Converting 23.98 timeline to 29.97 output

[Outis]

OK — your answer brings up a key issue that could lead to the solution. Converting the video to 29.97 is possible, but how does one create an OMF that the mixer works with that MATCHES the timecode of the video?

The timeline is 23.98, doesn’t that mean the OMF –and the clips associated with it –has a timecode based on 23.98? I understand that sound programs do not work in time code per se, but if he is trying to lock sound with picture, there must be some kind of reference timecode. Would I not have to re-edit or reconform the entire movie into 29.97? Will copying the clips and pasting them into a 29.97 timeline and rendering it lead to some kind of speed change in the sound? And when I go back to the 23.98 picture, which we want to do because we do not want the pulldown or repeated frames for 29.97, won’t that conversion also alter the sound?

You mentioned audio facilities being able to handle 23.98 materials. How? What formats do they use? I have seen pro tools take in a reference movie to sync sound to. Can someone please explain this or give suggestions?

The problem is not making a tape at 29.97, the problem is creating an OMF file from the 23.98 timeline as well as a movie the mixer can work with for reference. The mixer requests a tape because in his system for playback he uses a digibeta deck which plays on the external monitors. He says that quictimes are not reliable for locking sync. Has anyone else used quicktimes and not tapes to mix in 23.98? If I can find that answer, I can output the OMF at 23.98 and give the reference movie at 23.98 OR an OMF at 29.97 and a tape and we can go to work.

Thank you all for responding to this thread. Your comments have been much appreciated.

[Seawild]

Hello Guys,

To add my 2 cents. I output 23.98 to D5 or HDSR, and then have the audio house send over a MMR8 or DA88s, running at 29.98 Our audio engineers conform it and it works just fine..

It’s magic. 🙂

Happy Halloween
Chris

[Steven Gonzales]

Frame rate is really a video phenomenon. What controls sound is sample rate (and clock that the sample rate references, but we can ignore that for this discussion).

Whatever number of sound samples that fit over 1 second of video are the same, whether the video frame rate is 23.98 or 29.97. Or to put it another way, the same number of sound samples that sync with 23.98 frames in a 23.98 timebase, will also sync with 29.97 frames in a 29.97 timebase. The length of time is the same.

The only time these numbers are attached to sound is when the sound has timecode also attached (which is really an addressing scheme, rather than a temporal control). On some recording machines changing the timecode settings has an effect on the sample rate.

OMF is delivering samples placed in time, so frame rate of the associated video is really a side issue.

[Outis]

Thank you very much for your reply. I am going to create a 29.97 timeline to output the OMF and send a tape. Then if all goes well, I will import the finished AIFF into my 23.98 timeline. According to your info it should sync. No?

Thank you!

[Gary Adcock]

[taliaraine] “Thank you very much for your reply. I am going to create a 29.97 timeline to output the OMF and send a tape. Then if all goes well, I will import the finished AIFF into my 23.98 timeline. According to your info it should sync.”

I do this very thing 4-5 times a week – you should not any issues.

gary adcock
Studio37
HD & Film Consultation
Post and Production Workflows

[Ken Blackwell]

I just finshed a film that shot super16mm – telecined to D5 – digitized into FCP DVCPRO HD 108060i codec. 23.98fps Project.

At the end –

1) I simply made an audio omf of my cut reels.

2) I dropped my cut reels into a 720 x 486 sequence and exported quicktimes (still at 23.98) The sound editors, mixer and composer used these quicktimes and omf’s in pro tools without a problem. They then mixed to a large HD format quicktime.

That’s it. They output the reels back to D5, color corrected, etc. and now it’s finished.

It just sounds like your sound editor is using something older which requires a step back in time.