The best potential quality when exporting.

[TheJetBlack]

So I've shot my feature and I've edited it on FCP. Which type of setting should I put in order for it to have the best quality possible to put onto a DVD and perhaps one day blow up into a 35mm film?


Another question -- feature's done, picture edited, and now I want to send it off to a sound editor/mixer... what format do I export it? And do I export only the sound or the entire also?

Thanks.

 

[robertrogoz]

What sound format is it recorded in? What is your audio guy using for work platform? How long is your movie?

 

[David Saraceno]

What camcorder and sequence settings were used?

 

[TheJetBlack]

What sound format is it recorded in? What is your audio guy using for work platform? How long is your movie?

Uh, we used the RODE VideoMic and that's it. This was a no-budget feature that's 1 hour and 25 minutes.

What camcorder and sequence settings were used?

We used the Canon HV20. And I don't understand what you mean by "sequence settings."

This is my feature:

 

[TheJetBlack]

And I don't believe the trailer displayed the true quality of the camera as I exported the trailer with iMovie as a QuickTime Movie file. Or does it not matter?

 

[Alex H.]

Uh, we used the RODE VideoMic and that's it. This was a no-budget feature that's 1 hour and 25 minutes.

I think what Robert was getting at was if the sound was recorded to camera or to a separate audio recorder, which would define format (16-bit, 48kHz, WAV or AIFF).

For an 85-minute feature, I hope that you edited in reels. An 85-minute sequence is clumsy, and it's going to make getting your audio out to the sound editor a problem. For projects of this length, it is best practice to edit in smaller sequences of about 20 minutes each. Once picture is locked and you have your final mix back, you can create a compilation reel of the entire project.

What you still have not answered is what your audio post facility is using. ProTools? Cubase? Cakewalk? SoundtrackPro? That's a pretty important piece of information.

We used the Canon HV20. And I don't understand what you mean by "sequence settings."]

Okay, so you shot with an HDV camcorder. Did you shoot HDV, or did you use standard-def miniDV? As for "sequence settings," you had to define those when you started your FCP project. That dictates the codec you used to edit. Did you shoot in HDV and edit in ProRes? AIC? HDV? Did you shoot and edit in DV (standard-def)?

 

[David Saraceno]

The sequence setting is the project settings for editing in FCP. The sequence setting is what easy setup you to edit the footage?

Which one did you use?

 

[TheJetBlack]

Okay, so you shot with an HDV camcorder. Did you shoot HDV, or did you use standard-def miniDV? As for "sequence settings," you had to define those when you started your FCP project. That dictates the codec you used to edit. Did you shoot in HDV and edit in ProRes? AIC? HDV? Did you shoot and edit in DV (standard-def)?

I shot in HDV 24p. I think I did ProRes, since I went through Compressor to do the 24p pulldown for my Canon HV20.

For an 85-minute feature, I hope that you edited in reels. An 85-minute sequence is clumsy, and it's going to make getting your audio out to the sound editor a problem. For projects of this length, it is best practice to edit in smaller sequences of about 20 minutes each. Once picture is locked and you have your final mix back, you can create a compilation reel of the entire project.

How do I edit in reels? And in what format do I give the audio to the sound editor?

What you still have not answered is what your audio post facility is using. ProTools? Cubase? Cakewalk? SoundtrackPro? That's a pretty important piece of information.

There was no post facility. It was me playing around with Soundtrack Pro until the sound was good enough to untrained ears. Like mines. lol.

 

[Alex H.]

I shot in HDV 24p. I think I did ProRes, since I went through Compressor to do the 24p pulldown for my Canon HV20.

You think you worked in ProRes? This is something you should know, beyond the shadow of a doubt. You can see what codec your clips are, and what your sequence is using, in your browser in FCP. Just scroll through the columns until you see that information.

Also, I'm not sure why you went through Compressor to remove the pull-down (wasn't even aware that Compressor did this?). CinemaTools is the choice for messing with pull-down outside of FCP. That said, you should have been able to capture your HDV footage to ProRes straight into FCP, and remove pull-down. Also, whether or not you used Compressor does not determine which codec you're using... that is something that you have to select in both Compressor and FCP.

The other benefit of working in reels is that, depending on what you need to do with your audio for the sound editor, certain file exports have file size limits. Cutting the project up keeps each reel under the limit.

How do I edit in reels?

This requires creating several sequences. Each sequence is used to edit 20-or-so minutes of the project. When you hit a natural breaking point around that time, you start a new sequence and pick up the new segment there. It keeps your timeline cleaner, and makes it easier for FCP to keep up with the edits (a long and crowded sequence can slow FCP down, depending on your system specs).

In the old film days, when motion pictures were actually on physical film reels, a reel only held 20-ish minutes of film. That's why, even today in theaters that still show film projection, you'll see the black dots in the corner every 20-ish minutes... the projectionist has to switch to the next reel.

And in what format do I give the audio to the sound editor?

