Conform or export? This short guide shows what I need from you so the grade can start quickly, cleanly and without a string of phone calls.
If you only want the essentials, jump to the end: the quick checklist and the glossary are there.
Your material can reach me in two ways. Which one is better depends on the project, but whichever we choose, we know up front what it takes.
I rebuild your edit on the original camera files. That means no extra compression, and the image quality stays as high as it can be.
I grade what the editor delivers. It is quick and simple, but the quality of the export decides everything, so it is worth setting up well.
Whichever path we take, the first thing I ask for is a reference cut. It shows me what your film is about, which tasks are ahead, and which workflow gets us to the best result fastest. Its most important job, though, is that the burned-in data lets me work out what went wrong on my own, without involving you.
From the original file name I can see the camera model, so I can prepare for its quirks. If a shot will not relink, I can find the file by hand, no phone call needed.
The value of the camera's internal clock. For frame or interpolation issues, or wrongly relinked moments, it gives a reliable reference.
The position of the shot within the sequence. If something goes wrong, it is the first compass.
Keep the original: 16:9, 2.35:1 or whatever your film is. With letterboxing, include the black bars.
Anything works: 720p, 1080p or UHD. The picture is not for grading, only for checking.
A regular H.264 or H.265 export is more than enough.
The LUT, text and logo can stay, everything just as you see it in the edit.
The simpler the timeline structure, the more easily the interchange format collects the data, and the more likely your edit relinks flawlessly in another program on the first try. A few minutes of cleanup that save days.
After picture lock, flatten the timeline so I get the cleanest possible structure.
Anything the interchange format cannot carry is lost. Crossfades can safely stay.
If you used time remapping, note it on the reference cut as well, for example in text: from here to here 20-30%.
Flatten multicam, group, nested and collapsed elements. In Avid this is Commit Multicam Edits, in Premiere it is Flatten Multicam.
Keep only the original or proxy media on V1. Everything else, meaning VFX, text and composites, goes on V2 or above.
Delete unnecessary match frame edits so clips are only cut where there is a real cut.
If you made the proxies in Resolve or another program, the reel name and source timecode must be in the metadata. This cannot be added afterwards.
If we do not conform, your export is the basis of the grade. A poorly rendered file can cause strange, hard-to-fix problems, so it pays to set it up well from the start.
Choose a codec of equal or higher quality than the original. On Mac, ProRes 4444 XQ or HQ is ideal; on Windows, DNxHR 444 or DNxHR HQX.
Check the bit depth of the source and export with at least as many bits: 8, 10 or 12. At a lower bit depth the image loses its fine gradations.
The export should be free of LUTs, color corrections and any other image changes. The goal is to stay as close as possible to what the camera recorded.
If your cut has them, do not worry, leave them in. That is a creative decision and does not affect the colors. We will talk about special cases anyway.
If a crossfade sits where the relationship between shot A and B could still change after grading (a packshot, for example), we treat it as a VFX shot. Then its full content, both A and B, must be delivered.
I receive a single video file, not clips. The EDL lets me cut the file at each edit point, and the reference cut lets me rebuild the sequence.
Interchange formats generally handle only a few things reliably. Anything beyond that is called a VFX-level operation and needs extra attention. A short chat clears everything up.
Scale, position, rotation, time remapping (speed) and crossfades.
Composites, split screens, masks, crops, text and anything else not on the previous list.
That way I see which clip needs special attention. Keep V1 for the original media.
Write the scale and speed change on it. For split screens, give each half its own marking.
Always talk to me in person about delivering VFX shots, element by element if needed.
Do not feel like reading everything? No problem. Tick through the right column and we can get started.
If we work from the original media, I will need these.
If you hand over the finished cut, I need these.
Some of the shop talk is a mystery at first. Here is a short dictionary of the most common terms.
If you are unsure which path suits your project, or you got stuck somewhere, just write to me. I am happy to talk it through before you start.
