This is trick is from a recent Key Code Media event where I discussed Media Creation & Sharing with Final Cut Studio and Avid Media Composer 5.0. (see: Avid AMA, Telestream’s Pipeline, AJA’s KiPro)

In this demonstration, we use a Pro Res timeline in Final Cut Pro, send it to Avid without creating any new media, and have the sequence not only open, but also utilize the same media – all using Automatic Duck & Avid’s AMA feature in 5.0 – via a hidden (undocumented) trick!

Special Thanks to Avid (Casey Richards), Automatic Duck (Wes Plate), Telestream, Apple, and Key Code Media.

Unfortunately, this *needs* to be said:  None of the views expressed within this entry constitute any advanced product knowledge nor anything more than an educated guess. It’s Apple, you should know this by now.  If I knew anything, I’d be shot.

Here are my top 20:

1. 64-bit.  Yeah, we all know it’s happening.  Good.
2. Stereoscopic Built in.  FCP needs a filter – much like 3D toolbox – which allows for a video track to have a second video track overlayed and locked to it at the same time.  This filter needs various flavors of 3D (side by side, over/under, interlaced, anaglyph, etc.) convergence, sync points, and basic color controls – all keyframeable.  These “tweaks” and timecode (plus other metadata) needs to be exportable via XML or EDL for use with other systems.Yes, I know 3D Toolbox and Cineform do this, but native support is, of course, welcomed.  This is a massive feature that Avid has and FCP doesn’t, and I don’t expect Mr. Jobs to ignore the fact that Hollywood uses Avid for this fact – and not FCP.
3. blah blah blah send to mobile me which sends to Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, grandma’s rotary phone with one click blah blah blah also send to iTunes cloud for sharing your video and video playlists with friends blah blah blah.
4. Unlimited RT was cool for a couple years, but now, c’mon – just support more native formats in the timeline.  Log & Transfer has still has some good uses when you don’t want to edit in the native camera codec, but realistically, every other NLE supports more and more native camera formats in the timeline.  If Apple wants to continue to make their apps more geared towards consumers, then support what consumers are generating.  That being said, native DPX and image sequence support would be very, very, very nice.
5. Add mixing of frame rates, frame sizes, and audio sample rates without needing Unlimited RT.
6. Shared projects.  FCP has always been a single user environment.  Aside from XML exchanges, (which – let’s face it – bloat your project quickly) FCP really needs some kind of shared project environment, a la Avid Unity.  I concede I can see where this may be rolled into an XSan environment, but collaboration is being stifled by this limitation.
7. Break the large frame size restriction.  Large graphics and frame sizes will bring FCP to it’s knees.  I’m sure 64-bit will help to remedy this.
8. More efficient round tripping without exporting.  The Motion roundtrip is great.  The Soundtrack Pro is not.
9. More efficient Compressor CPU utilization (have you seen how bad it is?) and a more reliable QMaster for distributed rendering.  QMaster breaks or loses track of nodes way to often and is not nearly as efficient as it could be.  I’d love to see a PC verison of QMaster to add PC’s into the mix (Hey, Apple *has* made a few Windows apps)
10. Distributed Rendering – not just Compressor encode based.  Maybe even background rendering whenever the mouse isn’t moving. (i.e. the system is never idling – always rendering)
11. Better support for uber high powered video cards (NVidia 4800, 5600, 5800, etc) with or without SDI, plus better leveraging of the card’s GPU.  I’d love to get a high end video card and have the option of using SDI for output instead of a Kona or Blackmagic card.
12. Blah blah FCP project blah blah iPad blah blah look at what I’m doing to this video in real time blah blah blah get video from iPhone too blah blah blah roundtrip video from apple mobile devices along with comments blah blah blah
13. Initial deployment of cloud based editing.  C’mon, the writing is on the wall.  It may not be ready for primetime, but there has got to be some hooks to edit material already sitting in the cloud.
14. Email notifications for everything.  Renders, exports, media moving, FTPing, etc.
15. Skinnable and/or color scheme changes, and more control over ALL text and button sizes – not just Browser and Timeline text.
16. Versioning, not just incremental autosaves.
17. Facial and verbal recognition and tagging of this in FCP, which populates the metadata fields in the browser, with markers.  Couple this with a form of Script Sync, and we now have a way to associate searchable media and text for faster usage.  Facial recognition has been out for a few years with iPhoto, many applications out there have decent verbal recognition, and Script Sync…well, the other “A” company has had it for many, many years.
18. Edit while live capturing of the same footage.  Several other plug-ins have already been doing it for years.
19. R3D native support.  Wavelets got FCP on the map with RED users, but the hand tieing because of the extractions made it a pain.
20. Real Time LUT based filters.  Apply a filter that reads LUTs and BOOM, instant RT “looks” for the Editor.  Maybe even applying a LUT while capturing or during Log & Transfer for permanent bake-in….?

We need 3 main things in Post Audio: The media, the file which points to the media, and a video copy of the project to use as reference.  The project file and media are pretty self explanatory, however, the video can complicate things.  Audio needs the video file so they can:

1. Match the old / original audio and new audio against the picture.
2. Check sync of all dialogue, music, and effects.
3. Place foley and sound effects at specific points in time.

As I’m sure you can understand, all of these go on the assumption there is “picture lock”.  A more appropriate would be “picture timing lock”, as every edit and decision a sound editor and mixer makes is dependent on the timing of what is on screen.  If the timing of the  picture is changed during post audio, the sound will fall out of sync instantly – like dominoes.  That is why it is paramount to have complete picture lock before starting audio.  Unfortunately, due to timing constraints on some pieces, the audio edit has to happen while picture is still being edited.  This can be the most grueling part of being an audio editor.  Products like Virtual Katy help bridge the gap by comparing old edits to new edits and moving audio appropriately.  However, there is no one click fix, and I cannot stress enough:  if at ALL possible, only work with a cut with picture timing lock.

Next, editorial has to provide post audio with a video with a visible timecode marker on the video.  This is referred to as a “Time Code Window Burn“.

Now that we have that clarified, let’s move into the specific requirements.

I. Quicktime movie with Academy Leader, 2-pop, and tail pop and embedded audio guide track. (see below for EXPORT settings)

Academy Leader is that familiar 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 countdown you see before some older films.  Each number is on the screen for 1 second, except the “2″, which is on for 1 frame (this is where you hear a beep – also 1 frame in length).  This is what’s known as a 2-pop.  The Academy Leader is a carryover from mechanical film projector days.  The machines had to have time to “slew” – that is, ramp up to speed so the film projector and audio system could get up to speed and be in sync.  The 2 Pop was an audible indicator that things were in sync, because it lasted just as long as the visible “2″ – and at the same moment.  A tail pop is analogous to the 2-pop – only at the end of the film.  This is used to ensure that sync is retained through the entire piece.  If the 2 Pop is in sync, but the tail pop is not – then there is a sync issue somewhere within the piece.  I use this as a simple check.  I also like to have the picture editors audio “mix” as a reference / guide  – not only for yet another way to check sync, but because many directors & producers fall in love with audio work the picture editors do – and may want to use those in the final mix. (Ed. Note: See comments below for a correction to this explanation when dealing with film and feet)

II. OMF export that includes all audio data and NO video (see OMF export details below)

OMF (Open Media Format) is a “container”  of media, along with instructions for your audio editing system as to where to place these media files in the timeline.  If your audio editor is using Pro Tools – you’re in luck – Pro Tools can understand OMFs, provided they have that option purchased & enabled.  Pro Tools can read OMFs with audio – but not video.  Thus, the video must be generated separately.

