2009

Table Of Contents
Delivering a Program to Another Facility for Grading
You can deliver your edited program to another facility for grading using third-party
hardware and software. This can be advantageous because working at a facility with
high-quality monitoring equipment in a specialized viewing environment lets you evaluate
your programs images with remarkable accuracy. Working at a dedicated facility and
using the facilitys equipment frees you from having to spend the time and money to
create this environment on your own. Finally, many facilities boast color correction systems
that use costly dedicated hardware to provide high-end processing capabilities in real
time at maximum resolution.
Typically, delivering a program to another facility for color correction works one of two
ways.
Translating Your Project Using XML
Some facilities’ color correction systems have the option, using third-party utilities, of
taking an exported Final Cut Pro XML file and translating it into the facilitys own project
file format. This is ideal, because it allows for relinking to the source material and retains
edit information that lets the colorist get started quickly. Check with your facility in advance
to find out what kind of media is required to accommodate the facilitys workflow. One
of the drawbacks of this approach is that some effects may be difficult or impossible to
translate, necessitating additional project preparation in excess of what Color requires.
Delivering a Tape Master for Tape-to-Tape Color Correction
Another frequently used approach is to deliver a tape master of your edited program
and, if available, an EDL. The master tape is ingested in its entirety, and the EDL (if available)
is used to notch the program, creating cut points and transitions to match those in the
original program. The colorist can start working quickly, applying settings to individual
sections of the program as if he or she were working with the original sequence.
If an EDL is not available, many color correction systems allow for automated cut detection,
placing edit points wherever a cut is found in the edited program. Otherwise, its up to
the colorist to either place cut points manually or use keyframes to change grades
whenever one shot ends and another begins. Check ahead to find out how the facility
you’ll be working with wants your materials prepared.
89Chapter 5 Finishing