CineForm Offers NEO 4K-Mac for Red Support (BETA)

[David Taylor]

CineForm is enthused to announce the BETA release of our native Mac converter for R3D files as part of Neo 4K-Mac, offering spatial resolution up to 4K.

Until now on Mac we've had our "CineForm Mac Codec". This BETA release is the first release of Neo 4K for Mac, and replaces the CineForm Mac Codec. Neo 4K-Mac includes: SetActiveMetadata for managing renderless color workflows, ReMaster which performs various file conversion and pre-processing operations, and our compression codec up to 12 bit precision and 4K spatial resolution. (For those who already have familiarity with CineForm products, on Windows "HD Link" holds the functionality of ReMaster. We'll be using the ReMaster name going forward.)

ReMaster: Used for file conversion and pre-processing. In this first BETA release, the ONLY format conversions offered by ReMaster are for Red files. ReMaster features for Red on Mac are similar to the script-based features we have on Windows, except we have a full GUI on Mac.

As it specifically relates to Red, ReMaster includes predefined presets for the following conversions:

- 1K CineForm Express files (color-perfect "Mini-Me" versions of CineForm Master files)
- HD 4:2:2
- HD 4:4:4
- 2K 4:4:4
- 4K 4:4:4 (4000-wide as default on Mac because of FCP limitations)
- 4K CineForm RAW (4000-wide as default on Mac because of FCP limitations)

You can create your own presets, or modify a predefined preset for your own purposes. You have basically two workflow options for Mac:

1) Use ReMaster to export to your preferred online finishing format (HD, 2K, 4K) then edit in FCP, using SetActiveMetadata to manage your renderless color workflow.

2) Create 1K Express files (<3MB/sec and fast to create) and do initial edits with Express files. They are very easy to edit even on a lower end laptops. Express files are color-perfect "Mini-Me" versions of full-res CineForm files, meaning you can color correct with them, add transitions, etc. In the background you can again use ReMaster to create your full-res CineForm Master files. When you're ready you can unlink the 1K Express Files from FCP and re-link with the full-res CineForm files. After re-linking, your project should remain intact including effects, but now at your online resolution. (CineForm Master files will have the same file name and same internal GUID as CineForm Express files).

SetActiveMetadata: SetActiveMetadata hasn't changed appreciably since earlier releases.

Rather than write an even longer missive here, I'll direct you to a couple locations for more information:

Download BETA Neo 4K: http://www.cineform.com/products/downloads/DownloadNEO4K-MacTrialStart.htm

Tech Note - CineForm Workflow for Red One: http://www.cineform.com/products/TechNotes/RedOneWorkflow.htm
Tech Note - ReMaster for R3D files: http://www.cineform.com/products/TechNotes/R3DConversion-Mac.htm
Tech Note - SetActiveMetadata controls for Mac: http://www.cineform.com/products/TechNotes/SetActiveMetadata-Mac.htm

This is a Beta release so I suspect you might find a thing or three that we need to look further at. We appreciate any feedback.

SUGGESTED TESTS:
1a) Render some R3D files to Cineform Express files in ReMaster using the Express preset
1b) Double-click on one of the resulting Express files. Then also launch SetActiveMetadata. While the clip plays in QT Player, experiment with various Active Metadata parameters. Notice they work in RT and remain with the file, even when you move the file into FCP. Separately we can probably get David Newman to upload some generic 3D LUTs so you can see how these work. Otherwise you can create your own 3D LUTS using Speedgrade OnSet from Iridas. They have a 30-day Trial available.

2) Repeat the 1a and 1b tests at different resolutions and begin to experiment further with the flexibility of Active Metadata.

NOTE: We do not yet have a product page posted for Neo 4K-Mac on our website. We're going to hold off until we have added some additional features to ReMaster and have its companion product Neo HD-Mac ready for Beta. So the Tech Notes pages pointed to above are the best place for information for now.

 

[Gunleik Groven]

This is cool, but will it work with color or other grading apps on Mac?

 

[Darren Orange]

Agreed, working with Color is a must! Otherwise sweet!

 

[Joe VanDalsem]

I have a feeling this is going to be my new best friend. Thanks david!

 

[David Taylor]

This is cool, but will it work with color or other grading apps on Mac?

