In the transition from linear editing to non-linear editing, what process replaced printing reels of shot film?

The transition from linear editing to non-linear editing fundamentally revolutionized the way filmmakers handled footage. In this context, the correct answer is digitize. This process involves converting analog film footage into a digital format, allowing editors to work with clips on a computer without the need for physical reels.

Digitization makes it possible to access, manipulate, and rearrange scenes more efficiently than the previous method of linear editing, where physical film reels had to be spooled, cut, and spliced together in a sequential manner. With non-linear editing systems, editors can easily select, preview, and edit different portions of footage in any order, thus facilitating a more flexible and creative editing process.

The other options do not accurately capture the primary step involved in transitioning to non-linear editing. For example, while compiling refers to bringing different clips together into a sequence, it does not encompass the crucial step of converting physical film into a digital format. Similarly, storing relates to saving digital files but does not imply the transformation from analog to digital, and edit refers broadly to the editing process itself without specifying the initiation of that process through digitization.