What did you miss this year at NAB? HD is only a buzz word if the camera is under $3,000. 2K is in. SD is out. It’s all about data. Apple thinks it’s re-invented the wheel in editorial. IPTV and mobile media are big. The Red invasion isn’t about communists taking over the world, it’s about a 4K camera for under $20,000. Systems aren’t changing drastically. They are, however, integrating and producing more efficiently.
So, how does any of this affect me and my process? Let’s look at some of the specifics.
Apple’s Final Cut Studio 2 is a good step forward for the company. They have entered the hardware game (beyond the Macintosh) with a partnership with AJA and a new IO HD box. The IO can capture and output 10 bit HD and SD media using Apple’s new ProRes 422 compression (demo of HD footage I saw looked great). Apple also introduced a new and robust app for grading called Color (very impressive) and for mixing they delivered Soundtrack Pro that has the ability to work in 5.1. They also announced a spruced up version of Motion as well as a new media and asset management system aptly named Final Cut Server.
These anticipated (and much needed) changes make FCS 2 a more competitive product on the market. But let’s be honest–it’s a good improvement, not a re-invention of the wheel. The black shirt mafia doing the Color demos make it sound like Steve Jobs invented secondary color correction. He didn’t. Will mixers or colorists start switching over to Final Cut? No. Not in the least. These apps are intended to augment editorial allowing editors to integrate more tools into their process, and that’s a good thing.
Another Jobs marketing coup was teaming up with Red Digital Cinema team to offer Final Cut as the editing system of choice for their highly anticipated 4K camera aptly called RED ONE. Red definitely had the hottest booth at NAB. I waited an hour in line to see the first public demo of the camera’s capabilities in a short film helmed by Peter Jackson. Yes, it kicked ass.
Adobe’s CS3 suite is a major upgrade to all their applications with better cross program integration and support for Intel Macs. It’s also great to have Premiere Pro back in the editing game. Makes for more interesting competition.
The Avid folks released Unity Media Network 5.0. It’s the only cross platform and cross application storage that can handle multiple uncompressed HD clients alongside multiple SD clients simultaneously. Avid, Final Cut and Adobe users on Mac and PC all sharing storage. That’s a big deal.
The end of tape? Almost. Sony, Panasonic and JVC are all pushing smaller cameras with data workflows. The P2 vs. XDcam battle is big. I’m not in love with the quality of either format but I am happy that Avid, Apple and Adobe are interested in making the use of these formats more transparent.
Overall, nothing revolutionary about this year’s NAB. The upside is that as our technical demands in production and post continue to grow, the suppliers are evolving with us and helping streamline our workflow, which in turn keeps the work looking good, the data well organized and the product delivered on time.
Miky Wolf is an editor at Big Sky Edit, New York.
Oscar Nominees Delve Into The Art Of Editing At ACE Session
You couldn’t miss Sean Baker at this past Sunday’s Oscar ceremony where he won for Best Picture, Directing, Original Screenplay and Editing on the strength of Anora. However, earlier that weekend he was in transit from the Cesar Awards in Paris and thus couldn’t attend the American Cinema Editors (ACE) 25th annual panel of Academy Award-nominated film editors held at the Regal LA Live Auditorium on Saturday (3/1) in Los Angeles. While the eventual Oscar winner in the editing category was missed by those who turned out for the ACE “Invisible Art, Visible Artists” session, three of Baker’s fellow nominees were on hand--Dávid Jancsó, HSE for The Brutalist; Nick Emerson for Conclave; and Myron Kerstein, ACE for Wicked. Additionally, Juliette Welfling, who couldn’t appear in person due to the Cesar Awards, was present via an earlier recorded video interview to discuss her work on Emilia Pérez. The interview was conducted by ACE president and editor Sabrina Plisco, ACE who also moderated the live panel discussion. Kerstein said that he was the beneficiary of brilliant and generous collaborators, citing, among others, director Jon M. Chu, cinematographer Alice Brooks, and visual effects supervisor Pablo Helman. The editor added it always helps to have stellar acting performances, noting that hearing Cynthia Erivo, for example, sing live was a revelation. Kerstein recalled meeting Chu some eight years ago on a “blind Skype date” and it was an instant “bromance”--which began on Crazy Rich Asians, and then continued on such projects as the streaming series Home Before Dark and the feature In The Heights. Kerstein observed that Chu is expert in providing collaborators with... Read More