[Hans Sieber]

The files with the A0001… file names are the original Alexa files. Are they located within a separate folder named the same way as the files are? And is a xml document in that folder? This would be the normal folder structure you receive from an Alexa shoot on SxS cards. The files should have the .mov extention. But as you describe it, someone seems to have messed around with them. Did you try to put a Tape Name into the clips cut into the sequence and the original either imported or AMA linked files?

[Hans Sieber]

I don`t think Avid will ever recognize your files without the .mov extention. What nature are these clips? How were they created? Captured, transcoded…? If you add the file extention you should be able to get them linked via AMA. If not try the “oldfashioned” way of importing some clips and then try the relink the way I explained in my last post. Make sure to uncheck “relink to media from the current project”. Keep us informed.

[Hans Sieber]

Hi Almut,

you could try the followiing to maybe get the relink working.(You see al lot of maybe…) As already mentioned in the post by Andrew link the files via AMA into a new bin. Then put the sequence into the bin with the linked AMA files. Choose the Sequence AND the AMA Clips. Choose Relink and in the top of your relink options choose “relink to selected online items”. (Not in front of an Avid right now…) Also you mentioned that the original files are having a tape name. Avid normally relinks using source (tape name) and TC. So you could try to modify the clips by giving them the respective Tape names of your offline clips. Just a guess but had some issues relining to AAF Sequences coming back from grading nad in that case it was the missing tape name.

Hope I could be of some minor help.

Hans

[Hans Sieber]

I`ll try to give my best shot. I´m no AFX expert, but are you able to apply the correct LUT for the S-Log files during “import”? I think there might be a trap waiting for you in your workflow. Are integrating CG in AFX or are you doing 2D work? Without the correct LUT being applied I don´t see how you could integrate CG without a lot of back and forth.
But I´m no expert in that! Just a guess from my experience.
Are the Avid and AFX on the same platform? (MAC/Windows) cause there is a problem viewing ProRes files. They tend to look diferent on either platform. With what version of QT are you watching them? QT X supersaturates/HiCons all content. QT 7 is far more reliable.
In the end I would not trust the AMA! As already mentioned in my other post, the AMA is still under counstruction and not to be trusted if you`re not working with propitary codecs.
Youts sincerely
Hans

[Hans Sieber]

In my experience it`s not just simply the remapping to full range or vice versa. Apart from “locked” codecs like DNxHD/XDCAM you always have a not so slight gamma shift when using AMA. Maybe that`s what you are facing right now. I`ve been talking to several Avid guys during the last 2 years and never got a satisfying answer. But working with log files it shouldn`t matter that much as you should grade the original files. I don`t know Davinci Resolve but I might guess that it could be able to grade the clips as they were shot. Using a EDL/AAF sequence export e.g.
And no, you can`t apply a LUT on the files during Import or AMA. At my post house we are shooting on RED/Alexa and do the baselight grading using the Nucoda Filmmaster. These files are being prepped for import into Avid. Afterwards we revert back to the Original files.
Yours sincerely
Hans

[Hans Sieber]

Hi David,

to change your the the codec from DNXHD 120 to 185 you simply mark all titles in your timeline with an in and out point, then activate the videolayer your titles are on. Now you can choose under Clip menu (in the middle between Bin and Output menu) recreate title media. The following pop up window allows you the set the codec to DNXHD 185.
You won`t have any problems exporting your timeline with the DNxHD 120 titles though. About the loss of quality… Well just do a test with the same title in 185 and compare the result. It might be noticeable.
I`m not in front of an avid right now but in version 3.5 I hab problems with repositioning titles using the effect editor. They lost a lot of quality. I`m not sure how vs 4 is handling with that. I guess it has been fixed because I never had the problem with older versions of MC.
And I haven`t found a way so far to copy effect changes from one title to the next.

Yours sincerely
Hans

[Hans Sieber]

Hi Dave,

I don`t think I can be of much help, but I noticed something you said
“I’m rendering a QT Movie using the Animation Codec and field rendering using lower field first (native to the footage).

On the Avid side, I’m importing the QT at 1:1, using 601 color levels and lower field first.”

Correct me if I`m wrong but the Animation Codec is RGB in its origins. When I`m using the Animation Codec I always stay in RGB color space. I´m having some problems exporting QT files out of avid for quite some time concerning the gamma curve. What I found out was that an export from Avid (from version 2.2 to Version 4.05) only keeps the correct gamma curve when I use an Avid codec with 601 levels or Animation codec with RGB. Every other combination changes the gamma buy a value of 0.2. In the sample pictures you provided the gamma also seems differnet to me, but maybe you did some grading.
I would try to export from AE using Avid Meridian Compressed. Maybe that helps with your softening problem and you also get a fast import into avid.

Yours sincerely
Hans

[Hans Sieber]

Hi Elizabeth,
how do you delete your render workspace? Are you doing it maually using windows or are deleting via the media manager? What do you mean with “Will my periodic trashing of that drive’s contents have a negative effect on the motion effects (something that will affect my ability to play a timeline in which they’ve been used)?”
If you are deleting something that is being in use well yes it will have some impact on your workflow but if you`re not working with fluid motion Timewarps (which are very render intensive) you can always recreate your timewarps without loosing too much time rendering.
You can use the dissasociated media catalog to delete your unused renders, but be carefull because the media manager is not too reliable. It doesn`t delete all that it is supposed to delete but sometimes it deletes stuff that is still in use.
Let me know what you exactly intend to achieve so maybe I can give you a correct answer to your questions.

Hans

[Hans Sieber]

Hi Ben,
glad I could shed some light on this subject. Once you transcoded your RED files to .mxf you don`t have to relink them when you try to export your cut to a H264 or lay it off to tape. The only reason to relink RED files would be to open the .raw files in a colour grading system like scratch. But this would be done by the grader. You would only have to export an EDL file for him, so that he could relink to the original files. If I understood you right, then you don`t have to do that.
If you intend to work on a more regular basis with RED files I would recommend the book by Noah Kadner to you. He basically covers all the workflows concerning RED.

If you have any questions unanswered let me know. I´ll try to help.
Hans

[Hans Sieber]

Hi Craig,
I`m not in front of my avid, but as far as I remember you should be able to export your export setting in the settings tab to a location you like. All of your setting are saved within your user profile. If I`m wrong and you can`t export your export settings than you could try to copy your user profile to a different machine open a project and then move your desired export setting to the site settings folder. Then they are available to all user on this system.

Hope I could help you

Hans