MercorWriting & content
Colorist & Finishing Editor
up to $110/hr
About this role, in Mercor's words
Join a leading AI lab's cutting-edge GenAI team to be at the core of the AI revolution, where your expertise fuels the development of the most advanced AI models.
Candidate background
What this role asks for
- 7+ yrs experience
Read from the posting's own words: show the exact sentences
- 7+ yrs experience: “…keep evaluations consistent and accurate. 3. Core Qualifications • 7+ years of professional experience in post-production, color grading and editorial finishing. • Credits on 2+ professional…”
A closer look
More context, when you need it.
Full job descriptionThe original posting, in Mercor's words
Posted by Mercor, reproduced here so you can judge the role before clicking. Original posting ↗
Join a leading AI lab's cutting-edge GenAI team to be at the core of the AI revolution, where your expertise fuels the development of the most advanced AI models.
1. Overview
A leading AI lab is building generative video models that aim for theatrical-grade finishing: consistent color across shots, accurate skin tones, multi-shot pacing, clean scene cuts and HDR-ready deliverables. We're looking for experienced colorists, finishing and online editors, narrative editors and post-production specialists to help define what excellent finishing looks like, and to judge where the models get it right or wrong. This is a full-time role of approximately 40 hours per week.
This is a W-2 employment position with Cincinnatus LLC, with the opportunity to be placed at a leading AI Lab as part of their extended workforce.
2. Key Responsibilities
• Set the quality bar: Define clear standards for color consistency, skin tones, multi-shot pacing, scene cuts and HDR preparation, critique current evaluations, and help build a taxonomy of the ways generated footage fails.
• Curate benchmarks: Identify, grade, edit and curate strong examples of excellent and genuinely hard color grades and multi-shot edits, and test early model capabilities against them.
• Critique model outputs: Review generated sequences and write precise, actionable notes on color shifts, contrast, banding and compression, and editorial rhythm.
• Shape the reviewer pool and captions: Help define how human reviewers are vetted and calibrated, and review captioning guidelines so color and editorial detail is described accurately.
• Collaborate with other experts to keep evaluations consistent and accurate.
3. Core Qualifications
• 7+ years of professional experience in post-production, color grading and editorial finishing.
• Credits on 2+ professional films.
• A background in at least one of: Senior Digital Intermediate (DI) or Finishing Colorist (Resolve or Baselight, shot matching, HDR and Dolby Vision); Finishing or Online Editor (conform, color pipelines, mastering deliverables); Lead Narrative Film or Television Editor; or Post-Production Supervisor or Color Science and Pipeline Specialist (ACES, Rec.709, Rec.2020, P3).
• A meticulous eye for color shifts, skin tones, contrast, banding and compression, and editorial rhythm.
• Hands-on use of generative tools to create and finish test visual samples.
• Nice to have: reliable access to a color-accurate 4K/HDR display for pixel-level review.
• Ability to engage reliably for approximately 40 hours/week during weekdays.
• Strong written communication and the ability to turn color and editorial detail into precise language for captions and evaluation templates.
About Cincinnatus LLC: Cincinnatus LLC is an enterprise staffing company that partners with leading technology companies to source and employ highly skilled professionals for contingent and contract-based opportunities. Cincinnatus serves as the employer of record for these engagements, providing W-2 employment, payroll, benefits, and compliance, while placing employees directly within client teams to work on high-impact initiatives.
Equal Employment Opportunity: Cincinnatus is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, reproductive health decisions, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, genetic information, political views or activity, or any other legally protected characteristic.
Working with MercorPay, getting started and work, from Mercor's own pages
What the platform publishes in general. These are not extra terms confirmed for this particular role.
- Getting paid
- Hourly work is paid every Wednesday for the previous week, through Stripe Connect or Wise, whichever Mercor assigns to your region. Stripe holds the first payout for 7 days. talent.docs.mercor.com/how-to/payments, talent.docs.mercor.com/policies/contracts
- Before your first paid task
- An AI interview of about 20 minutes, reused for other roles that need it, then any assessments the role asks for. Before logging hours: ID verification through Persona, a tax form, the contract documents, the Insightful time tracker, and a background check the onboarding guide says usually takes one to two weeks. talent.docs.mercor.com/support/ai-interview, talent.docs.mercor.com/how-to/apply, talent.docs.mercor.com/policies/contracts, talent.docs.mercor.com/how-to/id-verification, talent.docs.mercor.com/working/project-onboarding
- How much work
- The current interview FAQ gives no reply-time estimate. Mercor says it notifies you when your application moves to the next stage and that you can keep applying. When a project ends you are not moved to a new one automatically. talent.docs.mercor.com/support/ai-interview, talent.docs.mercor.com/support/project
- Contract
- Independent contractor with Mercor.io Corporation of San Francisco, which deducts no taxes. talent.docs.mercor.com/policies/taxes-work-authorization, talent.docs.mercor.com/support/legal
Read on the pages linked above on 23 Sep 2026. Platforms change these terms, so check the linked page before you rely on one.
Alex's experience on MercorA personal account, not a promise about your project
Alexruns this site and has worked on Mercor himself. Written 31 Aug 2026.
- Every interview I took used an AI interviewer. They always checked my microphone and camera and asked me to share my screen, and some included a timed exercise of around 25 minutes.
- Many later applications needed no new interview from me. With the required assessments complete and no other outstanding steps, applying could be close to one click.
- The application I checked did not ask for a rate. My offer matched my minimum in Work Preferences. That does not establish that Mercor always caps higher offers at your preference.
- Onboarding and setup came to about 4 hours, with more security and tool setup. Of the three platforms I worked on, it was the most complicated for me. That is an estimate from my projects, not a platform average.
- Mercor required the Insightful tracker on my project. I observed app and website usage monitoring, and I am unsure which screenshot settings applied, so check the configuration.
- I was paid for hours logged, once every 14 days, and I have not experienced late or incorrect payments. That was my arrangement. Mercor's current documentation describes weekly payout cycles, so check your own offer.
One person's applications, not a promise about yours.
What happens after you apply, first-handHow does the pay compare?Across Writing & content roles, not this role alone
From our own daily reads of every open listing on the platforms we follow, not from Mercor's posting. How we count.
Pay across the field: Writing & content
Across 37 roles in this field with a stated hourly rate in US dollars, on 10 platforms, the middle half pays $40 to $80 an hour at the top of the range, and the median is $55. This role's top rate, $110, is in the top quarter. Of the 24 distinct rates we count, 20 are lower and 3 are higher.
| Platform | Roles | Top of range, per hour |
|---|---|---|
| Alignerr | 12 | $40 to $120 |
| micro1 | 9 | $50 to $140 · median $80 |
| AfterQuery | 4 | $15 to $70 |
| SME Careers | 4 | $25 to $50 |
| Mercor (this platform) | 2 | $55 to $110 |
Sources and listing historyWhere this information comes from
This listing's history
- First seen here on 22 Oct 2026, and still on Mercor's list when we last read it on 25 Oct 2026.
- The listed pay has not changed since then.
- Posted by Mercor
- First seen by AIPayList
- Last seen live
- Listing ID
- list_AAABoWTgVrfzF78gL6BI_brn
Pay as the source states it: “70–110 USD HOUR”.
Platforms sometimes change a rate after posting. Every listing here is re-read at least once a day and corrected when its source moves, so a difference you see on the platform is usually a change made since the last read. How freshness works.
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