WHY YOU'RE HERE

I CREATED THIS PAGE AS A RESOURCE FOR CLIENTS OR CREATIVES LOOKING TO AUTOMATE THEIR CONFORMING PROCESS FROM PREMIERE TO RESOLVE.

THIS IS THE EASIEST WAY TO WORK WITH COLORISTS, AND IT DOESN'T EVEN REQUIRE A PROJECT HARD DRIVE. JUST MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A RELIABLE INTERNET CONNECTION.

I DON'T ALWAYS ADVISE THIS METHOD FOR FEATURE WORK. THIS IS BEST FOR SHORT FORM WORK.

THIS METHOD IS DONE IN THREE SIMPLE STEPS AND IS COMPATIBLE WITH OTHER NLEs AND COLOR CORRECTORS.

THE GOAL: CONFORM A LOCKED CUT FROM PREMIERE TO RESOLVE FOR COLOR GRADING WITH AN EDL (EDIT DECISION LIST).

STEP ONE: PREPARING YOUR PREMIERE TIMELINE

A good editor, or in some cases AE, will maintain a clean timeline or have the skills to prepare a premiere timeline for the colorist. The key to preparing the timeline is to minimize the amount of video tracks in use.

Ideally, a good timeline will be limited to one track, making the final timeline flat, accompanied by a flattened sound track as well. Some colorists don't care for sound, but I think at the least reference audio should be required for contextual grading purposes. Story is still king, even for a colorist.

Below, you can see the editor is using five video tracks, which will make conforming more difficult.

This isn't always practical, especially for projects with VFX. If your project can't be flattened to one video tack, try to minimize how many tracks you're using as much as possible. It helps to disable any transitions and title tracks completely, limiting the only elements to the cinematography. Don't worry, once the colored project is brought back into premiere, these elements can be enabled at your convenience.

Notice how the timeline below has been limited to one track with titles on other tracks separated/disabled. Since all the video elements are on track one, conforming will be easy.

A CRUCIAL NOTE THAT HAS COME UP IN ALMOST EVERY PROJECT: ENSURE WITH THE CINEMATOGRAPHER AND COLORIST THAT THE FOOTAGE IS BEING EXPORTED IN THE RIGHT COLOR SPACE AND LOG GAMMA. USUALLY, IF THE FOOTAGE IS BEING DISPLAYED IN REC.709 IN PREMIERE, IT'S A DEFAULT SETTING THAT MUST BE CHANGED IN YOUR PROJECT AND/OR SEQUENCE SETTINGS. THIS STEP IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR THE COLOR PIPELINE.

RAW SETTINGS SUCH AS ISO AND WHITE BALANCE SHOULD ONLY BE CHANGED IF THE COLORIST OR CINEMATOGRAPHER REQUESTS.

STEP TWO: EXPORTING A MASTER FILE AND AN .EDL FILE

Once your timeline is simplified and confirmed by your team, export this file to the highest codec and resolution possible, ideally greater than or equal to the desired final master format. For most people I work with, this is an Apple ProRes 4444 4K file if you're a Mac User, and if you're a PC User use DNxHR 444 4K. 

After your render completes, select file, then Export, then select EDL.

This window above will appear; this is  where you decide what you're creating an EDL of. This is why I say it's ideal to maintain all your video elements on one track, because here you see you can only export one .edl file at a time per video track. Meaning, if you have multiple video tracks being used for your final timeline being sent to color, you'll need to repeat this process for every track being used.

In the example above, notice the checked boxes. These are the elements we are choosing to include in our edit decision list, hence "EDL." Typically, I only include these three, and I just hit ok, and save the .edl  to the project's folder.

STEP THREE: DELIVERING THE ASSETS TO THE COLORIST

If you've followed along correctly, you should have two assets to give the colorist: your master file and your .edl file. From here, the colorist will open the .edl in resolve and link the media to the master file. Even if the colorist finds themselves looking at the dreaded Media Offline screen, they still should be able to link the .edl with the master file. If this doesn't work, go back and make sure steps one and two were done properly.

THERE AND BACK AGAIN: FROM RESOLVE BACK TO PREMIERE FOR FINISHING

I don't think I ever finish out of Resolve. I typically return a master file with the same codec and resolution sent to the DI back to the editors, retaining as much quality as possible from the final grade. The editor can then easily replace the raw media with the color master. A typical color master codec and resolution for me are Apple Pro Res 4444 4K and the clients seem happy with the render. In my experiments, it's the best codec to master with.

THAT'S IT FOR NOW! I HOPE THIS CHEAT SHEET HELPS YOU MASTER THIS CRUCIAL POST PRO PROCESS.

IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES, EMAIL US AT TEAM@SAFEHOUSEPOST.COM