We would like nothing more than to support Color. But unfortunately Color supports no QuickTime codecs. It only supports codecs that are compiled into the code. This is a legacy problem since Apple acquired Final Touch. Further, Apple acknowledged the problem 18 months ago, but they have not fixed it.

But CineForm files are supported by any QuickTime application. Color Finesse and Speedgrade are a couple examples for color workflows.

 

[David Taylor]

Any new on the porting of the HD Link to mac.

The infrastructure to support Red with our ReMaster application is the same for supporting all other cameras. So the good news is that we're well on our way. We'll provide a Beta of Neo HD for Mac in 1-2 weeks that will support most of the pre-processing and conversion operations for other cameras that we offer on Windows - telecine removal, deinterlacing, spatial resampling, etc.

Also any news on dual link monitoring support for the Kona 3 and possible Kona 4 card on the way. At the moment Im using the Kona 3, DeckLink HD Extreme and DeckLink HD Pro 4:4:4 PCIe in my various machines. It would be great if we could get dual link monitoring for them all.

We intend for Kona monitoring on Mac, but we're first trying to get through the Neo releases for Red and other cameras. But HD-SDI monitoring is important to us. Do NOT remember this date, but hopefully we'll have our first Kona support around the end of the year.

One last question, I noticed Cineform has an impressive looking Wafian HR-1 Direct-to-Disk Recorder.
Just wondering if you intend to bring out a similar product for recording 4K Raw and higher resolutions for the RED and EPIC.

Till, I wish we had an uncompressed Raw port out of Red. But because we don't, all files first go through REDCODE. This reduces the value of a D2D CineForm RAW recorder for Red. But CineForm is also compatible with all other RAW cameras that provide uncompressed outputs (Dalsa, Vision Research, ARRI) and your suggestion makes good sense for these cameras. We have disussed this idea with each manufacturer.

 

[mikeburton]

Won't Launch ReMaster

Won't Launch ReMaster

Hey David,

I installed the Trial and when I go to launch the ReMaster app it fails to launch the UI every time and in terminal says bus failure. The Set Active MetaData Launches just fine and all my system specs meet current specifications. Both my MacBook Pro and MacPro Machines are having the same issue. Only thing i can think is that both are running 10.4.11
Any help?

 

[LEON]

CineForm is enthused to announce the BETA release of our native Mac converter for R3D files as part of Neo 4K-Mac, offering spatial resolution up to 4K.

Is it Intel only ?

 

[David Taylor]

Hey Mike, off hand I'm not sure, but I've sent you a PM so we can help figure it out....

 

[David Taylor]

Is it Intel only ?

Yes Leon, Intel only. We have LOTS of performance optimizations for Intel that don't easily port to PPC. In fact the reason we didn't support Mac long before was the same reason. After Apple embraced Intel we could make the move.

 

[Trevor Meier]

Your workflow document recommends converting to Cineform RAW. Does that mean the encoder is receiving RAW data from the R3D file? Or are you converting from debayered RGB data back to RAW?

 

[Christopher Grant Harvey]

Your workflow document recommends converting to Cineform RAW. Does that mean the encoder is receiving RAW data from the R3D file? Or are you converting from debayered RGB data back to RAW?

From Build 16 CineForm no longer receives RAW data, so yes they backconvert to RAW from RGB.

 

[David Taylor]

That's right Chris. Trevor, a little more detail for you and others. Demosaic algorithms, which interpolate missing R, G, and B colors per cell site, preserve the original color value at each cell site. So from this information it is possible to backsample from demosaiced-RGB to RAW.

As you probably know, from a quality standpoint you don't want to resample a Bayer pattern to a lower spatial resolution without performing a demosaic to RGB first. So for 4K workflows we do recommend staying with CineForm RAW purely from a file size/performance issue. 4K CineForm RAW files will be in the range of roughly 30-40MBytes per second depending on image statistics, roughly the size of the R3D files, but perhaps a little larger. But when you demosaic to 12-bit CineForm 444 at 4K, the files will be in the range of 60-90MBytes/second.

But for workflows at lower spatial resolution than the sensor size (HD and 2K for instance) we recommend going to CineForm 444 at either spatial resolution. Both are provided as presets.

