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David Brenner

David Brenner

Editor · Died February 17, 2022, aged 59 · Hollywood, California, USA

Oscar winner · 1 other major award body

David Brenner (November 3, 1962–February 17, 2022) was an American film editor known (along with fellow film editors Joe Hutshing, Pietro Scalia, and Julie Monroe) for being one of director Oliver Stone's "hot shot" group of up-and-coming film editors. He was elected as a member of the American Cinema Editors. He died at the age of 59. Description above from the Wikipedia article David Brenner, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
November 3, 1962
Died
February 17, 2022 (aged 59)
From
Hollywood, California, USA
Works as
Editor
Titles
30 on MovieCove · 31 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Up 6% in 30 days

What are David Brenner's films like?

Across their 26 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Survival.

Genres

Action11 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 74th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Action movies
Drama5 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 53rd percentile
: browse their Drama movies
Adventure2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 79th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Adventure movies
Biography2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 87th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Biography movies
Crime2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 46th percentile
: browse their Crime movies
Sci-Fi2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 45th percentile
: browse their Sci-Fi movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Bonds
27%
Survival
25%
Morality
17%
Self
16%
Ideas
6%
Power
6%
Society
4%
Family bonds11 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival10 titles, browse their movies with this themeAmbition4 titles, browse their movies with this themeLoyalty4 titles, browse their movies with this themeSacrifice4 titles, browse their movies with this themeSelf-worth3 titles, browse their movies with this themeBetrayal3 titles, browse their movies with this themeHope3 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 26 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 3 · Serious 4 · Dark 19

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

A split, not a type: Grounded 8 · Stylized 6 · Heightened 12

Intense: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their intense movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 0 · Charged 4 · Intense 22

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 3 · Shifting 18 · Whiplash 5

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 18 · Some laughs 7 · Funny 1

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 6 · Even-paced 13 · Relentless 7

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 3 · Engaged 19 · Full focus 4

Heavy: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their heavy movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

Easy watch 2 · Affecting 10 · Heavy 14

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 21 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 2

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
21
Melancholic
14
Thrilling
12
Dread
7
Hopeful
10
Other
13

How their films linger

Hopeful10 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet10 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 3 with a twist

  • Happy6
  • Bittersweet15
  • Tragic4
  • Ambiguous1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch David Brenner's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 24 of their 30 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (7).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for David Brenner's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

31 credits, 30 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.

Career shape

A full career of 30 titles from 1986 to 2022.

Biggest box office

Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)

$2.3B worldwide

Highest rated

Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)

Midcredits 96th

Most popular right now

Avatar: Fire and Ash (2025)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Editing29 of 30: 29 only editing, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score62ndOther crew1 of 30: 1 only other crew, 0 with another role

By decade

1980s3 · crew1990s8 · crew2000s9 · crew2010s8 · crew2020s2 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

Awards

an Oscar from 2 major nominations, 1990–2023.

WinNomination
  1. 2023
    • Critics Choice Award, nominated · Best Editing
  2. 1990
    • Oscar, won · Best Film Editing

Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.

How do David Brenner's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 66th percentile, the median of all 30; across their 26 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 66th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

66thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 26

Approval · how many liked their films

67thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 26

Reach · how many have seen their films

96thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 26

Midcredits score across 30 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up12
  • 50th to 74th10
  • 25th to 49th8

Shape of the crowd

19 of their 30 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved3
  • Crowd Pleaser19
  • Broadly Agreed3
  • Mixed5

Most divisive · editor

Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)

50th percentile spread · 24% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · editor

Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)

Midcredits 96th · 86% liked

Reviewers score the pacing 50/100 in their films, across 26 reviewed titles; fans 58, detractors 32. The element that speaks to their work as an editor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is David Brenner's work okay for kids?

Across up to 23 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, profanity and frightening / intense run heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore23 titles33–89 · median 64 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity23 titles12–74 · median 28 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity22 titles34–78 · median 52 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs22 titles18–57 · median 30 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense22 titles42–83 · median 62 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does David Brenner work with?

People who share at least 2 of David Brenner's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Oliver Stone shares the most, 6.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers