International creative film editing company The Whitehouse Post Productions has been formed following a year of negotiations to merge London's The Whitehouse Post Productions with Santa Monica/Chicago's The Lookinglass Company.

"The fact that we've all joined together will help us adapt to whatever demands the industry throws at us," says David Brixton, co-founder of The Lookinglass Company. "It gives us all a lot more flexibility swapping projects between shops."

Equal partners in the new company are David Brixton, Charles Day, Christine Tardio (the three founding members of The Lookinglass Company), Rick Lawley, Andrea MacArthur and John Smith (the three founders of The Whitehouse). Alan Kubicka continues in his role as a silent investor in the new venture.

The decision to merge came naturally after both houses realized their reciprocal creative goals, yet a year in the making left the combined talents itching to perform creative editing together as a unit.

"Both companies had their own culture," explains Brixton. "Obviously it's a huge thing for The Lookinglass to change names, plus legally and financially it takes a lot of planning. Now we're really looking forward to getting back on the creative editing track."

Rick Lawley agrees with Brixton. "We're ready to get back to cutting film because that's what we're all about. It's going to be good to put the financial and business aspects behind us and get back to what we do best."

The merger of British and American companies joins together an elite group of editors in the commercial production world. Between them, the two companies have won more than 20 Cannes Lions, 15 BTAA Gold Arrows and numerous D&AD Pencils and Clios. They are also credited with two of the last five Cannes Grand Prix Winners, namely Budweiser's "Whassup" and Levi's "Drugstore."

Editors ready for the cut are Mike Coletta who recently shaped Richard D'Alessio's "Date" for Bud Light, ranking number one in the 2001 Super Bowl by USA Today; Marcelle Feldt who once owned Cutaways, her own editorial company before joining the Lookinglass Company in 1996; Jinx Godfrey who has worked with Alex Winter, Carlton Chase and Rocky Morton; Lisa Gunning who worked on the trailer for The Talented Mr. Ripley; Russell Icke who works closely with Michel Gondry and recently linked with Wieden + Kennedy, Amsterdam on several Nike campaigns; Staci LeVan who has collaborated on projects with Tony Kaye; Cara Meiselman who has worked with Marcus Nispel; Erik Powell who has cut national spots for McDonald's; Livio Sanchez who has worked with Tony Kaye and the boys of Traktor for clients Nike, Miller Lite and Toyota as well as Stone III on the "Whassup" campaign of 2000; Greg Snider who is currently working with Academy Award nominee Daniel Alpert on a documentary for A&E Jim Weedon who worked on sequences in the brawny Scott feature Gladiator and the main title sequences of Hannibal; Matthew Wood who stepped away from The Whitehouse in 1992 to The Mill to set up its Avid department, returning again in 2000; and, Nikki Vapensky who just completed two H&R spots as well as a Bud Light campaign.