Here are some guidelines & policies as you begin location scouting for your project.
Location Searching
You can do a virtual scout through Google maps/street view. If you need to know who owns a particular property, you can do a search on the Leon County Property Appraiser site. Searching by address, or pointing to it on a map, will show you who owns the property. Then you’ll need to do some more google-sleuthing to find out their contact info.
You can also look for locations by driving around and just showing up at the location to ask in person. Be considerate of the time of day (e.g. if it’s a home, then not too early in the morning nor after dark; if it’s a restaurant, not during their lunch rush).
We do not currently have a searchable location database. If you know of a location that was used in a previous project, you can find that project in Motion and find the location info under the Location tab for that project.
COVID-19 Protocols
Be particularly vigilant about following covid protocols. Here is some more info on this in the handbook.
When showing up at someone’s home, be sure to take safety precautions. Not everyone appreciates having strangers show up at their front door. Being able to show some credentials will help identify you as a film student.
Here is a link to our Location Pamphlet in the handbook that you can print and hand out to them.
You should also have your student ID on you for further identification.
You can also check out from the ER a large car magnet with the FSU logo and “Location Scouting Vehicle” on it that you can put on your car door.
Consider going in pairs so you know someone’s got your back.
Communication
Always be professional and courteous. Remember that you’re asking them to do you a big favor. Be sure to discuss:
all of the logistics involved
the content of the script (especially if there may be anything objectionable)
the dates (not just production, but pre-pro also for tech scouting, set dressing, shot designing, photoboarding, etc)
the spaces you want to use (not just set, but also all the equipment staging areas, greenroom, craft services, parking, etc)
Location Rental fees
Historically, we have seldom had to pay to use a location. Most of the time, people have been very generous in allowing us to film without charging us anything. The exception to this may be for places that normally charge for their use (e.g. a hotel room), or that require that you pay one of their employees to be there on the shoot date (e.g. at a business). If they do want to charge you, make sure you’re clear on what the rate will be.
Documentation
While location scouting, be sure to complete a Location Hazard Assessment form. This will help you identify any hazards that may be at that location. If there are any, and you’re still planning to use that location then you must also complete a Hazard Notification form for each hazard, detailing how the production will deal with the hazard in a safe manner.
Ask the location owner the questions that are listed on the Location Shooting Plan Agreement and fill in the answers they give you. Do not give them a blank form and ask them to fill it out for you. Then have them sign on page 2 and give them a copy of this form for their reference. You will also complete and have them sign a Location Agreement.
Location Search Responsibilities
Typically on most projects, searching for locations is a team effort, led mostly by the Director and Producer, though other pre-pro crew members can certainly assist. It is fine if someone other than the Producer makes initial contact with the location owner, but the Producer should be the one who completes all of the paperwork with them.
Link, Modify, and Transcode Footage into Media Composer
Import Audio into Media Composer
Synchronize Audio and Video
Organize footage in Avid bins
Assemble dailies string out
Export and upload to Frame.io
Media Composer Project
Make sure your “Show Volume” is mounted and navigate to your show folder and launch the media composer project.
When it opens you will see the project template. These folders and bins must be maintained and kept organized.
Before you begin double check the “Media Creation Settings”. Go to preferences, project tab, and then Media Creation.
In the Media Creation window make sure you select:
-DNxHD SQ for Video Resolution
-Your Show Volume for the Video and Audio Drive
Select Apply to All for everything and then click Okay.
Link, Modify, and Transcode Footage
Open the Linked OCF bin.
Right click inside the bin and select Import – Source Browser.
Inside the Source Browser navigate to to a days worth of OCF, make sure the Link icon is selected, and then click Link.
This will “Link” all of the select footage into the bin. Notice the icons a linked chain letting you know this is not Avid Media yet but only linked to the OCF on the CMPAFilmPost Server.
Highlight all of the linked files in the bin by hitting “Command + A”. Then right click on a clip and select “Source Settings”. This will open the “Source Settings” window. You will use the Color Encoding tab to apply a Look Up Table (LUT) to the OCF which is in Log. Then you will use the FrameFlex tab to set the proper aspect ratio.
In the Color Encoding Tab set the Color Adapter Type to “User Installed LUTs”
Then select your shows LUT from the list. Unless otherwise instructed by production you will use the default LUT which is Medium Contrast and Medium Size shown below.
