Film editor Marco Rosas has been selected as the 2026 recipient of the Sally Menke Memorial Editing Fellowship, according to the Sundance Institute. The fellowship honors the late Oscar-nominated editor Sally Menke, known for her frequent collaborations with director Quentin Tarantino, and provides emerging talent with a yearlong mentorship and a placement at the Sundance Institute Directors Lab.
The Sally Menke Memorial Editing Fellowship and Marco Rosas
Established 16 years ago by the Sundance Institute, the Sally Menke Memorial Editing Fellowship supports developing film editors through a yearlong mentorship structure. The program pairs selected fellows with two filmmakers during the summer Directors Lab to workshop, shoot, and edit scenes. According to the Sundance Institute, past recipients of the fellowship include Daysha Broadway for Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody, Troy Lewis for Daughters, and Debbie Berman for Black Panther.
Marco Rosas, a Los Angeles-based editor whose credits include Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty on HBO, the 2025 Sundance Film Festival selection An Almost Successful Dating App Love Story, and the 2026 SXSW entry Sender starring Britt Lower and Jamie Lee Curtis, learned of his selection in a notification email. “My wife had to finally say to me, ‘I think you’re the one,'” Rosas said of realizing he had earned the 2026 position. “That’s who I really enjoy working with — new directors.”
Collaborative Process at the Sundance Directors Lab
During this year’s Directors Lab, held from June 9 to June 24 in Estes Park, Colorado, Rosas was paired with directors Roberto Fatal and George Watsky. According to Rosas, the program arranged one-on-one meetings between editors and directors prior to rehearsals and shooting to review scenes and align on emotional beats. Unlike standard post-production workflows where editors join after filming concludes, Rosas participated in pre-production rehearsals and observed blocking on set.
“I kept reminding them to trust their instincts and to not worry about the edit while they were shooting,” Rosas stated regarding his on-set support role. Creative advisor Gyula Gazdag also led a six-hour workshop during the lab that included editors in discussions on how directors approach scenes, emotional beats, and cinematic tools, which Rosas noted helped him articulate his instincts around pacing and emotional rhythm.
Next Steps in Feature Film Editing
Following his time at the Directors Lab, Rosas is collaborating with the Sally Menke fellows network to choose a formal mentor for the remainder of his yearlong fellowship. Professionally, he recently finished editing his second feature film, the comedy-drama Strange But Perfect, and is reviewing additional scripts for upcoming feature developments.
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