Identify what your sound editor will be using, as far as DAW software (ProTools, Cakewalk, Cubase, Cubase LE, etc.). And, perhaps, your sound editor can give you some specs on what will be needed.

There was no post facility. It was me playing around with Soundtrack Pro until the sound was good enough to untrained ears. Like mines. lol.

Back to the above question and answer, the post facility I was talking about was the sound editor. What will he/she be using? ProTools? Soundtrack Pro? Cubase? You really need to know these things. Answers to questions like that determine how you export your audio for the sound editor.

Also, time you spend in SoundtrackPro isn't very fruitful if you are sending your project on to some one else for audio post.

 

[TheJetBlack]

Also, I'm not sure why you went through Compressor to remove the pull-down (wasn't even aware that Compressor did this?)

I just followed this here for some of my work: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2410

(so am I not achieving true 24p?)

Identify what your sound editor will be using, as far as DAW software (ProTools, Cakewalk, Cubase, Cubase LE, etc.). And, perhaps, your sound editor can give you some specs on what will be needed.

Back to the above question and answer, the post facility I was talking about was the sound editor. What will he/she be using? ProTools? Soundtrack Pro? Cubase? You really need to know these things. Answers to questions like that determine how you export your audio for the sound editor.

That makes sense, but what's the common format or what's usually requested? For example, if the sound editor used SoundTrack Pro.

You think you worked in ProRes? This is something you should know, beyond the shadow of a doubt. You can see what codec your clips are, and what your sequence is using, in your browser in FCP. Just scroll through the columns until you see that information.

I didn't really try to learn FCP. I honestly winged it. Here's what went down. I edited my feature on iMovie and then my friend buys me FCP as a gift. So, I exported my feature from iMovie to FCP as an XML file and did some work in FCP.

This requires creating several sequences. Each sequence is used to edit 20-or-so minutes of the project. When you hit a natural breaking point around that time, you start a new sequence and pick up the new segment there. It keeps your timeline cleaner, and makes it easier for FCP to keep up with the edits (a long and crowded sequence can slow FCP down, depending on your system specs).

I didn't know that. Thanks. I will look up tutorials or if you have any easy-to-understand videos -- that'd be great.

 

[J Davis]

To answer the original question.

The best potential quality when exporting.

... is to choose File > export quicktime movie

This will export your movie at whatever codec / frame rate that you've set your sequence to be.
Words from the esteemed fcp guru Larry Jordan "Never choose export with quicktime conversion, FCP is a great editor but a lousy compressor, use the application Compressor for that."

Now you only have to worry about getting your sequence settings correct and that you have ingested your source footage correctly.

 

[Alex H.]

I just followed this here for some of my work: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2410

(so am I not achieving true 24p?)

According to that step-by-step, you are using ProRes and you are in 24p. Again, you can easily confirm that by reading the clip and sequence properties in the FCP browser window's columns.

That makes sense, but what's the common format or what's usually requested? For example, if the sound editor used SoundTrack Pro.

Sigh... one more time. The process for getting the sound from FCP to your sound editor is very much dependent on what your sound editor uses (software) and requires (files). Why haven't I answered that question yet? Because you have not identified if it's ProTools or STP. Unless, by "for example" in the above quote you are indicating that your sound editor will be using Soundtrack Pro?

Look... the software matters. FCP can export straight to a STP project. For ProTools, it's a completely different process that includes exporting an OMF and creating a compressed version of the video for reference. Compressed to what specs, you may ask? Ask your sound editor. Be warned, though... OMF has a file size limit and your 80-minute project may go beyond that. And if your sound editor is using a program that is not STP and cannot open an OMF, you're going to have a fun time getting the sound out.

I didn't really try to learn FCP. I honestly winged it. Here's what went down. I edited my feature on iMovie and then my friend buys me FCP as a gift. So, I exported my feature from iMovie to FCP as an XML file and did some work in FCP.

I've never dealt with that iMovie>FCP workflow, so I can't say firsthand what that does to the project. However, I would imagine that the FCP project incorporates the same ProRes files. So for your video, as has been mentioned by J Davis, just go to File>Export>Quicktime Movie and use current project settings for a self-contained FCP movie. Once you've exported that file, you can use Compressor to convert it as needed.

 

[J Davis]

Hey TheJetBlack ... people on the forum want to help you but we could help you better if you do two things. In final cut pro, you see the timeline down the bottom?
Click on it and then hit Command-0 (thats zero not oh) and take a screenshot of the resulting sequence settings window

Then control-click on one of the video clips in the timeline and a window will pop up, select 'item properties' then 'format' and take another screen shot of the resulting window.

Post these two screenshots on this thread then everyone will have a clear picture of how your sequence is set up and what type of media you have on the timeline

 

[David Saraceno]

Again, one of the first questions I asked was what your sequence settings were.

This a basic and critical piece of information affecting much of what you produce.

Help us out.