SHOOT RED, POST MPC

At MPC Data Lab we make the process of RED post-production simple and painless, and bring out the best image quality the RED has to offer.

We can manage your data from start to finish to create a complete workflow, preserving essential looks, timecodes and metadata throughout the pipeline from capture through the edit to delivery – getting us involved at the beginning will make for easy conforms and save time later.

Our RED experts will be able to consult at the beginning of the shoot to ensure that the best possible pictures from the RED camera are captured. We will then process the images to retain every last detail in the fi les, and keep the data at the highest quality throughout the rest of the post-production process.

RECOMMENDED RED DATA PIPELINE

The best data workfl ow for RED cameras is a two-step offline/online process.

Offline
Currently, Final Cut Pro on the latest Macs can edit RED footage natively but the data rate is quite high, so to keep editorial storage overheads down, or for projects that require real-time effects, transcoding the RED files to Apple ProRes QuickTimes is recommended.

For AVID edit systems, the RED files will need to be transcoded. MPC Data Lab can provide editors with AVID project fi les with the media encoded directly to native AVID .mxf files, enabling editors to plug a drive straight into their AVID and start editing immediately. As a cheaper option the RED files can be converted to QuickTime media which the AVID can then import (this is an approximately real-time operation whereas the .mxf option is comparatively instant).

Online
Once the media has been edited, we will then need to do high quality online conversions. We take the Edit Decision List (EDL) from the edit system to perform the raw conversions on just the footage used in the edit. The RAW footage is converted at full quality and full resolution and then rescaled to 2K dpx files which then fit in with the rest of our non-linear digital workflow.

OTHER DATA OPTIONS

Backup & archive
Hard drives are fragile and fail easily, so to guarantee the security of your rushes, we recommend creating an LTO4 Digital Safety Copy. LTO4 tape is a highly robust and stable, long-term storage medium and can easily be restored should anything happen to any of the data in other places.

Playouts to tape
Playouts to any tape format are available if required, whether for offline purposes, or to be used for mastering purposes.

Transcodes to MPCTV
MPCTV is a highly versatile online review and approval system. Your dailies can be transcoded and uploaded for instant viewing. You can organise your clips, post comments and download clips. It is the ideal service for instant collaborative review. Please contact us for more info on this service.

DVD encoding
Once transcoded to offline formats, dailies can be burnt to DVD for client, producer and director review.