Details for Final Cut Pro Media Export

QUICKTIME GUIDELINES:

• If for TV, divide your program into reels that span commercial break to commercial break.
• If for film, divide your program into reels, corresponding to the same length as your picture reels.
  (these above two allow for smaller segments of media to be transferred from the editorial house to post audio, and is easier on the editing systems to generate and work with, plus the opportunity to not screw up the entire piece, if just one reel’s timing has to be changed)
• Quicktime .mov**
• Timecode window burn (SMPTE timecode – HH:MM:SS:FF)
• Insert Academy Leader, 2-pop, and tail pop into your sequence
• If academy leader is not used, then a black slug with a one-frame visual pop 2 seconds before FFOA (first frame of action) and 2 seconds after the LFOA (last frame of action) must be added. Additionally, an audio pop (1kHz one-frame beep) must be added to match sync with the visual pop.

TIME CODE BURN:

Make a new sequence in FCP, maintaining same sequence settings as your master project. Name it same as the original locked sequence plus “_TC”. Nest your entire master project sequence into the new sequence (you can do this by dragging your master project sequence onto the time line of the new sequence). If you don’t nest the sequence, the timecode print will not print continuous timecode from HeadStart to tail sync. Be sure the PICTURE START mark is the very first frame of the timeline.

In the Browser, (important–NOT from the Effects menu) click the Effects tab. Open the Video Filters folder. Then open the Video folder. Click the Timecode Reader effect, and drag it down onto the new _TC sequence. This puts a Time Code window burn on the picture.  It is imperitive that when you do this, you place the nested clip in the new _TC sequence at the exact same Timecode it resided at in the original sequence. Why? Because if you don’t, the Timecode reader effect will burn the wrong code into the exported movie, and will ruin any kind of obvious sync point.  The OMF you will export for me will not match the video Time Code window burn, and there will be many sync issues.

Next, in the CENTER box click the circle with the crosshairs. The crosshairs will appear in the Canvas. If you click and drag the crosshairs in the canvas, that will adjust the placement of the timecode window. When you have placed the crosshairs where you want the window, release the mouse. Place timecode window to obscure least important pix area, usually bottom-center, within title and action safe.

QUICKTIME EXPORT:**

You can export a QuickTime movie from either the Browser or from the Timeline. Make sure you have an IN and OUT marked in your sequence so the QT movie will be limited by the marks. To export a QT, make sure the sequence with the window burn (see instructions above) is selected in whichever window you’ve clicked in (Browser or Timeline). Then go to File>Export>Using Quicktime Conversion. When the dialog box comes up, name the sequence so you recognize it as your sequence with time code burn (i.e. “your project name_TC.”)   Direct it to the folder on your drive where you want to save it. Under Options (where it may say “Current Settings”) navigate to the codec of choice.  Click settings and make sure both AUDIO and VIDEO are checked, and that FRAME RATE is set to CURRENT.

OMF EXPORT:

Once the QT movie is exported, go back into FCP to export an OMF. Select the MASTER sequence you made earlier (not the _TC), prior to the timecode window sequence. File>Export>Audio to OMF. Make sure your IN and OUT points are the same as your QUICKTIME export, listed above. Change the default Handle Length to AT LEAST 5 seconds (00:00:5:00 – but more is better!). Include Crossfade Transitions should be checked. Click OK and navigate for a place to save the OMF – in the same folder as the Quicktime export. Name it “your project name_OMF” and click Save. This allows the audio editor to get your audio with the same timecode (in the metadata) as the picture you just exported.

Important notes:

• Nested sequences are NOT allowed to be used in your OMF export for audio. If your project contains nested sequences (i.e. your timecode sequence) your OMF will export, but will not be completely usable – your audio files within the nested sequence will be mixed together, and therefore practically unusable in post. Therefore, you MUST un-nest all nested sequences, and place them in your master project before performing the OMF Export.
• OMF files have a 2GB limit.  This is due to OMF being created back when 2GB was a huge size!  Because this may cause a limitation in long form and audio heavy FCP projects, you may need to export several OMFs.  A common practice is an OMF with tracks 1 & 2, an OMF with tracks 3 & 4, etc. Project length and audio density will dictate how many tracks you can export in 1 OMF – and still be under 2GB.  It’s good practice to name the OMF with the track names, and what kind of audio is on them: dialogue, music, effects, etc.

