 Wise's first screen credit was a ten-minute short subject called "A Trip through Fijiland" (1935), which was made from RKO footage salvaged from an abandoned feature film.As Wise gained experience, he became more interested in editing film content, rather than sound, and went to work for RKO film editor William "Billy" Hamilton.Wise's first film as Hamilton's assistant was Alfred Santell's "Winterset" (1936).