Foolcontrol + Optitron2 + Movie-Slate + laboGAMP

[Gunleik Groven]

Working on something fun here, as a byproduct of other things we doe here at the LABO magic-elves (mixedrealities.no)

Testing now a beta of movieslate (http://movie-slate.com) working alongside foolcontrol (iPhone) http://mikasky.free.fr/foolcolor/foolcontrol/index.html

and the Optitron2. http://www.optitek.org

Movieslate reads and records the camerametadata in realtime (including accellerometer and FIZ data) to the relevant slate/scene number, we control the camera setups through foolcontrol, and control focus/IRIS via The optitron.

On top of that we have a workflow up which thus far takes the on-set metadata and creates finished synchronized logging projects with all metadata preserved, and locked to the shots (either by tc or globally) and gives us control over all relevant metadata for different post VFX exports of bundles of files and projects.

Pretty excited, really.

Here is a preview of the conforming of a logging project in premiere.
All matched files are put directly into scene bins, renamed with scene/slate naming and marked from Movieslate

In addoition with the new version of movie slate we get all camera metadata and rec start/stop frame accurately sync'ed to the camera.

Thanks to Optitron, Mikael, Movieslate and our internal magic elves, this is up and running now.
I'll make a better rundown on this after a 10 days shoot starting tomorrow.


have a look:

https://vimeo.com/138924659

Gunleik

 

[Stephen Pruitt]

This looks pretty darn impressive, Gunleik! Can't wait to hear more about it!

Stephen

 

[Gunleik Groven]

We will be supporting a 50-days mixed-reality production from November.
Things are starting to take shape.

This workflow app... As it develops, I think it would definitely be something I'd have wanted.
But there is still a lot of work (and not yet announced features) to it.

It's roughly three parts/concepts we work on:

Ingest
Syncronize
Export

And a concept that files are mostly either "global" (like a lens-distortion map, a manuscript, location-scout shots or 3D elements) or source files (anything produced over a production day).

And the solutions have started to become pretty clean.

Not deliverable yet.
But it's cool to be able to at least give a concept glimpse of one of the things we're working on.

Keeping and using relevant shot specific and global metadata for specific workflows, filebundles and set-up projects (Not unlike Hiero, but we couldn't use hiero for what we need), and then as far as possible make it all feel really simple...

Now THAT's a goal.

Ability to batch as many batchable operations as possible is also key.

Like naming and sorting of files in a logging project, or filebundles needed for tracking, compositing and 3D apps.

It's pretty ambitious, and luckily we work with a couple of big and a couple of smaller productions and production houses, and I have used the tools on my own stuff since May.

We have kinda been able to keep on track so far.

Pretty exciting.

 

[Gunleik Groven]

Phasing in these thing one by one on a live set is interesting.

Yesterday, the copying, transcoding only.

Today, the Movie-Slate and the live wireless monitoring of multiple cameras will be phased in.
And the live proxy recording for offline and dailies.
Tomorrow I hope we start to do the live update of the Movie-Slate with camera metadata, and then we'll add the Optitron to the soup.
Mostly shooting on old Angies and B-Speeds. Not a lot of metadata to collect from those anyways.

In 2 months we'll be on a big/long mixedreality production and three months of on-set betatesting, but this week we're phasing our systems into multiple smaller commercial and short-film productions.

Pretty stoked by finally taking this out of synthetic testing and into real-world.

Still bring coders along on set though

 

[PatrickFaith]

This is real interesting. I have a lot of problems intermixing my xsens performance capture data with my r3d files as it moves through motion builder/maya/nukex(camera solves). I have to do a ton of stuff on paper, with fairly complex 40 step instructions that I constantly have to look at. When I have to sync my focus pulls to complex jib moves that are on motion capture, I have to write down a ton of stuff and basically I have to do all the steps personally (from taking the shot all the way to motion builder and nuke because of the complexity).


btw xsens metadata is at 240 fps and I move that to 24 fps to match up with the r3d data (there is a api for this via maya but it's way too confusing for me).

 

[Björn Benckert]

For the non EF lenses you should try to get the RED W.M.D as it has Metadata support built in, allowing focus, iris, and zoom lens data to be written directly to the .R3D file. Even if it does not give the exact distances it quite handy to have motor turns and if wanted it´s quite easy to map to exact distancies if the lens is known. Normally by pulling close focus, infinte and then stop at a known distance mark in between. I think I read someplace that W.M.D also saves the gyro data.