**This can be any time of MOV file.  The type of file will be dictated by what the sound editor’s computer(s) can playback and use.  Often, this will be a DV file (for SD) or DVCProHD (for HD).  If the audio facility will be projecting the image, they may require a higher quality MOV file.  If a second computer is used for video playback – like Digidesign’s Video Satellite, an even high res file may be requested.  Always check with the audio editor for their desired MOV file format.

*My thanks to users of the DUC (http://duc.digidesign.com) for their input on this document!

“I win!”

Bewildered, I respond with a puzzled “Excuse me?”

“I win!” he repeats.  “I knew you’d go Hollywood!”

Now this puzzles me.  Not only because TMZ and perezhilton.com are blocked at work, but that very day I was looking into flights to visit family and friends in Chicago, as well as planning my next trip from the Valley to Buena Park for some much needed Portillo’s.  In fact, not to much earlier that day I had made a decent Chicago pun.  (There are four directions in Chicago: Northside, Southside, Westside, and the Lake.)

“You swore you’d remember your roots, man.  But I read your blog, and you’re talking about stuff we’d probably never do in the Midwest.”

“Well, some would…” I rationalized.

“Hardly.  Didn’t you used to say the difference between L.A. and Chicago was a million dollars and 6 frames?  All of your stuff revolves around those two things.”

“Yeah, well…some people out here do 29.97…”

He cuts me off.  “They’re called Tape Ops.”

(We both chuckle.  Post geeks are an odd squad.)

So, in this post, I’ll be backing off the Hollywood-centric workflows, asinine acronyms, and strings of polysyllabic words and going back to some grass-roots issues.

On any given project, there are many editors, in many disciplines, and spread across many miles.  Therefore, getting YOUR stuff to work with THEIR stuff is imperative.  Thus, I present to you the best ways to get Final Cut Pro projects and/or media into Avid Media Composer.

First, it’s important that we understand how Avid deals with media.  As of March 2010, Avid understands media in 4 formats.  This may very well fluctuate in the next few months**, but for now, Avid understands media thusly:

1. Native Avid media – that is, captured by Avid.  Nowadays, this is usually in Avid’s DNxHD codec, which is analogous to ProRes – see chart below.  Avid, during capture into DNxHD, wraps this file in an MXF wrapper.  In legacy systems, instead of MXF, this would be a standard definition file in an OMF format. This media is understood natively by Avid, and requires no other transcoding or re-wrapping for usage within Avid.
2. Quicktime Media encoded with Avid’s DNxHD codec (with a .mov extension).  Avid can see this file, but will want to “wrap” it into an MXF wrapper before utilizing it within Avid.  This is not instantaneous, but is faster than a straight file import / conversion because it is not re-encoding the media.  Avid calls this a “fast import”. **
3. Via Avid’s AMA  – Avid Media Access. (v. 3.5 and above). P2, XDCAM, and GFCAM are understood natively (but ONLY camera native files with the mxf wrapper and original file hierarchy) **
4. Other Quicktime Media NOT encoded with the DNxHD codec, but still understood and playable by your Quicktime player.  Provided the codec is installed on your Avid machine, Avid can see it, but needs to import (transcode) and wrap the file into an MXF wrapper.  This is the longest of the techniques.

Knowing these rules, we can build several workflows which enable a FCP Project – or just the media – to get into Avid.

Just Media from FCP to Avid: Easiest Method (and Free!)

Media from FCP to Avid (click to enlarge)

• Download the Avid DNxHD Codecs (http://www.avid.com/dnxhd/ ) onto your Mac.  This enables FCP, Compressor, or any other encoding application on your same Mac to encode into DNxHD. (Remember DNxHD is a codec, so it can have a “.mov” extension).
• Export your timeline into a comperable DNxHD .mov format (see chart).  This yields a file with a .mov extension, but encode with a DNxHD codec.
• This file can be seen by Avid, who will then “fast import” it (wrapping it into an MXF wrapper), allowing you to use it in the most efficient way on the timeline.

