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Prepping 720p 23.98 file for 1080i 59.94 HDCAM, best workflow?
Recently completed documentary feature, the edit master file is DVCPROHD 720p 23.98.
Screening is in 4 days. The presenter wants a 1080i 59.94 HDCAM for projection.
We will take our file on hard drive to a facility that can do a file-to-HDCAM transfer via FCP Mac/Kona card; they want a ProRes file for output to tape.
We’ve never had to hands-on deal with “TV” frame rates before; all our content has gone to gone to web, Blu-ray and DVD. If there are frame-rate conversions happening in the MPEG settings for Blu-ray and DVD they are transparent to me.
So as far as a process to prepare our master to get its frame rate converted for the HDCAM transfer, I’m thinking there are choices to be made to ensure best motion and scaling quality.
— First of all, do drop/non-drop settings matter on my side of the equation, meaning something I should do with our file before I hand it to the facility? The precise duration is not an issue for the screening.
— Should I drop the DVCPROHD file into Compressor to make a ProRes 59.94 1080i file?
— Should I drop the DVCPROHD file into Compressor to make a 720p 23.98 ProRes file and have the facility convert to 1080i 59.94 via Kona hardware?
— Should I do something else that I don’t know?
I will also ask the facility their prep recommendation, but I really want to know from the COW what the best workflow should be for quality.
Frame rate conversions scare me a bit, but at least I know going upspeed by adding frames is better than going downspeed and losing frames. I may be way too worried about this but even to this day, not infrequently, I see movies and reruns on broadcast TV that are awfully skippy and steppy and look they have repeat frames or missing frames. This is most likely another subject, but why can’t “they” get it right if it’s an established workflow? Sorry, OT.
Thanks all!
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5 Replies
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We work this way all the time. The Kona card will upres and add the correct pulldown. If you have a lot of graphics in your show, you might want to consider re-rendering your timeline as pro-res. DVCpro HD is a nice codec, but nowhere near as nice as pro-res. Create a duplicate of your sequence and then change the compressor to pro-res in the sequence settings.
Cheers
John Christie
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Thanks, John. I will re-render as a ProRes sequence for better image quality, there are indeed some important graphics.
So my deliverable to the facility should be a 720p 23.98 ProRes file I output from FCP, correct?
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Hi William
I just checked and DVCpro HD is 960 X 720 and Pro-res is 1280 X 720. You’ll want to make sure everything scales correctly when changing codecs.
Try and send a short test to the facility who are doing the output. 5 seconds would be enough for them to confirm all the settings for you.
Cheers
John C
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I did a test output and indeed discovered the need to make sure the ProRes is truly 1280 x 720, using the correct pixel aspect, etc.
Thanks! -
John, I have the exact same issue but my question is a bit different. I have my 720 x 23.98 (9 minutes in length) project in 1280 x 720 and need to transfer it to HDCAM (is all HDCAM 1080i x 59.94?). What should my output be for best projection in a movie theater? Should I use Apple ProRes 422 (HQ) 1280 x 720, or should I do 1440x 1080? or something else? Thanks in advance.
Jack Niedenthal
Microwave Films of the Marshall Islands
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