First Fridays Workflow for Interns

You will be creating the following versions and variations of your "First Fridays" episode - each as a different sequence:

Folder Management

1. Log into the FirstFridays08 partition on the server (see staff for the password)
2. Go to the Desktop > First Fridays
3. Create new Episode Folder: e.g., "ep14_jan08"
4. Create 2 Folders inside of the Episode Folder "Media Files" & "Project Files"
5. Set Scratch Discs (ALWAYS remember to do this every time you open your project!) Menu: Final Cut Pro > System Settings Set everything to your "Media Files" folder, except "Autosave Vault" which gets set to the "Project Files" folder.
6. Save your project to "Project Files."

Log and Capture

1. Create a new bin in the Browser (File > New > Bin, or Apple+B). Name it "Raw Footage"
2. Initiate Log and Capture (File > Log and Capture, or Apple+8)
3. Under the "Logging" tab, Log Bin is "Raw Footage," and name each tape in the "Reel" field "Tape 1," "B-roll," etc.
4. Under the "Capture Settings" tab, Device Control: FireWire NTSC, Capture/Input: DV NTSC 48 kHz
5. The easiest way to capture whole tapes is to start the tape in the Mini DV deck (you may want to Fast Forward and Rewind through the tape first), make sure the tape is playing in the Log and Capture Preview Window, Then hit the "Capture Now" button. A preview window will open showing the footage you are capturing.

Troubleshooting: If you have problems with "drop frame errors", etc it sometimes works better to capture the entire tape to the Internal HD of the system you are working on and then moving it onto the network drive (FirstFridays08) and into your Media Files folder. Ann, Deb, or Tony can tell you how to do this using the shared folder.

Getting Clips from DVD Using MPEG Streamclip

There will most likely be breaks in the content between tapes. You can use MPEG Streamclip to convert clips of the missing portions of the show from DVD.

1. Insert DVD
2. Open MPEG Streamclip
3. Drag DVD icon into the MPEG Streamclip viewer
4. You may see "Warning: the stream may contain Timecode breaks." Choose FIX NOW and then click PROCEED. If you are not prompted to do this, go to Edit>Fix Timecode Breaks. Select PROCEED. This will take a few minutes to complete.
5. Set the IN "I" and OUT "O" points where the clip should begin and end
6. Press Command and "T" or go to EDIT< TRIM in the Menu bar
7. From the file menu, choose the option to export to Quicktime
8. Compression should be set to "Apple DV/DVCPRO - NTSC; Quality: 100%; Frame Size: 720 x 480
9. Select "Make Movie" and save to your capture folder

What if the show is running long?

After the initial assembly and trims, you may find that the show still needs some significant cutting for time. There may be individual numbers or whole sequences that can come out, but you should probably consult with Tony at this point. Here is an example email:

Hi Tony,
I made some initial cuts, and it still needs to lose about a half hour.
Here are my recommendations for segments to chop - times approximate, in order of expendability:
KGNU: 10 mins. - very static, and they are talking about events that will probably have come and gone by the time this airs.
Bunny Trailer/Elephant's Dream - 15 mins.: This got accidentally interrupted and resumed during the broadcast anyway.
Mike Wesch Film - 10 mins.: I like this, and it fits with the theme, but there's no real easy way to cut around it, either going in or coming out. But I'd definitely cut other stuff first in terms of content.
Etc.

Color Correction

Color-correcting individual shots takes a lot of time, and thus most color-correction is done to the entire project as a final step. But if its necessary on individual clips, Double click the clip you want to apply color correction to, so that it appears in the viewer. Go to Effects > Video Filters > Color Correction > and choose Color Corrector or the 3-way Color Corrector. A tab with that name will appear in the viewer, with color correction tools. Be sure that you are viewing your changes on an NTSC monitor.

Tip: There is a "Drag Filter" control in the upper left hand corner of the Color Corrector. By dragging this icon to a clip on the timeline, you can apply the same filter and settings to that clip.

