Michael Phillips
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COW Coin
Forum Replies Created
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If it’s just a list of archive (stock footage) type report. Adding the vendor code to a column in the bin as well as any other metadata tracking you want to do is probably the easiest way to start the tracking. For just a list of clips with source timecode and vendor information, save a bin view with all pertinent columns, then take your sequence and decompose or use “set bin display” to show hidden clips. Sort by any of those column heading, select only clips that have vendor ID’s then export as a TAB delimited file. This can be imported into Excel, FileMaker Pro, etc, as needed for your reporting.
MC 6 or later does have stock footage reports as part of the feature set, but it does not allow you to enter metadata into it to represent your own in-house archive which is too bad, as it can create the stock footage report directly from the timeline.
Michael
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Well that’s interesting to hear, as one of the SmartTool’s design goals was to appeal to FCP users and make that decision transition to Media Composer before Apple forced that decision upon them. But it’s not the first time I’ve heard it as everyone approaches editing differently and I believe that interaction style also changed based on footage and genre. For example, an MOS montage style versus a dialog intense scene. I would consider SmartTool for the former, but not for the latter as more precision (JKL) and audio monitoring is needed.
As I mentioned, there are many good starts to features in Media Composer, but I wish they would get properly refined in the very next follow up releases. SmartTool got tweaked due to a a very loud and unhappy user feedback which truthfully could have been avoided right with the first release in my opinion. Same goes for “Find”. Nice start, but only being able to load the one clip at a time in the source monitor as the only resulting action is limiting. Also its inability to filter based on clip type (master, sub, sync, group) and not seeing metadata on audio clips coming from audio in an AutoSync function lowers the proposition value depending on the situation. Add to that the inability to have a results view that displays the columns in which the search term was found, having to re-nter the search time twice when you know what you’re looking for is in a particular column, etc, no shortcut syntax in original search term, etc. and of course the ability to take all the results of a search term and so something with it, like batch enter metadata or save to a bin for future use, search locators, etc. etc. etc. So, the promise is there, but when dealing with feature filmproduction, hundreds of bins (studio level features have thousands of bins by the way. I am told that Alice in Wonderland had over 5000 bins), scores of metadata columns, all autosynced or grouped, the need to sort results with no filtering at times make the feature more work than it needs to be when it could be the best thing going for such large projects.
There’s my soapbox for the day. It would be great to see these types of feature refinement/enhancement in follow up releases along with new innovative ones – we shall see what NAB brings. The good news is, there’s no shortage of things to be done, the bad news is, there’s no shortage of things to be done… 😉
Michael
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A CMX 3400 or 3600 would be the one to use as FCP does not deal with sources more than 8 characters via EDL. Are the source names longer than 8 characters? If so, you may have to use source file in the comments and see if that works, and connect.
Ad far as not playing the media, I can’t help. Sorry. Not a FCP user.
Michael
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Is this still the case when AMA’ing to to it in a 720p/59/94 project type? Frame rate adjustments happen in the timeline, and not as part of the source settings via AMA, although that would be a great feature to add.
Try 720p first, them open the bin in your project and proceed from there. 720p/59.94 in a 1080i/59.9 won’t result in slomo since they are both 59.94 – I assume your looking for a frame to field conversion which would result in a 2x slomo would need to be done in the timeline with the speed effect.
Michael
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As far as timecode goes, you need both source and record side timecode?
Michael
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This wouldn’t be so much the Universal Mastering feature than it is “mix & match.” Universal Mastering is for 23.976p, 24p/25p timelines to 24p, 25p, and 29.97i, and 50i. It does so by first slowing up, speeding up by .1% or 4.1% then deal with the progressive to interlace. Audio is adjusted through a sample rate conversion. This created a higher quality conversion because it does a frame for frame first. But it does change the duration of the program.
Mix and Match preserves original duration, but does so with motion adapters of which the default is considered the best quality for real time performance. Audio is untouched regardless of frame rate – only video is adjusted.
Shane’s suggestion of going to an external recorder is a good one, keeps the real time aspect for file based delivery.
Michael
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I agree with a lot of Shane’s responses, as well as yours. There are advantages to some of the rigid ways Media Composer works, but it doesn’t mean there can’t be improvements that can’t be designed to satisfy both an existing user-base and new methodologies seen in other NLE’s
For example, in addition to just changing the timecode windows above the monitors to looks slicker (neon green), change position with resize, etc. it would have been the perfect opportunity to also add the ability to directly interact with timecode entry for a lot of different purposes; go to, set duration, log timecode offsets into clip in bin, etc. It would also be more intuitive than just clicking to make a window active and start typing – that is a leap of faith.
Same thing with SmartTool – I don’t think anyone denies the need to have direct manipulation in the timeline, but “how” it was implemented didn’t please existing users, nor did it do everything “the new kids” wanted. For example, dragging a clip directly up and down past the window view does not automatically scroll the window – pain in the ass that it doesn’t. Drop the clip, scroll the window, start again… etc. And there is plenty of other “improvements” that thing needs.
Bin as bin are extremely handy when working with other editor and their systems, be it on the same shared storage or across the country. The ability to zip a a bin file, and send it is priceless. But I also recognize the value of AMA and knowing its current limitations work within those.
All of these improvements from Avid are described as being in phases – I just hope they get to Phase 2 on a lot of them (like the Find window…), etc.
Michael
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Not necessarily. Sequence timecode can be drop or non drop depending on what the default settings are set for. If you currently have NDF and want DF, go to the sequence in the bin for START and enter the timecode you want for first frame of sequence and make sure you add ; ; ; for drop.
Michael
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If they are native Avid OMFI MediaFiles, you do not link to them via AMA. You need to ensure that the folder “OMFI MediaFiles” is at the root level of the hard drive (in your example, the C drive).
Once that is done, open the project and the bin with the subclips in it and they should automatically link to the media.
Michael
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Did this work for you in earlier versions? Right now, EDL Manager doesn’t recognize the bin as a valid file when opening, so I can’t even see what the next problem might be. Have you brought this up with Avid support? I don’t know how much love EDL Manager and FilmScribe get these days development wise, but the inability to create an EDL which is commonly used in DI’s as well as you say, network deliverable make it a basic need of the system.
Michael