Transfer Lists

[Daryl K davis]

Did you get telecine logs (FLX, ALE, ATN files are some telecine log formats) from the telecine service when they transfered your film?

That is where it all starts for getting lists out for film neg cuts.

[Noah Lydiard]

I have a floppy disc from the production company – assuming it has those files on them ( I can’t find out because nobody in the company has a floppy drive -) is this something that I can do post cut? Or am I doomed?

[Daryl K davis]

I hate to sound harsh but you should have done your homework before you started editing the project. How did you create your batch capture lists in the first place? That is what the telecine logs are for. They help track your film keycodes, videotape timecodes and audio tapes and timecodes and ensure your tape nubers are correct and you do a proper A-frame capture.

If you didn’t pay any attention to them it could be rather complicated. You should definately get those files off the floppy discs and into your computer and create your Cinema Tools database to begin with. Then it’s a question of if you named your reels properly when yo4 batch captured your footage.

[Noah Lydiard]

Though I would like to know the proper way to do this, my transfer house said what they mean by a transfer list is “The Transfer Sort List or C-Mode List is a record of all timecode in’s and out’s. It’s source timecode only in sequential order.”

Which doesn’t seem to be an option in FCP.

Redflags went up for me before I started this – but I talked to two editors and a Smoke Artist who said don’t worry about my A-frame concerns or key code – because this wasn’t being finished on film.

So you’re telling me different. So whats the right course of action and if it is too lengthy to type can you at least point me in the direction.

And I really couldn’t care less about “harshness” although I do find it to be a waste of time.

[Daryl K davis]

I’m sorry about the confusion in the terminology but I’ve always understood a transfer list to be the list for re-transferring the select film negative to an HD master or DI finish. But if you don’t need that then don’t bother with the telecine log/Cinema Tools databasing.

If all they need is a C-mode edl they should be able to sort that from your fcp A-mode edl. Almost every online facility I’ve ever dealt with has edl management software of some sort for that purpose alone.

There is no edl mode transfer options in FCP as I’ve discovered yet – only A-mode.

[Noah Lydiard]

Well they are going back to telecine to transfer selects for the online.

Apparently they have a way of keeping track of the reels so that they can find the shots from timecode.

But I’m still concerned about the a-frame.

I’m coming to FCP from 7 years on AVID. Everything I cut formally originated on video.

Now that film is in the mix, I’m dying to find the best workflow.

Any help is appreciated

[Daryl K davis]

A-frame capture is for removing pull-down to give proper cadence for editing in a 23.98 timeline. Batch capture lists generated from a telecine log has each clip start capture on an A-frame – that is a frame ending in 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 in the timecode.

You haven’t mentioned how you captured footage for your project. Evidently you didn’t use the telecine logs and create batch capture lists from there. Did you reverse telecine your clips and edit your project in a 23.98 timeline?

These are processes explained in the FCP manual, and telecine logs have been used in most pro edit systems for years, whatever the brand or make.

[Daryl K davis]

A-frame capture is for removing pull-down to give proper cadence for editing in a 23.98 timeline. Batch capture lists generated from a telecine log has each clip start capture on an A-frame – that is a frame ending in 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 in the timecode.

You haven’t mentioned how you captured footage for your project. Evidently you didn’t use the telecine logs and create batch capture lists from there. Did you reverse telecine your clips and edit your project in a 23.98 timeline?

These are processes explained in the FCP manual, and telecine logs have been used in most pro edit systems for years, whatever the brand or make.

[Michael]

I think all you want is a “c-mode list” that gives you the in and out points of all the used shots in ascending time code order (SOURCE time code, that is). If the ftg was properly telecined, yes, the transfer house can use this list to find the right piece of film.

Unlike Avid, FCP does not produce a good c-mode list. Here is the workaround:

Copy your sequence and remove all audio elements.

Create a new bin and drag all of the shots in your timeline into it.

In this new bin, sort the clips by “in”. This will give you a bin with all the shots in ascending time code order.

Now, create a new, empty sequence, highlight all of the newly sorted clips, and drag them all into the new sequence. You now have a sequence with the shots in ascending time code order.

Export a straight “a-mode” EDL of this sequence. That should be enough for telecine.

You might run into difficulty if your original dailies transfer went past the 24 hour clock.

We do this all the time.

Michael Heldman
Spot Welders

[Joe Murray]

FCP is supposed to be able to do a Cmode, it just doesn’t work. When you export the EDL, select Source sort mode and then open the resulting file in Microsoft Word and select and drag each edit line to the proper order, sorted according to the 1. SOURCE REEL and 2. SOURCE inpoint, not the record inpoint. Once each line is in the right place, save and/or print and provide to the transfer facility. Properly sorted Cmode lists can really speed up a telecine session, but unfortunately Final Cut doesn’t do them correctly.

Joe Murray