Fcp_workflow

[pmatian]

i need some info / advice regarding a 2K DPX finish. here are the specs:

we shot @ 4k 16:9
exported 720p proxies w/ apple prores 422 HQ codec

i'm currently cutting the offline and my question is what are the next steps once i have a picture lock / final cut? what's the best way to wrangle this beast in the online stages? any suggestions?

thx!

[Scott Simmons]

I can say that from my week + of testing that this isn't easy and the workflow from offline to online is the big pink elephant in the room as there is no elegant workflow yet. IF you search around the forums there's a number of ideas ....

the most promising being RedTrip but i've only had mixed success. It takes a FCP XML and makes it RedCine compatible but I get a lot of loading errors when I try to load them. Can't figure out why.

Our current choice is to output shots one at a time to DPX files to our Quantel eQ and then and .aaf from FCP. But this is massively laborious as you have to output each clip by hand through RedAlert.

Basically I think most people are conforming by hand, shot by shot. There's a lot of talk on projects being done but I haven't found specifics on a real working workflow without a lot of shot by shot conforming. Not a fun way to do it.

I hope someone posts something more elegant and proves me wrong!

[Lucas Wilson]

It takes a FCP XML and makes it RedCine compatible but I get a lot of loading errors when I try to load them. Can't figure out why.

Our current choice is to output shots one at a time to DPX files to our Quantel eQ and then and .aaf from FCP. But this is massively laborious as you have to output each clip by hand through RedAlert.

I hope someone posts something more elegant and proves me wrong!

Hi,

The missing link in your FCP -> eQ workflow is the XML load-in REDCINE. I just want to make sure that is being done properly. The right way to do this is:

1) Load all of your media into REDCINE. If you have an XML that will conform clips from Reels 1 and 2, then load ALL the R3D files from reels 1 and 2 into REDCINE.

2) Load the XML file into REDCINE. At this point, REDCINE will create a timeline on layer 1 of the Library that represents an A-mode sort of all the necessary clips with appropriate in/out.

3) Convert to DPX - making sure to use the "separate folders" check box so that each clip will be output to its individual folders.

4) Import to eQ.

What part of this is not working right now?

Lucas
------
ASSIMILATE, Inc.
LA, CA, USA

[Gunleik Groven]

In other words:

We need a fluent FCP --> RedCine --> (DPX/QT/file format of your choice) --> Color/whatever
Red Cine also needs to feed an external monitor through HD-SDI if available and it needs to controll RedLine on a cluster, so that one can choose where to render the dpx files.

I know that Luki states that we don't need it, but as Assimilate takes credit for building RC in cooperation with Red (in the PrePost brochure), Luki is probably still the rightest address for these issues, if one are to state that there is a full FCP workflow present.

Cheers
Gunleik

[Scott Simmons]

Hi,

The missing link in your FCP -> eQ workflow is the XML load-in REDCINE. I just want to make sure that is being done properly. The right way to do this is:

1) Load all of your media into REDCINE. If you have an XML that will conform clips from Reels 1 and 2, then load ALL the R3D files from reels 1 and 2 into REDCINE.

2) Load the XML file into REDCINE. At this point, REDCINE will create a timeline on layer 1 of the Library that represents an A-mode sort of all the necessary clips with appropriate in/out.

3) Convert to DPX - making sure to use the "separate folders" check box so that each clip will be output to its individual folders.

4) Import to eQ.

What part of this is not working right now?

Lucas
------
ASSIMILATE, Inc.
LA, CA, USA

I agree this is the missing link as that would allow us only to export what we need and not entire clips as DPX! I want this badly!!

I can do an edit in FCP, use RedTrip to convert that XML, load all my shots in RedCine then when I import the RedTrip"ed" XML RedCine says "failed to load consruct." I was able to do this successfully with clip from RedRelay that did not have user changed file names. But now that I have footage actually shot with a client's RED camera I get that error every time. The RedTrip XMLs that work look very similar to those that don't work but still they don't work.

It's that bulletproof method of edit list from offline to some type of conform/pull list into RedCine or Redalert that seems to be non-existent.

[Scott Simmons]

In other words:

We need a fluent FCP --> RedCine --> (DPX/QT/file format of your choice) --> Color/whatever
Red Cine also needs to feed an external monitor through HD-SDI if available and it needs to controll RedLine on a cluster, so that one can choose where to render the dpx files.

I know that Luki states that we don't need it, but as Assimilate takes credit for building RC in cooperation with Red (in the PrePost brochure), Luki is probably still the rightest address for these issues, if one are to state that there is a full FCP workflow present.

Cheers
Gunleik

Amen. I know this is all brand new stuff but without that working/proven/fluent workflow, how can I recommend this cam to clients? I'm happy to work-on and trouble-shoot that workflow (as I've tried to do with RedTrip) but right now it's just not there IMHO.

How can Luki (or anyone) say we don't need that workflow? A camera is only as good as its post-production.

[Gunleik Groven]

RC - @ the monent - serves 2 functions.

1. Development/ One Light
2. "tape deck"

As to 1, it does it rather well, 'cept for 2 issues:
Monitoring (and for one-light this doesn't NEED to be realtime. better to have an image to look at, than not.)
Ability to tweak single channels

As to 2
It basically does not work

But if the Apple/Assimilate deal goes only untill NAB, we may see good workflows in May.

Just to be clear:
I know there are alternatives (Scratch or simultanious export of online @ 16 bits without gain/bad exposure/ASA settings, and offline material at the same time) but this is not the workflow the instant proxies imply... :)

It's just plain ... not god ... if there is no way to reconnect the cuts in RC after editig in FCP (and it should be as easy as a "send to" command), and one should have similar "send to" commands from RC to Color - if one chooses to finish @ 10bit DPX - whih is the standard around here...


Gunleik

[Scott Simmons]

RC - @ the monent - serves 2 functions.

1. Development/ One Light
2. "tape deck"

Yes but we see that it CAN do more ... with Ian's RedTrip it can import an XML and do a pull of used sections of a shot. I've made this work on maybe 1 or 2 out of 25 or so shots that I have.

Then luki mention the same in his post above .. about loading an XML in RedCine. I hope he posts back with more detail.