Then click “Add” and then “Apply to All”. This will change all of your linked footage from looking like a LOG video file (washed out and without contrast) to looking like a 709 video file (saturated and with contrast). This is what the DP would have been viewing on set.
Next use the FrameFlex Tab to set the proper aspect ratio. The only two options you need to modify are the “Frame Aspect Ratio” and the “Reformat” drop down menu shown with red arrows below.
The “Frame Aspect Ratio” will be set to one of the three approved aspect ratios of either 1.85:1, 2.39:1, or 1.375:1. Check with the production to see what aspect ratio they framed for.
The “Reformat” drop down should be set to Pillarbox/Letterbox.
Click “Apply to All”.
Changing these two parameters will ensure that when new Avid Media is created that is 1920×1080 it will have the correct aspect ratio burned in.
Now that all of your linked media has the proper color and framing its time to transcode to Avid Media. Highlight all of the linked files in the bin by hitting “Command + A”. Then right click on a clip and select “Consolidate/Transcode”.
This will open the “Consolidate/Transcode” window.
Study the options with the red arrows shown below. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT as it determines the kind of media that will be transcoded and used for editing in Media Composer.
The radial button in the top left should be set to “Transcode” You should select your show volume under target drive. DO NOT SELECT CMPAFilmPost. Then double check all of the red arrows on the right.
Once everything is set properly you can click “Transcode”. This process will take a few minutes as it generates new Avid Media so take a break and relax.
When the transcode is finished you will notice that now you have two versions of everything in your bin. One is a linked OCF and the other is Transcoded MXF Avid Media.
Move the Transcode MXF media to the proper bin.
Import Audio
Open the Transcoded Production Audio bin.
Use the source browser like before and navigate to the proper folder on the CMPAFilmPost Server and select all the production audio. Only this time you will directly “Import” the audio instead of “Linking” to it first. Make sure you study the red arrows below and then click “Import”
Before it begins transcoding it will ask you about audio start times. Make sure it is set to “24” and then click “Okay to all”.
When the transcode is finished you will have Master clips of all your production audio.
Synchronize Audio and Video
Too synchronize Master audio clips and Master video clips they need to be placed in the same bin. Move the days worth of audio and video together into the “Synching Bin”.
Select all the audio and video clips in the syncing bin and then right click and select “AutoSync” from the dropdown menu. The “Sync Selection” window will appear. Make sure you have “Source timecode” selected and then click okay.
This make make a sub clip out of every audio and video clip that had matching timecode. Anything that did not sync because it couldn’t find a pair with matching timecode will be left highlighted.
Change the clip color of these to make it easier to keep track of.
In the example below. You will see two audio master clips that didn’t sync to anything because they are Room Tone. One Audio master clip taht didn’t sync to anything because it was a bump take. And two Video Master clips that didn’t sync to anything because they are MOS.
Move the Master clips out of the synching bin and into their proper bins.
This will leave only the sync sub clips in the synching bin. If you did have any MOS Master clips make subclass of them in the Synching Bin.
Now you need to check the sync of each clip by opening it in the source monitor and scrubbing through the slate. It you switch the timeline to reflect the source monitor using the button shown below it will be easier since you will be able to see the waveforms of the punch sub clip.
As you go through checking synch on each subclip you should cross reference them against the physical camera report to make sure you have everything. This is also the time taht you cane rename the subclass to reflect the shot name as written on the slate.
Organize Footage in Avid Bins
Once everything is renamed you can move the subclips out of the synching bin and into the appropriate scene bin.
Switch the view in the scene bin to the thumbnail view.
Then drag the thumbnail around and organize each scene bin into rows of setups and columns of takes.
Next you will need to change the thumbnail for each one. By default the thumbnail is the first frame of video which is not helpful to an editor as its normally blocked by the slate. You can change the thumbnail by single clicking on the clip and then scrubbing with the JKL keys. Wherever you stop scrubbing that thumbnail will bye saved.
If a setup has only one take set the thumbnail to what the majority of the shot represents. If a setup has multiple takes set the early takes to the beginning of the action and the last takes to the end of the action.
In this way the editor can see at a glance what the motion of the camera or changing of the blocking is by looking across the different takes.
