Delivery format options Q

[momoffduty]

I made a short 1 min 27 piece for my church and need help on what is the best option for delivery based on their needs:

Regarding the DVD, the way we use videos in the sanctuary (we have a Mac and use propresenter) is that if they are a file that can be dropped into our slides, when we advance to that slide, our video will begin to play automatically. If we use a movie DVD we can instruct it with start and end time so that when we advance to that slide the clip will play automatically if the DVD is in the computer. If you can get the DVD to me before the end of next week, then we can try it in our system and work out any bugs we might have.

What is the best option here? Thinking a DVD with no menu, a Data CD...but what format and will that be choppy playback?

Thanks

[Steve Grisetti]

Not a data DVD/CD. Just an Auto-Start DVD. And it shouldn't be choppy, if their equipment is powerful enough.

Another option is to just give them a high-quality MOV file. They can load that into ProPresenter and set it to auto-launch when they get to that slide -- and it may work more automatically than a DVD. (But your tech guy would know that.)

But if they say DVD, just make them an auto-start DVD.

[Chuck Engels]

I would put a high quality MOV file onto a CD or DVD whatever it will fit on, and then also give them an auto start DVD. When working with churches it is always best to have a solution and a backup solution. When it comes to equipment you never know what might happen on any given Sunday

If they are using MACs with ProPresenter you can bet they have some pretty powerful equipment.

[Bob]

Since it is a Mac, I'd export a quicktime MOV file on a data CD or DVD. They can import that and use it as they wish in a slide.

I looked at the Propresenter 4 tut for DVDs and they don't require an autostart dvd. When they set up the program, the dvd module lets them navigate through the menus and mark the start and end points and it will create a pseudo clip that can be used like a regular clip. Sounded like the DVD had to remain in the drive during the presentation, which (I think) would make the quicktime approach easier.

Chuck's idea for a backup solution is good, you might want to give them both the quicktime mov file and a DVD.

A quick start DVD would be good if the mac or propresenter is not working and *if* they have a standard dvd play capability.

[Chuck Engels]

I've worked in church media long enough to know that a backup solution is always a good idea

[momoffduty]

Two options sound good. Will make a DVD with no menu and for the Data CD a MOV file was thinking an h264, which if I am correct that is uncompressed. A 1:27 min should be about 200 mb, just guessing.

Thanks

[Chuck Engels]

Almost all formats are compressed, h264 is no exception. It's just that the quality is still quite good even with the fairly high compression. I'm not sure that h264 is the best option for their needs.

[Chuck Engels]

I have sent a message to a good friend that knows all about this stuff. He will give me instructions on what to export out of Premiere that will work best in ProPresenter. He uses both and is a ProPresenter expert as well as Premiere, After Effects and Final Cut.

[momoffduty]

That would be great Chuck!

On the compression of h264 out of Pro:

If the export is thru AME and h264 is selected then the file size is 25 mb. (deinterlaced square pixels)
If the export is File>Movie> and in the "settings box" Qtime is selected under General and h264 is selected under Video the file size is 235 mb. (not deinterlaced and nonsquare)

The export out of AE using Qtime Animation the original file is 2.71 GB that I used in PrPro.

I'll wait to hear back from your friend. Thanks

[Chuck Engels]

He usually gets back to me within a few hours.

[Chuck Engels]

Hi Cheryl,
Here is the response from Rich

ProPresenter likes .m4v files.
Generally, presets for Apple TV are fine.

To achieve the best quality, they should look at their display settings in ProPresenter (under preferences/display) and if they have HD footage, go up to that resolution. In other words, if PP is outputting 1280x1024 to the projectors and they have HD footage, they should create video files that are 720p (1280x720).

With his last statement about the projector output you may want to find out what they are projecting as far as SD or HD and what resolution. I sent Rich an email back and asked if there was a standard size that Adobe Media Encoder could export that would look good no matter what they project. Probably best to see what the church is doing if you don't already know.

Will keep you informed as I hear anything.

[momoffduty]

Thanks Chuck. This video is SD.

Edit: They only use the projector for Pastor's power point text and music text and no background. This video is something new.

[Chuck Engels]

But they will still push it from ProPresenter to the projector. Rich is just saying that they need to make sure the ProPresenter settings match the video. So if they want to project higher resolution then the video should be in that same resolution. If they are only planning on projecting 720 x 480 then you are fine with a SD export.

[momoffduty]

I googled PP and looks like a .mov file will work. I'll mention the projection needs to match the video. Good thing this is for next Sat & Sun, so time to try it out.

[momoffduty]

I found this FAQ:


24.
What video formats are supported?
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Anything QuickTime recognizes is playable within ProPresenter (which includes DV, Sorenson, H.264, and more including uncompressed video). As of January 2006, the freely available Windows Media player plug-in from Flip4Mac will allow even your Windows Media files to play back within ProPresenter. The speed of your machine and the type of compression will dictate how smoothly the videos playback. Playing back MPEG 2 video requires the purchase and installation of the QuickTime MPEG-2 Playback Component from Apple.

**Please read the following FAQ for info on getting smooth playback from your ProPresenter station.

25.
Why does my purchased stock video not play back smoothly?
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Smooth playback can be effected by the Codec (short for compressor/decompressor) used for compression and the Data Rate of the compression settings. Movie clips that you receive from a manufacture are set to the highest quality possible. Original files from various manufactures should be compressed for optimum playback for the target machine. We have found H.264 and PhotoJPEG (both at no more than 50% or middle quality) on current systems (Core 2 Duo or better as they are processor intensive and require the extra power) produce a nice balance between high quality and high performance. Uncompressed clips using PhotoJPEG at 100% will not play back well on any machine as this is raw, highest possible quality footage (i.e. Digital Juice Jumpbacks), so be sure you have recompressed them before trying.

While MPEG1 clips that often come from download services (such as Barna, SermonSpice, WorshipFilms, Digital Hotcakes, MediaShout, etc.) will play, they are not reliable and will often not play smoothly. It's an old, GOP based codec that has been updated twice, first by MPEG2 and now MPEG4. Playing back MPEG2 videos require an additional $19 plug-in from Apple for QuickTime (due to licensing fees the MPEG association charges vendors which are passed onto the consumer). All our software is based on the QuickTime architecture, not WMA which runs AVIs. To get the desired playback out of old MPEG1 clips, we suggest either contacting the manufacturer you purchased your clips from and ask to download Quicktime versions (which most have) OR convert these clips into QuickTime movies using the above mentioned Codec(s).

A great single movie or batch conversion utility called Compressor comes with the Final Cut Studio suite or there are numerous other 3rd party applications you can use (Cleaner 6, Squeeze 4, Flip4Mac, Compression Master, etc.). You can also try QTAmateur which is a free batch conversion utility from Michael Ash.