GOTCHA: You can, of course, bypass the entire download of DNxHD codecs, just just export from FCP using the same codec FCP is using in the timeline.  This, however, complicates things for the Avid user.  What if they do not have the same codec you are using within FCP?  Worse yet, what if the codec you export with requires the other user to pay to get the codec?  For example, DVCProHD is not free for a PC!  Companies like Calibrated Software (http://www.calibratedsoftware.com/) charge $69 for a plugin to simply decode the file.  Rule Of Thumb: Make it as EASY as possible for the next person to use your media.

ADVANCED USERS:  From FCP, export a QT Reference.  Use your clustered or more robust encoding solution to encode into a .mov DNxHD file.  Quite possibly, your encoding solution may allow you to even wrap the DNxHD file into an MXF wrapper (OP1a compliant) which makes importing into Avid even faster!  (see #1)

Project AND Media from FCP to Avid (slightly not free)

Project & Media from FCP to Avid (click to enlarge)

• Purchase and download Automatic Duck Pro FCP Export ($495) http://automaticduck.com/products/pefcp/
• Download the Avid DNxHD Codecs (http://www.avid.com/dnxhd/ ) onto your Mac.  This enables FCP, Compressor, or any other encoding application on your same Mac to encode into DNxHD. (remember DNxHD is a codec, so it can have a “.mov” extension)
• Within FCP, export using Automatic Duck (see movie here: http://automaticduck.com/products/pefcp/FCPtoAvidwitMedia.mov).  In short, Automatic Duck creates a Project file Avid can understand, and you have the option within the export of converting the media to DNxHD AND wrapping it into an MXF wrapper.  All are read natively by Avid.  ALL IN ONE STEP. Can you dig it?

GOTCHA: (for you advanced users) This process can be slow, as Automatic Duck handles the media transcode and re-wrap.  This is a single threaded process, and cannot be done by another application.  This may yield a wait for longer form / media heavy projects.  In addition, there are a handful of effects that may not transfer over.  Check Automatic Duck’s documentation for limitations.

ADVANCED CONCEPT: Use Automatic Duck to export the Project.  Manually take the FCP Media and transcode into DNxHD or MXF wrapped DNxHD with your favorite encoder.  Take the converted Project file and media to the Avid.  Open the Project, and manually re-link to the transcoded media.  Depending on if the FCP media was wrapped in a MXF wrapper, Avid will either import it instantaneously, or necessitate a wrap into MXF.  While this may save time on the front end (manually doing the encode into DNxHD), you will lose that time by needing to manually re-link to the media within Avid.  Plus, you lose tons of metadata.  I am not a fan of attempting this.  But I will be glad to charge you for consulting on it.

NOTE: This workflow ensures the most amount of metadata transferring over.  Sure, you can save yourself $495, and try to work some magic with a generic EDL.  I’ve had zero consistent success with this, and only massive amounts of metadata loss, headaches, and a severe limitation in terms of effects transferring over.  Take it from Nancy Reagan: JUST SAY NO.

FOOTNOTE:  Quality loss is always a big concern.  There are hundreds of codecs out there – so I cannot possibly mention each one.  However, I can tell you what standard codecs in FCP equate to what codecs in Avid:

**Most likely in mid 2010, the line between #2 & #3  will become blurred.  That is, AMA being enabled to understand ANY codec Quicktime can read.  This means that Avid can play almost any media file you throw at it, so long as Quicktime on the same machine can play it.  While this is a fantastic concept, Avid will always perform better when dealing with multiple streams of video when all formats are in an Avid codec.  Avid only guarantees 3 streams of broadcast quality video via AMA, and I do not expect that to change once AMA is opened up fully to Quicktime.

***Avid’s DNxHD codec has “families”, for ease of use (snort) in terms of naming conventions (left column above). Depending on your frame rate, the bitrates (the last numeric digits) of the file can fluctuate slightly.  For example, DNxHD36 is for 23.976 fps material.  This “family” also encompasses 29.97 fps material encoded with the same codec, yet yields a file (technically) at DNxHD45.  Yes, I know: uber-confusing.  Look for a blog post on this soon.

Hope this helps.  Have any input?  I’d love to hear it.