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Please help a guy finish his film “better”!
Hi,
I have some really specific questions about finishing my short DV project.
The end result is I want the best possible quality output from what I shot, and I need to be able to have a copy made on DVD. As well, copies to be made on DigiBeta or HDCAM if necessary. I am applying to festivals (if accepted, some only take HD masters regardless of what it was shot on originally).
Here are the specs of my computer and project:
20 minute short
DVCAM, 29.97d (a few shots were miniDV but in same timeline)
16×9 footageG4 1.25 DP
1 Gig Memory
10.2.8
1×80 gig drive (main)
1×120 gig (scratch)
Final Cut Pro 3, iMovie 03 and DVD Studio Pro 1.5General questions:
1) My project looks great. Will it look worse if I export to DVCAM from my FCP session based on the compression settings of DV?
*Someone mentioned about exporting the project “uncompressed” or with “animation compression”…. is this something I choose as I export the project to tape?
2) Regarding “Finishing to Digibeta / HDCAM.”
I am trying to avoid paying money to finish to DigiBeta or HDCAM before i need to. If I were to need a copy on one of these two formats….Do I let a post-house do the work (finish to DigiBeta or HDCAM by:
a) giving them an EDL and having them re-do my edits (including some special FX I put a lot of work into)
ie expensive and time consuming – is it worth it?or
b) Give them a DVCAM or copy of film exported to disk and just have them make a format switch.
c) Should I make a master DV copy without titles and graphics for this purpose?
What is the quality difference between having them re-assemble the footage from “bumping it up and then adding uncompressed titles”
3) DVD Authoring:
To make a “DVD” copy of my film, will I lose quality if I make a master copy of the film on DVCAM, upgrade to Tiger and the new Quicktime, re-capture the film (completed) and make a DVD with the new codecs and/or new FCP or new DVD Studio Pro or Imovie 05? (I have bought tiger and ilife already, but will not install them until this is figured out and I have a sure-fire master of the completed film)
or
Is it better to make a DVD with what I have (iMovie 03) and an older version of quicktime – but the original movie in the original timeline?
*what about de-interlacing… that’s something i don’t understand.
Thanks. The technology around these different formats can be intimidating and I don’t want to be hosed by a post house. But I don’t want to have a bad quality short either!
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1 Reply
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If you go to a high end facility like CineFilm Lab here in Atlanta (cinefilmlab.com) you can give them a DVCAM master. Then they can take it from there to whatever you want to do. Master it to DigiBeta, Upconvert it to HDCAM, etc… For HDCAM, you may even want to run the project through a DaVinci for better color enhancement. Mastering out to a DVCAM deck will keep the quality on tape exactly the same as the quality in your timeline so that’s a good place to start.
If you decide you want to do some daVinci coloring, then a textless master would be best for that.
[Rick Rose] “To make a “DVD” copy of my film, will I lose quality if I make a master copy of the film on DVCAM, upgrade to Tiger and the new Quicktime, re-capture the film (completed) and make a DVD with the new codecs and/or new FCP or new DVD Studio Pro or Imovie 05? (I have bought tiger and ilife already, but will not install them until this is figured out and I have a sure-fire master of the completed film)”
Yes you will degrade the film if you re-capture. If you really want to update your system simply export the film as a self-contained movie and then bring that into the new project. In fact do two self contained movies, with and without titles.
Don’t de-interlace anything, leave it as is.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Creative Genius, Biscardi Creative Media
https://www.biscardicreative.comNow in Production, “The Rough Cut,” https://www.theroughcutmovie.com
“I reject your reality and substitute my own!” – Adam Savage, Mythbusters
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