-
720 scaled to 4K???
For several short documentary films we’re posting, a delivery spec has been added for festival screening:
“DCP 4K resolution, Jpeg2000/mxf, 24 fps only, Audio: 5.1 or Left, Right, Center with dialogue localized to the center channel”
This would be the first time we’ve had to manage a DCP spec. I’ve got post facility quotes for around $200 per film. I’ve also researched the COW and found a DIY app, OpenDCP, which I could experiment with, although my inclination is to have the conversions done by DCP experts.
My main query here is about upscaling.
Our edit has started in earnest, and we’re working all ProRes 422 on 23.98 720 sequences with 23.98 1080 clips because it allows for invaluable reframing and zooming without magnifying pixels.
The clips are mostly spontaneous action shots and the narratives benefit greatly from this flexibility.
A 720 edit master has always made everybody happy for web, small screening, and local TV broadcast.But now this additional 4K spec.
I’m wondering what such a huge upscale will look like. I’ve done plenty of 720 to 1080 upscales and they’ve been plenty okay projected in small theaters with average equipment.Is it worth foregoing the benefit of content resizing on the timeline, and instead use a 1080 sequence? The reason would be to incur less upscale pressure on the blow-up to 4K.
I have no experience with the practical realities of this issue, and there is no way I will be able to test results on a 4K projector in advance.
I know people have films shot on iPhones and DSLRs at fests every day, so maybe I’m worrying for naught as long as my 720 master is sharp, clear and beautiful.Any experience out there with small HD formats to DCP 4K?
-
15 Replies
-
Scaling is always best done via hardware, either via an I/O device such as a AJA, Blackmagic, or Matrox with built-in up-scaling capabilities.
Teranex is even better, and it’s now only $2000 since being acquired by Blackmagic.
Scaling from 720p to 4K on the timeline in FCP is going to undoubtedly be a bit softer than hardware scaling, and it will certainly not blend in well with really 4K video footage. However, if it’s supposed to look vintage or have that “verite” look, then it will work just fine.
David Roth Weiss
ProMax Systems
Burbank
DRW@ProMax.comSales | Integration | Support
David is a Creative COW contributing editor and a forum host of the Apple Final Cut Pro forum.
-
The upscaling would be part of the whole DCP creation that I’d have done out of house; I was worried about how bad it would be giving them a 720 master vs. a 1080 master since it’s such an expansive upscale.
I will look into how the prospective facilities do the upscale as part of the package, and see who uses a hardware solution.
Thanks for the response!
-
The specs the festival is asking for seem a bit strange. It doesn’t really make sense to require 4K content, unless the point is to showcase 4K only source material. Scaling your content up to 4K could be worse than just creating a 2K DCP. The 4K digital projection systems are designed to handle 2K as well.
The other thing would be allowing Left, Center, Right channels. This is not a standard audio format. It should be Stereo, 5.1, 7.1. If you want Left/Center/Right you should make a 5.1 DCP with silence tracks for any missing channels.
-
Thank you Terrence!
I will contact the fest and straighten it out. This is probably the same spec they give to Hollywood for their features and could probably be eased a bit for our short docs.
-
how much re-framing do you do?
it might be better to work at 1920×1080.
that is just a very small blow-up to 2knick
-
You’re right, Nick, staying 1080 is probably the smartest way. Often the repositionings and post-zooms are super helpful in smartening up some key shots, but in this case the final upscale quality may be the decisive factor for our workflow.
-
If your material is 1920×1080, then you’d be all set. You just make the DCP and no further image scaling or adjustment is needed for 2K digital projection.
-
interesting, so where does the blow-up happen?
-
Flat 2K is 1998×1080, so 1920×1080 will result in 39 pixels of black pillar boxed on each side of the image. If you want to fill the entire 1998×1080, then you’d need to scale/crop your image. Depends on what you feel more comfortable with, but most people wouldn’t even notice the pillar boxing.
-
Thanks, Terrance, i didn’t know that.
nick
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up