2017

When importing a sequence—EDL, AAF and FCP XML— make sure to:
■ Set, in the MediaHub, General ➤ Clip Options ➤ Alpha Channel Processing to Create Matte
Container: every segment referencing an RGBA media file is promoted to matte container that contains
one RGB track and one alpha track.
■ Select only the File Name match criteria in the Conform tab, or Smoke cannot conform the RGBA content.
NOTE
■ When importing an FCP XML sequence, all content created from Photoshop .psd layers is conformed as
a matte container.
■ The contents in Final Cut Pro should have been imported and the segment needs to use the layer name
for clip name. If the clip name is derived from the PSD media file, the match will be done using the flat
PSD layer.
To relink a segment to RGBA material and promoting that segment to a matte container:
1 In the Conform tab, click Set Search Location.
2 In the Set Directory, set the Alpha Channel Processing box to one of the following:
■ Include Alpha Clip: This imports RGB and alpha channels as separate clips. This means that in the
Conform list, paired clips (RGB clip + its alpha) are displayed as a Multiple, yellow, entry.
■ Create Matte Container: This creates a Matte Container for the clip. And segments referencing
linked clips will be promoted to Matte Containers when matched.
■ Ignore Alpha Channel: Only the RGB part of the media are used to create the clip, and the conform
sequence shows a regular (non-container) segment.
3 Once you have located the files, click Set.
You can now proceed with matching sources and segments as usual.
NOTE Note that if a segment is already an matte container, using the Create Matte Container will effectively
create a matte container within that original matte container. Select the Include Alpha Clip and Smoke will
automatically assign the correct channel to each of the matte container tracks.
Working with Path Translation
When you import an AAF or an FCP XML file with Link to Media Files enabled, Smoke tries to reconnect to
the sources using the paths defined within. But if you are working in a collaborative environment where
multiple OSes are used with varying volume mountpoints, or using a dead drop, you will run in cases where
the path in the imported sequence cannot be resolved by Smoke. Most common case is with an AAF produced
on a Mac OS X, where external volumes are mounted under /Volumes/, while on Linux, such volumes can
be mounted on any point. This is where path translation comes in, allowing you to convert a path from
one format into another. Once path translation is set up, linking and relinking to sources should be seamless.
You set up the path translation in a configuration file, where you define pairs of paths.
To set a path translation pair:
1 Close Smoke.
2 Open a shell window.
3 As root, open the following file in a text editor:
/usr/discreet/cfg/pathTranslation.cfg
4 Define a Source path and a Destination.
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