A report on Walter Murch’s talk at the Boston SuperMeet

I wasn’t able to make it to the October 27 Boston SuperMeet though I really, really wanted to go. With a lineup that included the editor of Apocalypse Now and The English Patient, that would be Walter Murch of course, as well as Andrew Weisblum, editor of Black Swan and The Wrestler this looked to be a craft-focused event. Of course everyone wanted to know what Murch thinks of Final Cut Pro X and thanks to Chris Portal’s report from the event we now know.

PsF’s missing workflow Part 1: BENIGN PsF versus MALIGNANT PsF

Here in Part 1 of PsF’s missing workflow, I’ll define two new terms I’m introducing: benign PsF and malignant PsF. Fortunately, both Adobe Premiere CS5.5 and Apple Final Cut Pro X handle benign PsF (progressive segmented frame) automatically in the most desired way. Unfortunately, neither of these programs can handle malignant PsF properly. This means that —even with the latest software— it is your responsibility to avoid the multiple pitfalls of misinterpreting malignant PsF. You must be aware of it and take the necessary steps to counteract it. This article will cover Panasonic’s AVCHD/AVCCAM PsF status. Upcoming articles in this series will reveal the PsF status of other cameras and recorders, and the workflows & workarounds with popular editing software.

Blackmagic Design Announces DaVinci Resolve 8.1 Now Available

Milpitas, USA - October 20, 2011 - Blackmagic Design today announced DaVinci Resolve 8.1, an exciting new software update with powerful features, is now available. This update is available to all DaVinci Resolve customers free of charge and can be downloaded from the Blackmagic Design web site.

Mac Mini for pro video editing: a field report from Guatemala

Many readers of ProVideo Coalition magazine may recall my recent article Mac Mini w/Thunderbolt: preferred platform for many new editing systems. However, some of the readers had doubts, and one naysayer even dared to comment via LinkedIn: “This is hilarious garbage. No serious editor, in their right mind, would do this.” Another commenter via LinkedIn supposed that it would stand up for standard-definition video editing only, but would never work for HD 1080p editing. Fortunately, here is a detailed report from a very serious commercial production company in Guatemala, that has recently replaced two MacPro towers with Mac Mini i7 with Thunderbolt, together with a Thunderbolt RAID5 disk array, and a Thunderbolt-based professional audio/video i/o device. Here you’ll see the exact software and hardware configuration used, performance, and enthusiastic comments from the editor. On the other hand, you’ll even learn where not to use a Mac Mini.

A lesson learned from my FCPX to Resolve roundtrips

I learned a hard lesson today about Final Cut Pro X after doing some roundtrip testing between FCPX and the newly released Resolve 8. That lesson was to be very careful when using clips that FCPX is referencing in other video applications. If some piece of metadata is modified in the file, even if the video stays exactly the same, FCPX may not be able to see it. Also, if you’re doing extensive audio mixing in FCPX be aware that the mixed clips won’t roundtrip.

Update Alert: DaVinci Resolve 8.1: FCPX support, lots of little things

The engineers over at Blackmagic Design continue their mad dash to update and upgrade DaVinci Resolve. The end of last week saw the release of Resolve 8.1. This comes after the huge 7 to 8 upgrade we saw earlier in the year but this incremental update to 8.1 adds some pretty significant features itself. Probably the headline feature is support for Final Cut Pro X’s new XML format. Secondary to that but equally important to those using Resolve in a grading facility is better Avid Media Composer roundtripping and some FCP7 XML updates. Plus you can even use Resolve 8.1 as a go-between to move from FCPX to FCP& or maybe Media Composer to FCPX! That is if that need ever really arose. Read on for a list of changes and some experiments with roundtripping.

DaVinci Resolve training at Staff/HDTV in Guatemala

I just returned from the Republic of Guatemala in Central America, where I interpreted a class for David Catt, the original product manager at DaVinci Systems. (Since then, DaVinci Systems was purchased in 2009 by Blackmagic Design). David Catt taught 7 Guatemalans how to perform grading, including color correction and more using DaVinci Resolve. The client who recently purchased the new Mac-based DaVinci Resolve system is Julio Borrayo, president of STAFF HDTV/Alta Definición, which produces high-end TV commercials in Guatemala. This article explains the details of the system they purchased (hardware + software), installation and preparation, main points covered in the class, and the students. David Catt has agreed to join us on an upcoming episode of TecnoTur to discuss grading and the differences between different DaVinci Resolve configurations.

Apple Co-Founder, Chairman, and Visionary Steve Jobs Dies at 56

We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today. Steve’s brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The world is immeasurably better because of Steve.

Steve Jobs 1955 - 2011

It’s a classic.

$995 Final Cut Pro to Media Composer crossgrade ending very soon

This is just a reminder that if you want to take advantage of the $995 Final Cut Pro to Avid Media Composer Crossgrade then you better act fast as it ends on Friday, September 30. This promotion has been going on since around NAB and it’s been a great opportunity for Final Cut Pro 7 (this excludes FCPX) users to get Media Composer at an unheard of price. If you don’t take advantage of this deal the crossgrade price goes up to $1,499.

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