Editing Your Film

I have ordered AVI / Quicktime files - what now?
If you're a Windows user we will have sent you AVI files.
If you're a MAC user we will have sent you QuickTime files.

Both file types use the same DV codec, holding upto 18mins of film per DVD.
Insert your DVD into your computer and copy the file to a folder on your hard-drive (ie your Movies folder).
Do this for all the DVD's we have sent you - they will be named in numberical order.
This may take some time - be patient!
Do not attempt to watch the AVI files directly from the disc - you must copy them to your computer first, as due to the limited speed of your disc drive, the film may not play, or if it does it may be slow and jerky.

If you have ordered sound files, the sound will be synched to your film already so you don't need to worry about matching up separate sound files to your film.

You can now begin importing your files into your chosen editing software (see table below for ideas).

I have ordered Mini DV tapes - what now?
You have followed our advice and chosen Mini DV tapes as these are recommended as the best format to permanently store your films on - they are more durable and long-lasting than DVD's and are the best format to hand down to future generations as they hold the same high-quality footage as the AVI / Quicktime files.

If you've ordered these purely for archvie purposes, simply store in their boxes somewhere safe.
If you're planning on editing the footage, here are some tips to get the best from your mini DV tapes...

When Alive Studios transfe rthe film from the Phoenix System to the mini DV tape, we use 'data transfer', not 'video capturing'. This is important to retain 100% of the original quality. When transferring the tapes to your hard-drive, you should use a Firewire cable, not AV cables (the Yellow/Red/White ends), or S-Video cables.

You do not need any external video capture device, or a video capture card. Attempting to use one of these will decrease your quality significantly.

You can transfer the film directly to an external DVD recorder if it has a Firewire port. Using AV cables to connect to your DVD recorder unit will result in a loss of quality.

For best results, simply connect your camcorder directly to your computer using a Firewire cable and capture the incoming signal through your chosen software.

I need a version suitable for commercial/broadcast use
We offer two services directed towards the commercial user.
The first is to opt for DV CAM tapes rather than mini DV. This uses the same DV codec at 3.6MBps. The tape speed and track width was increased from DV format and metal evaporated tape is used rather than metal particle tape, which results in longer lifespan.

From July 2008, Alive Studios broadened our support for commercial clients by offering Cine Film transfer in 10-bit uncompressed format (27MBps). This is the highest quality Alive Studios can produce, with no loss of quality, thus increasing your colour correction and grading capabilities. 10-bit uncompressed is only available for customers supplying a Mac formatted hard-drive. (windows support tba).

What editing software should I use?
Alive Studios does not recommend any of these products as we only use Finaly Cut Pro, but we have many customers using the below who report that they work ok.

Can I edit directly from my DVD?
Technically yes, it is possible. However it's not ideal as the DVD has already been compressed to MPEG-2 format which means you are not working with raw, high quality footage, which will result in a loss of picture quality between the version we have sent you and the new version your create.
We strongly recommend you order either AVI files or Mini DV tapes if you intend editing your films yourself.

However, if you've not done this, and only have a DVD, here is some help on how to 'rip' the footage from it so you can edit it.

Insert the DVD into your computer and look at the files.
There are 2 folders:-

"Audio_TS" - ignore this.
"Video_TS" - this is the one you want - copy this folder to your hard-drive. It takes some time - be patient!

Choose some conversion software (some freebies and ideas are below if you're stuck).
Using this sotware, you can now convert the .VOB files (these are the video files you need) to a suitable format for use in your editing software such as quicktime or AVI.

If you are on a MAC, it is easier to click on the VOB files in Finder to see a preview of each so you can choose which ones to copy to your hard-drive rather than having to copy the entire folder which also contains VOB files for the dvd menu etc. Windows does not allow you to do this by default so you'll need to copy the whole Video_TS folder over in order to view them.