Assemble Dailies String Out
Open the correct dailies stringent sequence based on the day of production you are working on.
Assemble the days rushes into the dailies string out in shooting order. To do this reference the physical camera report and insert each shot into the sequence in the same order as it says it was captured on the day of production.
Insert a 5 second slate at the begin of the sequence and using the Avid Title tool fill in the slate with all the information shown in the example below.
Inside the Avid Effects Bin you will find a Dailies Timecode Burn-In effect.
Apply this effect to the fill in the labeled video track and make sure you are monitoring on that track as well.
You will see in the Program Monitor that your Dailies string out now has timecode and shot names burned in.
Export and Upload to Frame.io
Mark in to out for the entire timeline and select all the video and audio tracks.
Right click in the program monitor and select export.
Check that the name of the file is correct, that its going the proper folder on your show volume, and that you are using the correct export setting.
When the export is complete you should open it in quicktime player and check to make sure everything is correct. Then upload to the proper folder on frame.io.
When you are all done save your bins and close the project.
For both sound and color turnover you will need to export a Reference Video from Media Composer with the name of the project and timecode burnt in.
Mount your show volume and launch your Media Composer project. Open the”Locked “Sequences” bin. Select your locked sequence and hit Command+D to duplicate the sequence. Then rename the new sequence “Show#_Locked_Refernce_Video”.
Search the Effects Pallet for “Timecode” and you will find the TimeCode Burn in Generator.
Apple the effect to track “V6/Timecode Overlay”.
Using the Effects Editor set Display 1 to Timecode and Display 2 to Sequence Name.
Under the Appearance drop down menu set the font size to 40. Then use the Position X and Y controls to move the bun ins around. Place the Sequence name centered at the top of the screen and the Timecode centered at the bottom of the screen.
You are now ready to export the entire sequence as a quicktime reference video. Select in to out for the whole sequence and activate all tracks.
Then right click bin the record window and select “Export”.
Point the export to the “Video Reference” folder under “Sound” on your show volume. Then check that the name of the export will be correct. Finally select the “Reference Video” preset. Before exporting double check he preset by click “options” and make sure the settings are exactly as shown in the example below.
When the export is complete open it in quicktime player to make sure everything is okay. After confirming taht the Reference Video is good, copy and paste it into the “Reference “Video” folder under “Color” as well, so that it is in both places.
Export AAF for ProTools
Next you will need to export an AAF from Media Composer with all of your sound tracks so that they can be translated into ProTools. ProTools will use the exact same media in the Avid Media Files Folder as Media Composer does so the AAF only needs describe the audio tracks and tell ProTools where to look for the media.
Select your locked sequence again and hit Command+D to duplicate tit. Then rename the new sequence “Show#_Locked_Sound_Turnover”. Select in to out for the whole sequence and activate all tracks. Then right click the record window and select “Export”.
Point the export to the “AAF” folder under “Sound” on your show volume. Then check that the name of the export will be correct. Finally select the “Sound Turnover” preset. Before exporting double check the preset by click “options” and make sure the settings are exactly as shown in the example below.
When the AAF is done exporting Media Composer will automatically import it back into the “Locked Sequence” bin. If you open the sequence you will see that the AAF is only translating what is on the Audio tracks which is all ProTools will need.
Export AAF for Resolve
Next you will need to export an AAF from Media Composer with all of your picture tracks so that they can be translated into Davinci Resolve. Media Composer has been working with transcoded “Offline Media” but Resolve will “Online” back to the Original Camera Files (OCF). The AAF only needs describe the picture tracks in such a way that Resolve can link back to the Camera Originals.
Select your locked sequence again and hit Command+D to duplicate tit. Then rename the new sequence “Show#_Locked_Color_Turnover”. Select in to out for the whole sequence and activate all tracks. Then right click the record window and select “Export”.
Point the export to the “AAF” folder under “Color” on your show volume. Then check that the name of the export will be correct. Finally select the “Color Turnover” preset. Before exporting double check the preset by click “options” and make sure the settings are exactly as shown in the example below.
When the AAF is done exporting Media Composer will automatically import it back into the “Locked Sequence” bin. If you open the sequence you will see that the AAF is only translating what is on the picture tracks which is all Davinci Resolve will need.
Save and close Media Composer.
