takes were nested to keep the audio track count manageable. Color‑coding and markers marked actor reactions, key moments, and specific details. After a daily cleanup, the first assembly swelled from a three‑hour rough cut to a 108‑minute feature.

The film’s power lies in its unscripted moments. Drawing on a documentary background, Jackson wove real testimony from women in treatment and a counselor from Brooke’s House into a two‑minute montage. The montage culminated in a wordless scene of Kevin and Brooke howling at the top of a dam, a visual that crystallizes the story’s central theme of unconditional love.

Collaboration with Allyn ran from pre‑production through post‑production. Before shooting, Jackson watched a selection of films that inspired the tone of Clean Hands to frame creative discussions. During the shoot, he edited off‑site, dropping by the set briefly to keep the director informed. After wrap, Jackson presented a working assembly, and Allyn was invited to review it in the edit bay. The director’s mantra—"we can do anything in the edit"—became a recurring refrain.

The entire edit was performed in Adobe Premiere Pro, a tool Jackson has used for over a decade. He praised the Dynamic Link feature, which allowed seamless integration with Adobe After Effects for temporary visual effects and graphics. Text‑Based Editing and Speech‑to‑Text tools helped him navigate the large volume of unscripted footage quickly. The biggest creative challenge, he said, was shaping the pacing and trimming the film to its final length.

Jackson described the post‑production process as smooth, with the primary hurdle being the decision to cut beautifully acted material. He emphasized the importance of stepping away from the screen—"I like to go for a run or walk in the morning before work"—to gain a fresh perspective.

For editors and filmmakers, Jackson advises mastering the language of the cut. "Learn how to edit. I firmly believe that the best directors and cinematographers deeply understand the editing process," he said. He also highlighted the value of documentary experience in building narrative structure.

Clean Hands will reach North American audiences through Vertical’s distribution network. With its focus on the drug crisis, authentic storytelling, and meticulous editing, the film stands as a significant addition to the 2026 cinematic landscape.