Speade have announced that Julia Knight, the London-based commercials and promos editor, has joined the Soho-based editing company on a full time basis, returning to the place where she began her career more than a decade ago. 

An editor who's work in commercials includes ads for BMW, Calvin Klein, Balmain and Guinness, Knight has had close ties to the world of music videos since the start of her career. Her craft in storytelling has been crucial to the success of videos for the likes of Fka Twigs, Mick Jagger, Alt-J, Arctic Monkeys and Beyoncé. She is a regular collaborator of top directors including WIZ, Jake Nava, Saam Farahmand and Nabil.

Mick Jagger, Get A Grip - edited by Julia Knight 

In recent years, Knight has worked at different editing houses across London. So her return to Speade, where she learned her craft as an assistant editor, is seen by the company as a homecoming.

"I'm thrilled to be welcoming Julia back to Speade," says Sam Sneade, MD and senior editor. "From her time as an assistant I knew she had that fundamental X factor that makes for a great editor. Now, after her voyages through the industry she returns with that talent impressively honed. She will be a brilliant addition to our growing roster of talent." 

Knight is from London, and studied Fine Art at Chelsea School of Art, where she began editing, and fell in love with the craft. An avid reader and listener of audiobooks from childhood gave her an instinctive understanding of how to craft a relatable narrative through editing, which has employed throughout her career in both commercials and promos. Now back where she began her career, she says she is delighted to be back at Speade.

"I’m very grateful that in my editing career I’ve worked in uniquely different and incredible companies; akin to having wonderful adventures in different countries and cultures," she says. "Now, I feel like I’ve touched down on home soil. It’s such a great feeling!"

She has added that the creative reward of working on music videos is still very important to her. "Cutting promos can be such a creative process. Pulling the artist's track together with a director's footage into a new art form is pure collaboration at its very best."

• Watch Julia Knight's music video reel here