DCI P3 workflow in after effects?

[Hurcan Yilmazer]

Hi
Im working on a project that i edited in premiere and now i want to the export using after effects. Since it will be shown on cinema screens i want to do the coloring in DCI P3 color space. When i change the color space of the project and the footage to DCI p3 it is more blueish in color. Im new to this and know nothing about DCP so are there any one experienced about exporting correctly to DCP and been able to see the exact colors of r3d files that i see in premiere?

please help

 

[Stefan Scherperel]

I'm no expert on the subject matter, but have been creating DCP's for various films for the last year. The way that I have handled the color conversion is as the following.
Use your standard color workings space out to a calibrated monitor for final grading.
The next step is personal for me, I prefer to export a 10 Bit DPX sequence as my master. This master I will use to export h264, bluray, or the jpg2000 DCP files.
I then take that DPX sequence into After effects and use the "apply color profile" filter. You then change the color profile to DCI p3 xyz. The colors will become very greenish and flat.
I then use a free plugin to export to the proper jpg2000 DCP sequence.
In order to view this properly you need to have DCP playback software or view the final DCP in a theater (you still need to create the DCP mxf files before viewing).
I use NEO DCP which gives a great looking playback and have had excellent results in theaters using this method.

 

[Marc Wielage]

I don't believe you can get good enough results from most monitors in P3 color space. (One exception might be the Dolby 4200 monitor, which is in a class by itself.) I think in order to really see accurate results for P3/DCI color space, you have to look at them in a projection environment. There are too many fundamental differences between a 30fL monitor brightness spec and a 14fL theatrical brightness spec, plus the color space, plus the huge difference in size with the monitor. There's a radically-different feel in contrast and gamma with a projection screen, partly I think because you're seeing reflected light rather than direct light off an LCD or OLED panel.

Back in the day at ILM, I did do a couple of D-Cinema jobs where they came up with a custom CRT monitor setting of 20fL and we corrected off the monitor, then checked the results in a D-Cinema environment and fixed anything that was a little off. It's not a perfect translation.

I also believe After Effects is the wrong tool to try to use in a DCP process. Resolve is a much better way to go, and it's much easier to use LUTs and other finishing tools to output a DCP. After Effects is a dynamite program for certain things (particularly compositing), but it's lousy for color correction and a lot of similar functions. Resolve's built-in Easy DCP plug-in capability is also a major point in its favor.

 

[Marcus Struzina]

I'm also no expert but have had excellent results using mostly the same path as Stefan. For After Effects the free JPEG2000 module is available from www.fnordware.com/j2k/. And I also use the color transforms from www.opencolorio.org/ as a starting point to make the conversion to DCI p3 xyz. I've made my DCP's using Open DCP and testing short sequences in a cinema till I have the conversion right.
Testing is the key. Good luck.

 

[Hurcan Yilmazer]

Stefan, Marcus and Marc
Thanks for the great info.
Just to be sure these are the steps right?

1_importing footage to after effects
2- applying color profile converter to the footage
filter settings: input profile: project working space output profile: DCDM xyz (gamma 2.6) 5900k (all to footage gets a more flat and green)
3-Export to jpeg 2000 (actually i can also export directly to dcp in media encoder(2048*858) so is this exporting to jped 2000 is needed?)
4-Playing in Neo DCP player to check the results.

Here is the thing.
If I don't change the project color space to DCDM xyz in after effects project settings then when i view the dcp in neo dcp footage looks all green and flat as it looks in after effects(applying the instructions above).
But if i change the project color space to DCDM xyz in project settings then footage never becomes green or flat (not even in after effects) and even if i dont use the color profile converter filter dcp file in neo player looks exactly like in after effects which shows the correct colors.

im a little bit confused here :/

 

[Hurcan Yilmazer]

ok ı guess i found the problem.

When i put DCI p3 RGB (not the DCIDM xyx) in the color profile convertor filter, it makes my footage seem little bit flatter in after effects. But when i export DCP and play it with verious DCP players it shows the correct colors.

I guess that is it.