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ALE/EDL files??
Hi all,
I am new to the avid world and am looking for some explantations regarding the format ALE and EDL. Currently I’m looking to establish an archive and catalogue system and have considered purchasing CatDV, but have some codec confusion.
Can some describe the ALE and EDL codecs to me and how they are related to AMA and MXF?
Thanks,
Lindsay
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1 Reply
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ALE is a text based file. It is basically a TAB delimited file with project header description as a global, then column, then data. It is used to describe source master clips.
an EDL is an edit decision list and mainly refers to a simple description of a composition or sequence. EDL’s are still used for some workflows, and in many cases is the last usable format for offline/online when AAF, and other compositional structures are not supported. EDL’s were designed for machine based protocol and are tightly defined by which linear controller is being used. CMX-3600 is probably the most used and is considered a pseudo- standard in EDL world.
AAF is a richer form of compositional metadata which describes the sequence of events, layers, VFX, as well as the sources that make up the sequence.
MXF is a wrapper of essence (picture and sound). Much like QuickTime is a wrapper to QuickTime but is an open format where metadata can be stored and retrieved.
Michael
Michael Phillips
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