Conform in Davinci Resolve
On the Post Hall Davinci Resolve is a bit different from other applications like Media Composer or ProTools in that the project file always lives locally and not on the main CMPA Server or your show volume. The project will reference media that lives on the server but the project itself will always live locally. Because of this if you ever open a Resolve project from a location on the server it will copy that project locally and then open it.
On your show volume navigate to the “Resolve Template” project as shown in the the example below. Double click on the project and it will copy to your local machine and open.
The project will named whatever the template was originally named on our show volume. To change this go to “File” and then “Save Project As”. Rename the project “Show#_Conform”.
Davinci Resolve is made up of several “pages” which you can switch between by selecting them across the bottom of th screen. To begin with select “Media”.
The Media page has a section on top that will allow you to navigate through the finder to locate any media you would like to import in. Below that is the Media Pool which already has several folders made.
To import most things it’s as easy as draging from the finder down to an open folder in the Media Pool. The first thing to import are the credits and titles. These should be either DPX or PNG image sequences. Resolve will display the image sequence as a single file in the finder. Drag them into the media pool Credits folder as show below.
Next import all of the OCF into the media pool. Yes this mean importing everything taht was shoot for your show into the project. The easiest way to do this is to drag the folder with your show# OCF into the media pool. Doing so will import everything inside all the folders.
Next we need to import the “Reference Video” that was exported from Media Composer. However DO NOT drag it into the Media Pool.
It needs to be imported in a special way so that it can come into Resolve as an “Offline Reference Clip”. To do that first select the “Reference” folder in the media pool so that it is open. Then right click on the Reference Video and select “Add as Offline Reference Clip”. That will add it to the media pool but as a “Offline Reference Clip”.
Finally you will need to import the AAF that was exported from Media Composer to recreate your locked sequence in Resolve. Select the “Sequences” folder and then right click inside of it and select “Import AAF”.
In the window that appears navigate to the “Color” folder on your show volume and select the AAF file.
The “Load AAF” window will appear. Fill this out carefully paying attention to the example below. Change the timeline name to your show#_Conform. Change the starting timecode to 00:59:00:00. Make sure that the options pointed out below are either select or deselected as shown.
When you select okay a window will appear asking where in the project it should look for eh media the AAF is referencing. The correct box is already checked so simply click OK.
Next the sequence will load in Resolve and all of your Front Sequence, OCF, and Credits should all be linked. You will see a Log detailing if anything from the AAF was unable to be translated. Taking a picture of this is never a bad idea as it can help you later in the conform.
In the example below it simply says that the Avid Titler Tool used for the slate in the front sequence cannot be translated so taht will be left blank. It also say the 2DMatteKey used on the widescreen matte is not supported. And finally taht the Matte itself failed to link. None of these are a problem and are normal.
Since the Matte on video track 5 failed to import you can go ahead and delete. In a moment you will reapply it another way. To clean up some of the empty tracks in Resolve right click in the darker part of a track and select “Delete Empty Tracks”.
After deleting the offline matte and cleaning up the empty tracks your timeline should look simpler like the example below.
To reapply the Matte that was deleted inside Resolve go to the top of the screen and select “Timeline” and all the way at the bottom under “Output Blanking” you can select your aspect ratio.
Next you will need to link your sequence to the “Offline Reference Clip”. In the “Edit” page right click on the sequence and select your Reference Video.
Nothing immediately will happen. In order to view the reference video simultaneously with what’s in the timeline you will need to switch from “Source” to “Offline”. This will change what is displayed on the left hand screen.
With the left hand screen set to “Offline” as you screen through the timeline both screens will play locked together. The left hand screen displaying the reference video and the right hand screen displaying what is currently in the timeline. The goal is to “conform” the timeline so that it matches the left hand screen exactly. By right clicking in the Right hand screen you can access several comparison views to make this easier.
In comparing your timeline against the reference you will notice two things that need to be fixed. One is the color of the clips on the timeline is in Log and needs the same LUT that you used set and in Media composer applied. Two the small is slightly different. This is because your OCF files are 2K (2048×1080) and the Reference file is HD (1920×1080). You will want to address both of these.
To address the color switch into the “Color” page.
You will notice that every clip has an empty node and all of the thumbnails are displaying Log images.
