Ready to send your project to Raspberry South?
Here’s our handy guide…

Before you start

Make sure your edit timeline is as finished and final as it can possibly be; this will save time (and your budget!) in the long term.

We require three files:

  1. AAF file -  embedded, audio tracks only, with at least a 150 frame handles on all clips. The sample rate should be 48kHz and 24 bit, though 16 bit is also acceptable.

  2. Quicktime video file for reference. Normally by default this is HD, with a resolution of 1920x1080 at 25fps with BITC (burnt in timecode).  It should ideally be encoded with the Avid DNxHD proxy codec, though ProRes is also an acceptable alternative if DNxHD is not available.  It should also contain two audio tracks with the guide mix from the edit.  If we are recording VO then the guide mix needs to be split (panned) with clean guide VO on the left channel, and mix minus VO on the right channel.  

  3. EDL files - EDL’s exported from the timeline of the video and audio tracks in groups of up to four e.g. V1-2, A1-4, A5-8 etc.

Of course, we can also accommodate other resolutions/frame rates if appropriate.  Contact us to discuss if you are not sure as this may affect some of the settings outlined in this document.

Preparing the timeline

First ensure the sequence is prepared for export:

  • Pictures should start at 10:00:00:00 on the timeline, bars and tone may optionally be included from 09:59:30:00 to 09:59:50:00.

  • Pictures should include BITC (Burnt In TimeCode). Ideally this should be placed so as not to obstruct anything of major importance in the sequence.

  • Include an audio mix of the sequence in the timeline (48kHz, 24 bit .wav). This is useful to provide us with an idea of the Director’s intentions for the mix, as well as enable us to check sync between the AAF and pictures. It is also highly recommended for use as a mixdown dummy cut track (see here for details).

  • Audio tracks should be laid up logically with each being used for a unique purpose. Commonly this is done in the order Sync, FX, Music, VO, Audio Mixdown. Each of these groups should start on an odd numbered track, a typical layout might be:

    • A1-8 Sync

    • A9-12 FX

    • A13-16 Music

    • A17 Guide VO

    • A18 Spare

    • A19-20 Audio guide mixdown of sequence

Exporting

To export your AAF, Quicktime Video and EDL files, follow the appropriate guide depending on your editing software:

Transferring to Raspberry South

When transferring your AAF, Quicktime Video and EDL’s to us we kindly ask you to send them individually and not together as a .zip file. These files can be large and it is a lot easier to resolve any issues if they are separate.

We offer a number of methods to transfer your files over:

  • Raspberry South Cloud

    We can set up a cloud folder on our server - this will be your own personal workspace where you can upload files to us and we can send mixes and quicktime videos for review back to you. The system is password protected for security and easily accessible through most web browsers.

  • Other File Sharing Services - G Drive / WeTransfer / Dropbox

    We’re happy to work with these if you prefer. For instance, many companies use GMail for their corporate email and cloud services anyway.

  • Hard Disk Drive

    Old school, but reliable! Ideally formatted Apple File System (APFS), otherwise Mac OS Extended, or MS-DOS (FAT) / ExFAT if PC compatibility is needed.

Dealing With Changes

For any edit sequence where an AAF is delivered to post audio, but further changes or versioning are likely, then creating a dummy cut guide track is essential and will save huge amounts of time.

In the exact final version of the sequence used to create the AAF for audio, (and also often used to deliver a viewing copy to the client as work-in-progress), create an audio mixdown (bounce) on a new audio track at the bottom of the sequence. Normally this would be a stereo bounce of the entire sequence mix which will be stamped with timecode identical to that of the sequence (usually starting at 09:59:30:00 or 10:00:00:00). Normally it’s a stereo audio track but can be two mono tracks as long as both are included in any subsequent edits. This is your dummy cut guide track.

Subsequently when performing any cutdown edits, perform the same edits on the dummy cut guide track too. If you need to add extra material, open up the track at the same time as the main edit tracks and add any new additional audio material to new tracks created below the dummy cut guide track. This allows post audio to import just the required extra material, without repeating the import of the rest of the whole show again!

Once all edit changes have been made, create a conform EDL from just the dummy cut guide track. If extra audio material has been added, then an AAF of the audio tracks with just the extra material on can be provided, along with the dummy cut guide track(s) which can be included for convenience in audio.

It’s a simple and elegant method for tracking changes in picture edits and speeds up changes on post audio considerably.