Resolve for VFX pull – using VFX naming from EDL or AAF

[Mike Most]

This might be a rather involved workaround, but one way I can think of to do this would be to edit the EDL to swap the clip names with the tape name, assuming the tape name is the original file name. So you would then have an EDL that has the locator (the VFX name) as the tape name and the original file name in the comment line. You can then conform using the conform option that specifies the comment line for the tape name. When you go to render, you would then select “use custom name prefix” and put in “%T” . That will force use of the EDL tape name as the file name, which in your case would be the locator name you want. You can then specify how many places to pad the number field. In theory, this could get you want you want, but it will require either hand editing of the EDL or writing a script to swap the locator and file names. If you try this, let me know if it works.

[Luke Moorcock]

Two years later; and yes this does work. But it’s far from ideal!

[Marc Wielage]

This is why great post supervisors get the big bucks.

[John Squire]

Hi Marc,

I’ve just been trying this very thing but can’t get it to work in Resolve v12.

I have an EDL and I swapped the TAPE NAME with CLIP NAME in the comment. It now looks like this:

TITLE: PULLS_WITH_HANDLES
FCM: NON-DROP FRAME
000001 001_0280_BG01_IS01 V C 00:11:29:22 00:11:31:15 01:01:04:04 01:01:05:21
*FROM CLIP NAME: AF4A0141.MOV

I can import the EDL using “Extract reel from EDL comments” and it relinks fine. But the EDL window shows the REEL and the NAME column as the having the same data “AF40131”.

Strangely if there is no media to link to and the sequence stays offline then the REEL columns has the “001_0280_BG01_IS01” data which is what I want.

Any ideas

[Mike Most]

I tried some things in Resolve 12. One thing I found is that changing the project setting conform options after the conform is already done changes the metadata in Resolve but does not “undo” the conform. So in theory, you might be able to use the original EDL as is (i.e., tape name is the original file name, comment line is the VFX name) by setting the conform options to “assist using source clip filename,” doing the conform (that should link properly), and then in the Edit page, accessing the project settings and changing the conform option to “extract reel names from EDL comments.” From what I’m seeing, that should dynamically change the EDL but not affect the conform you’ve already done. Then when you render, you should be able to use the %T parameter I mentioned earlier to render with the VFX names.

Let me know if that works.

[John Squire]

Hi Mike, thanks for your reply.

I tried your method. I don’t see the EDL changing when I switch the “Extract from comments” setting. It sticks to whatever it was when first imported. I’m on a Mac, I wonder if that makes a difference.