 

[Christopher Grant Harvey]

David, so I plan to finish at HD is there any performance gain from using 4K C-RAW files in an HD preset but exporting to HD?

Will Premiere have a harder time working with 4K in an HD preset versus a 4K preset?

 

[Mike Zinner]

Question. Will Prospect 4K owners get access to the Mac tools as well? Will our CineForm Intermediate for Intel Macs serials work or are we going to receive new serials?

My main machine is a MacPro running OS X and I only use Vista64 in bootcamp for the CineForm realtime playback engine replacement for PR. But I would like to covert the R3D files in OS X.

Also, do you have any insights whether it will be possible to replace PR CS4's playback engine on the Mac? I know that it was not possible for CS3 because Adobe did not export the API on the Mac. It would be great not having to boot Windows anymore

 

[David Taylor]

David, so I plan to finish at HD is there any performance gain from using 4K C-RAW files in an HD preset but exporting to HD?

Will Premiere have a harder time working with 4K in an HD preset versus a 4K preset?

Chris, I know you work on PPro/Windows, so is this a PPro/Mac question? Regardless, in general we recommend a preset or sequence setting that is the same as the source material. You get no performance improvement if you choose a smaller preset or sequence setting. Then when the project is complete export to the desired spatial resolution.

 

[David Taylor]

Question. Will Prospect 4K owners get access to the Mac tools as well? Will our CineForm Intermediate for Intel Macs serials work or are we going to receive new serials?

Mike, all existing Prospect 4K customers will get a serial number for Neo 4K Mac at no charge. I suspect you already have one for our "Mac Codec". Your Mac Codec S/N will be exchanged for a new Neo 4K serial number. We'll make that available in the next week or so. Meanwhile the Trial version should run for 15 days.

Further, anybody who purchases Prospect 4K during the first half of November will also get a free serial number for Neo 4K Mac, so you'll have a completely cross-platform workflow with the purchase of Prospect 4K.

Also, do you have any insights whether it will be possible to replace PR CS4's playback engine on the Mac? I know that it was not possible for CS3 because Adobe did not export the API on the Mac. It would be great not having to boot Windows anymore

It is possible, although our PPro/Win engine has lots of Windows-specific code in it, so it has to be rewritten for Mac. It is a lot of work to rewrite the engine for Mac, so we'll do it in stages. The first stage with improved PPro/Mac support should be either late this year or early next. We've focused most of our Mac efforts so far on FCP.

 

[CraigDavidson]

David, so I plan to finish at HD is there any performance gain from using 4K C-RAW files in an HD preset but exporting to HD?

Will Premiere have a harder time working with 4K in an HD preset versus a 4K preset?

Files at HD resolution and smaller are created with a QuickTime header that makes Final Cut Pro request YUV, at sizes larger than HD the header is set up so that RGB is requested. The data in the files is identical. When FCP requests YUV, it is always at full frame resolution. When RGB is requested, it is at the display resolution.

With the Premiere interface, PR requests RGB format images at the display resolution, regardless of the QuickTime header.

There is a performance benefit when editing to have a smaller RGB format requested, especially one that is an even multiple of the source material.

There may be no performance benefit if you edit with Premiere, but there would be less processing of the data before final rendering. There is a performance benefit if you edit with Final Cut.

More info:

Transcode a 4K source clip (36 MByte/second (~220mbit)) 5.38 seconds.
Source file: 144.8 MBytes
HD 444 High quality: 197mBits/second 126MBytes
4K RAW High quality: 122mBits/second 78MBytes
4K RAW Film Scan1: 148mBits/second 95MBytes

Higher quality and smaller size.

 

[David Taylor]

BTW, Craig (above) is the CineForm developer who has done all of our recent Mac work, including Neo 4K Mac.

 

[David Newman]

... Separately we can probably get David Newman to upload some generic 3D LUTs so you can see how these work. Otherwise you can create your own 3D LUTS using Speedgrade OnSet from Iridas. ...

Here are some Iridas 3D LUTs to try out in SetActiveMetadata.
http://www.miscdata.com/LUTs/samples1.zip

These are primarily film stock profiles created by a CineForm customer and a couple more dramatic filters. I think the film stocks where calibrated for 2.2 gamma inputs, but any source will work. This is only the tip of the iceberg for what you can do with 3D LUTs.