Pro tools post production workflow

Once they are in place, give it a watch through with the mix that is in the video file. The video editor will likely have some sort of mix, and this will be a good guide for what you need to do. This also helps if there is any extra Dx laying around seemingly randomly.

Its more than likely they used some off-camera dialog and comped it into a different take for creative reasons, and this is something that you obviously need to replicate just with more finesse.

Since you are likely the only person working on this in your Dx edit, I would noise reduce the more problematic files at this point seeing as you need to comb through them anyway. Since you are the Dx editor and re-recording mixer, in my experience, it is far more convenient to deal with noise reduction at this point, and it will save you time not needing to deal with creating large handles for your Dx edit that would otherwise need to be done if you were handing it off to a different Dx mixer.

If any big changes might come down the line later, it could very well be worth it to go the old fashion way and create handles for each bit of the Dx. The aim of the Dx edit is to choose the best option s between boom and lav mics for the dialogue, to make sure everything that is said has the most appropriate mic s chosen for that moment.

Is the intent of the scene to be spying on the person in the car, where a more natural sound like the boom would pick up better, or are we supposed to be in the car with the person in their conversation, in which case the lav would likely be a better choice. Even if a more natural sound per the location of the camera is warranted, you will still need to make sure the intelligibility is there, so what is said can easily be understood. This will save some time for whoever is mixing it which will likely be YOU , so taking care of this in your Dx session is just something that will make your life a little bit easier before you get into the complexity of the main mix session.

Once the Dx edit is complete, I import the session data from the Dx edit session into my main mix session and create a mono Dx guide so I can start working on music. Once this is created, I start working on editing and writing music. I then import these newly printed tracks into my mix session using Import Session Data and fix the routing so they go to the correct location. Also in this step, I import any sync music that I was given to edit in my music session.

For example, in the web series I mentioned earlier, I was both composing original music for the show and incorporating source music that they wanted to use in the show.

With the music written, edited and imported into the mix template, it is time to do the SFX and foley. The approach I have taken so far on all of my projects is to first lay down my ambience tracks, then work on foley sounds i. For both Foley and SFX, I tend to get the linear placement correct, then the volume typically through clip gain , and then the panning placement.

My goal in mixing is to make it sound as if we had just set up a camera and captured all of it as if it all happened in real life this way. You want to create an environment that makes sense for the story you are trying to tell. Now I am not advocating for everything to be as real as possible, but there should always be a reason for making things sound the way they do.

So when the main character wakes up, the viewer can retroactively realise that this was a dream, and now we are in reality. This is the point of the mix, to help tell the story and to augment it. You want everything to sound both loud enough to hear but appropriate for the setting on screen, and the 2 or 3-dimensional placement of sound elements should both make sense and help set the scene or help tell the story. See my raven example earlier.

This is the balance that you will spend most of your time working on when doing the final mix, in addition to dealing with any other surprises that show up at this stage i. In the end, you are here to help make this story possible, a cog in the visual storytelling machine.

Look for another way to accomplish their goal, from a different direction, as it may be possible, and produce the same result. Similarly, a shareable shooting schedule, complete with version tracking, means everyone on set is up to date to the second a change is made, and in turn, the assistant editor can do their job like the pro he or she is.

Of course, the assistant editor can also be likened to the gatekeeper who guards the maker of post-production magic: the editor. The editor must be free to focus on the job of creating the edit and this means the assistant editor must act as a go-between and keep the busy work away from their charge. So for the assistant editor, liaising with the DIT and script supervisor to get their hands on that raw footage is the aim of the game. If your set is super-organized and efficient, then the whole post-production workflow is going to be just as slick, too.

It makes perfect sense to follow-up a beautifully organized production phase with a similarly beautifully organized post-production workflow. Editing is less about moving parts and more about the calm and objective compilation of the finished film. This is the bit where things should get a little smoother and less abstract, but there are plenty of pitfalls and stresses to be avoided nonetheless.

Poorly organized production schedules mean that shoots go over time, and when shoots go over time, costs rise and overall quality often dip. Having both aspects in place also helps to smooth out any inevitable bumps in the road and allows you to meet completion deadlines and get your film out there.

After the madness of the shooting phase is finished and forgotten, many an editor, unsurprisingly, will argue that this is when the real work gets started. In summary, great production documentation that is organized, up-to-date, and clear is always going to make the post-production process smoother for everyone concerned.

Making sure that everyone is on the same page, and communication is efficient, clear and productive, is the best way to meet those final deadlines and finish your film. We all know that getting a film to completion is no easy feat — there are plenty of films in permanent pre-production that will attest to that.

Thankfully, a brilliant idea, coupled with great people, and fantastic organization are the simple ingredients needed to make sure your film makes it to completion and its ultimate destination — during every phase of its creation. Having the right production management software sets the tone for how organized and efficient your shoot will be.

Yet with so many options out there, how will find the best one? Check out our analysis of the 6 best production management software tools, and start planning your project today. Create robust and customizable shot lists. Upload images to make storyboards and slideshows.

Previous Post. Next Post. A visual medium requires visual methods. Master the art of visual storytelling with our FREE video series on directing and filmmaking techniques.

More and more people are flocking to the small screen to find daily entertainment. So how can you break put from the pack and get your idea onto the small screen? After a base conform is complete — they now have a Online Edit that matches the Offline Edit with higher quality footage.

Then they begin doing the VFX — sometimes they work in conjunction with Offline Graphics — who can make higher res versions that the Conform can incorporate into the Online Edit. All this is planned ahead of time. VFX can be done in Offline but most of the time that is used as a reference for the Conform to then recreate using the color graded source media from the Colorist. And it gives the client more time to make further tweaks and adjustments they were unable to in Offline.

Once the Conform is complete you now have to marry it with the Final Mix from the Audio team. When the audio house makes their Final Mix using a DAW a Digital Audio Workstation like Pro-Tools — they almost never have good quality picture — they need a locked cut — not a high quality cut. These would include the Mix and Splits.

The Mix is the audio all together into one file whereas the Splits are all the separate audio tracks of the Mix split out. The Final Picture, while sounding like the final part of post-production, still needs approval and tweaks before being approved.

And that client is also answering to investors or another client. And then the Post House will hire vendors to do specific tasks for a job. And with the revolution of digital workflows — this entire approval process has changed. An utter impossibility not 15 years ago — but last second changes are becoming more the norm. This is typically where most Post Production Workflows end — but lately many digital platforms have decided to have their own specifications for media output.

So the Final Picture gets made into a Master which is used to create deliverables for all the various platforms they will inevitably live on. Following all the elements of this workflow you can stay organized and manage your video production and video editing process in a smooth and timely manner. Home Film Making. Storage The other most important factor for a post product workflow is storage.

Storage is an absolute necessity — not only for the footage and materials from Production — but also for all the inevitable offshoots derived from the source media, such as: Backup Copy of Raw Footage Dailies Copy of Dailies for Editors and Assistants Rough Cuts Breakdowns and String-outs of Selects Etc. Step 2 — Coordinate with Production Team Now that we have our storage and a file naming convention — we can receive footage from production.

They need to collaborate with multiple teams and vendors, including: Audio House — The audio or sound team consists of sound engineers that work on things such sound editing, audio quality, background noise, sound mixing, sound effects, etc. Colorists and Color Correction The Colorist is a specialist that manipulates the source media to enhance the representation of light and color of the footage i.