On the right hand screen go to the LUTs folder and navigate to the Red IPP2 709 folder and select the LUT that was originally used. For most of you this will be: Medium Contrast Medium Size.
Drag it into the node for the first clip. Then simply copy and paste that node tree into all of the other OCF clips in your timeline.
Now that the color is the same you can switch the “Difference” tool. This will overlay the reference video on top of the footage in the timeline. Anywhere it lines up perfectly will be black. This is a good tool to see differences in position and scale.
Because of the small difference between 2K and HD everything will need to be called slightly so taht it matches the reference exactly. In the example below which is a 1.85:1 aspect ratio show the zoom needed o be set from 1 to 1.026.
You do not need to do this one at a time. You can either copy and paste these attributes or you can lasso several clips at once and change them together. Go slowly through the timeline checking each shot carefully against the reference video. Play close attention to shots that you know where zoomed, repositioned, had the speed changed, or where otherwise efferent in Media Composer. If you come across any leave a marker for yourself by hitting “M” and leave a note of what seems to be the problem. The post staff can help you work out anything that you find.
After you have gone through the project a few times and are very confident that the timeline in Resolve is an exact match of the Locked timeline from Media Composer you are done. The project is now conformed and ready for color correction.
To save your conformed project back up to your show volume select File and the Export Project.
Label the project Show#_Conform and export it to the Resolve folder on your show volume next to the Template.
Once you see your project safely on the show volume you can quiet Resolve. You are done.
The CMPAFilmPost Server is where you will offload all of the Original Camera Files (OCF) and Production Audio. Every computer the Post Hall has ShotPut Pro installed as well as a Red Mini Mag reader and a multi card reader attached.
ShotPut Pro is a software which not only copies video and audio files but will also verify the copies afterwards and make reports documenting that the offload was successful. These reports will be uploaded to Frame.io so that the production can keep track of when the media was offloaded and verify that the offload was successful .Every media card used on a production must use ShotPut Pro for offloading to the proper folder tree on CMPAFilmPost to assure the productions video and audio assets are safe.
Mounting Media Cards
The Assistant Editor (AE) will retrieve the Red Mini Mag (containing the video), the SD card (containing the audio), and the camera reports from the ingest room cubby and bring them back to their assigned suite on the post hall for offloading. Production should have applied red tape to show live media was on them and labeled them as shown.
Remove the tape and insert the cards into the corresponding readers, they will mount like an external hard drive and appear on the desktop.
Desktop
RED MINI MAG CONTAINING VIDEO
SD CARD CONTAINING SOUND
Offloading Media with ShotPut Pro
After both media cards are mounted launch ShotPut Pro from the dock.
When it opens it will appear as shown below. Notice how the media cards and the Server are shown on the left of the screen.
To offload the entire contents of the Red Mini Mag drag the disk icon and drop it in the box labeled “offload from”.
Next you will need to tell ShotPut in what folder on the CPMAFilmPost Server you would like to offload to. Navigate down into the folder tree on the left hand side until you find the proper Show and Day folder for your production. Then drag the folder icon and drop it in the box labeled “offload to”.
In the field labeled “Job Identifier” fill in the information for this offload in the following format: Production#_Day#_Card#.
Before starting the offload you will need to check a few settings. First under “Verification Options” make sure the type is set to “MD5 Checksum”. This is a good balance of speed and security.
Next make “Report Preferences” and make sure that all the options are check as shown in the example below. This won’t effect the actual offload at all but it will dictate how the pdf that is generated after the offload will be formatted.
When everything looks good you can start the offload by selecting the Blue Arrow.
On the right hand side you will see the progress bar appear and you can monitor how long it will take. It will go through several phases as shown below and ho long it takes is dependent on how much media was on the card.
While the video is being offloaded you can go ahead and set the audio offloading at the same time. Just repeat the same process as you did before. To offload the entire contents of the SD Card drag the disk icon and drop it in the box labeled “offload from”.
Next navigate down into the folder tree on the left hand side until you find the proper Show and Day folder for your production. Then drag the folder icon and drop it in the box labeled “offload to”.
In the field labeled “Job Identifier” fill in the information for this offload in the following format: Production#_Day#_Card#.
You can click the blue start arrow again and it will sue up your next offload. When both media cards have finished offloading and are verified it will appear as shown below.
The media is now safely offloaded to the CMPAFilmPost Server.