Audio Normalizing

You want to normalize the audio so that it is at approximately "-12db". While the audio should never completely peak (triggering the red dots at the top of the Audio Meters) it can bounce around a bit; the goal is not to create perfectly flat levels, but to create an average level of -12.

To do this, make cuts in your audio track and raise and lower the entire clip's audio level. Extensive audio leveling is generally not required.

If you have maxed out the audio levels and the audio is still under -12db, you can boost the volume by adding "Gain."  To do this, highlight the clip you want to add volume to then in the top tool bar click Effects > Audio Transitions > Final Cut Pro > Gain.  Then in your viewer for the clip click on the "Filters" tab.  Scroll down until you see a Gain meter and adjust it accordingly.

Creating Chapter Stops

You can set Chapter Markers at the exact position of your playhead by clicking the "M" key (make sure no clips are selected).  Then press "M" again and a window will pop up where you can title the chapter.  Name the marker (Chapter 1). Click Add Chapter Marker, then click OK. Repeat for each chapter.

To delete a marker, drag the timeline marker to it (make sure it shows up in the window where you watch your timeline) and click "M."  The window will show up again and give you the option to delete the marker.

Adding Credits

You'll need to revise the credit

Either have deb or Ann invite you to the FF Credits Google Doc, or visit here

Once you get them, click the Effects tab and go Video Generators > Text > Scrolling Text.  Then copy and paste the credits in here.

Finishing

Be sure to apply a Broadcast Safe filter when you are completely finished editing and render the entire sequence. We also suggest you apply a final 3-way color corrector to the entire project (either by selecting all the clips, or by nesting them and applying the filter to the nest). Generally, a slight drop to darken the blacks only, and a slight increase in saturation will result in a better-quality final video. Highlight all the clips in your sequence (Apple + A) and go to Effects > Video Filters > Color Correction > and choose Broadcast Safe.

With the filter applied to all your clips, click on a part of the timeline with no tracks, so that no clips are selected. Go to Sequence > Render All > and choose Both. It will take a while to render the entire sequence with the Broadcast Safe filter applied.

Exporting for Broadcast

Export your sequence using the following path:
File>Export>using Quicktime Conversion

Change the following Video settings
"Compression" > DV/DVCPRO-NTSC
"Compressor Quality" > Best

Change the following Sound settings
check the box next to "Little Endian"

Also, uncheck the box next to "Prepare for Internet Streaming"

Export to your media folder.

Exporting DVD Version Using the Compressor

**This step is optional unless the DVD version of the project is longer than 118 minutes**

File > Export > Using Compressor. In the Batch tab you should see your project. There will be a button in the Setting field with two arrows. Choose DVD Best Quality 150 Minutes 4:3 > Dolby 2.0, then choose also DVD Best Quality 120 Minutes 4:3 > MPEG-2.50Mbps 2-pass 4:3.

Next, set the destination source for both items: choose Other, and create a new folder in your Final Cut project file for the DVD version and choose Open. Then choose Submit in the Batch tab. This should open the Batch Monitor, which will show you the progress while these files are being created.

Exporting Selects

Export selects as Quicktime files (as above) and then convert them into Flash files using the Flash Video Encoder to reduce their file size for quick uploading and processing. Then post them on to both MySpace and YouTube. (See either Deb or Tony for usernames and passwords)

Ingesting

Make sure the exported file is named properly. Use the format of "FF_month_year_title" making sure to use no spaces or symbols other than _underscores and -dashes. Then you have to choices. Either log in to the DOM Ingest user on stations 1-5 and copy the video locally to the Ingest drive. Or connect to the Ingest drive through the network by going to "All..." under the shared tab in the finder sidebar. Then connecting to doms1 as DOMadmin (See staff for password).

DOMinizing

Steps for the old DOM website; here

Follow the DVD-Studio Pro quickguide, Making sure to have markers and/or menu items to skip to individual performances. Always burn one copy for records on top of however many are requested by performers.