Verification Reports
You can find the verification reports alongside the media in the folder that you pointed ShotPut Pro toward.
The Verification Reports should look like the examples below.
After checking the reports upload them to the appropriate show folder on Frame.io.
Wrap Up
The SD card will need to be erased after you have verification from ShotPut Pro that the data was transferred safely. Remember to empty the trash after deleting the sound card media as that is the only way to free up space on the card. You do not need to erase the Red Mini Mags as they will be reformatted the next time they are put in the camera. Return the media cards to their cases and return them to the shows cubby in the ingest room. Now that the tape has been removed production will know that they are clear to be used again.
CMPAFilmPost or “the post hall server” should always be mounted on the desktop of your machine and will look like the example below.
If for some reason it is not mounted type “Command” + “Spacebar” on the keyboard.
This will bring up the Spotlight Search function.
Type in “cmpafilmpost”. This will find an app that will mount the server. Hit “Enter” and it mount and you will see it on the desktop.
This is the main post hall server. This is where your Original Camera files and Production Audio will live.
Mounting Show Volume
Each film will have its own individual “Show Volume”. This is where your Media Composer Project and ProTools Project will live. You will need to mount the volume specific to the film you are working on.
To do so type “Command” + “K” on the keyboard.
This will bring up the “Connect to Server” prompt. Type in the address: smb://cmpa-w-fs05.film.fsu.edu
This will show all the possible show volumes that are available to choose from. Select your show number and then hit OK.
It will mount on the desktop and will look like the example below.
This is the folder structure inside.
Mounting TestShare
TestShare or “the Z Drive” is the server used for VFX and Animation work. If you need to mount it type “Command” +”K”.
This will bring up the “Connect to Server” prompt. Type in the address: smb://cmpa-w-fs04.film.fsu.edu
You will need to enter your FSU ID and Password.
After that it will let you choose “TestShare”. Click OK to mount it.
It will mount on the desktop and will look like the example below.
Thumbnail images will be used in displays online (Vimeo, YouTube, etc). Since some websites use horizontal thumbnails (1920×1080) and some use vertical thumbnails (1200×1600), you will deliver one of each.
Do:
Save a flattened JPG file (maximum file size 2MB) and a layered PSD file (also deliver any custom fonts used).
Keep all of your layers inside the appropriate folders, so that everything remains well-organized when you deliver the final Photoshop file. Make sure all of your layers have appropriate names, so that someone else could make sense of what each layer is.
Do Not:
Do not adjust the dimensions or resolution of the file. It’s set up to meet the specs needed for online viewing.
Note these online content restrictions for the thumbnails:
Before arriving on set have your crew members download the free VUER app to their Android or Apple phones.
On set the Script Supervisors cart should be setup as shown below with the Directors monitor facing one way and the Script Supervisors laptop facing the other way.
In between them will be the three Teradek modules. Its a bit confusing because they are all made by the same company but they are the Bolt, the ServePro, and the Link.
The Teradek Bolt is a radio receiver which wirelessly connects to the Teradek Bolt transmitter that is mounted on the camera. This allows video from the camera to wirelessly get sent to the Script Supervisors cart.
The Teradek ServPro creates a local wifi network that allows up to 10 devices to monitor video over wifi using the VUER app.
The Teradek Link is a router which boosts the ServePros wifi signal so you can monitor from a farther distance.
The Bolt receives the video signal from the camera over radio. The video signal comes out of the Bolt and is split. One SDI goes to the ScriptE laptop and the other SDI goes to the Directors monitor. Then out of the Directors monitor the video signal is passed through over SDI to the ServPro.
Then from the ServPro the video signal is sent over wifi to the Link where the wifi is boosted and the video is sent via wifi to up to 10 phones.
Next you need to connect your phone to the Links wifi. Look on the bottom of the Link to see the wifi name and password.
Connect to to the Link wifi and enter the password.
Confirm that you are connected to the correct wifi. It is normal for it to say “No Internet Access”.
Open the VUER app and select Camera A to load a stream.
Select “Refresh” to load available streams. And the select “Encrypted Stream”.
Confirm the “Encrypted Stream” is loaded into Camera A and then select “Done”.
Enter the password which is fsufilm.
You can now monitor the camera feed over the Links local wifi hotspot.