 

[Gunleik Groven]

This is real interesting. I have a lot of problems intermixing my xsens performance capture data with my r3d files as it moves through motion builder/maya/nukex(camera solves). I have to do a ton of stuff on paper, with fairly complex 40 step instructions that I constantly have to look at. When I have to sync my focus pulls to complex jib moves that are on motion capture, I have to write down a ton of stuff and basically I have to do all the steps personally (from taking the shot all the way to motion builder and nuke because of the complexity).


btw xsens metadata is at 240 fps and I move that to 24 fps to match up with the r3d data (there is a api for this via maya but it's way too confusing for me).

Yup, that's where we are driving... Not xsens, bur still you see the path

But along the way we have to develop a set of workflow tools which I happen to think can be super-handy in almost any production

 

[PatrickFaith]

For the non EF lenses you should try to get the RED W.M.D as it has Metadata support built in...

My motion control system also controls my lens ... but I didn't realize what the WMD could do.

...But along the way we have to develop a set of workflow tools which I happen to think can be super-handy in almost any production

Can't wait to see this, it's 3:30 am in the mourning and I'm just plodding along per shot doing things manually. The Andy Sardis crew has a lot of great stuff, but for us low budget guys we have to just do a ton of stuff manually. I even sometimes just give up and manually do the alignments of all the metadata in maya&nuke.

 

[Gunleik Groven]

Metadatahandling from set to post (and also in realtime) for complex workflows is pretty crucial for what we do.
I am also a huge fan of standards.
Like ACES, AAF, CDLs, and as we have to do that practically, we also work well with the FCP7 XMLs (which isn't too bad as most programs read at least FCP7 sequence xml's), and that was a requirement for our first major project.

we also handle multiple copies to multiple destinations (and copying to different projects/SANs at once), and offer a modifyable base structure for projects. as the project progresses, the project preferences are updated and folows the project, not the computer and we work with a "large user" scenario out of the gate.

Still the software tools we develop... I can see that I would have loved these tools, even for smaller projects, and I push for these tools to have a pricepoint which makes it possible for many to have them.

Now finally we are on real sets (but with developers close)

 

[Gunleik Groven]

Had the pleasure to demonstrate this part of our software bundle today and what we can do with it to simplify workflows.

Response was: When can we have it?

 

[Gunleik Groven]

Added support for AVID DNx MXF's for the above conform.

https://vimeo.com/138924659

And you can pick and choose between recording h264, DNx and Prores to the unit that also transmits up to 3x 1080 streams synchronized for different normal workflows.

The log-prject conform still is not for AVID at this stage, though, and will not be until the featureset is locked down (or enough paying customers really want us to do that for them)

 

[Gunleik Groven]

Have to make a huge shout out to movieslate.

It is a real workflow tool. Get the proversion.

It's simple to use, reliable, and doesn't "go in the way" for normal on-set work, but assists sets out of the gate.

It's hard to not love it.

The TC-sync and beta camera-sync features are awsomeness put into system.
Love it all the way.

 

[Gunleik Groven]

Another huge shout to Mikael and Foolcontrol.

Just makes life more liveable.

A day without shooting today.

Will try to implement a few new toys for the rest of the production today.

Life is fun.

 

[Scott Crawley]

Have to make a huge shout out to movieslate.

It is a real workflow tool. Get the proversion.

It's simple to use, reliable, and doesn't "go in the way" for normal on-set work, but assists sets out of the gate.

It's hard to not love it.

The TC-sync and beta camera-sync features are awsomeness put into system.
Love it all the way.

Any word from Cliff on the progress of his testing and when the update might go public? Thank you for helping to move that beta along. I presume you are testing for him, giving feedback on the Red Protocol implementation.

 

[Gunleik Groven]

Any word from Cliff on the progress of his testing and when the update might go public? Thank you for helping to move that beta along. I presume you are testing for him, giving feedback on the Red Protocol implementation.

I must try to get him a RED Scarlet loaner to finish it.
Contemplating to go there myself for a week with my camera and discuss things with him.

It is not finished, but it works very promising as it is, and yes I have the beta and correspond with him around it.

It seeems to be very close, but he doesn't have a camera to run tests on.

I would sorta think it would be in REDs interest if he had a camera, as he is implementing the recording of all this juicy metadata in a very useable way.

The way it works is very sexy, you don't need the TC-buddy pulse to get the data (as you will on an Alexa)

 

[Scott Crawley]

I must try to get him a RED Scarlet loaner to finish it.
Contemplating to go there myself for a week with my camera and discuss things with him.

It is not finished, but it works very promising as it is, and yes I have the beta and correspond with him around it.

It seeems to be very close, but he doesn't have a camera to run tests on.

I would sorta think it would be in REDs interest if he had a camera, as he is implementing the recording of all this juicy metadata in a very useable way.

The way it works is very sexy, you don't need the TC-buddy pulse to get the data (as you will on an Alexa)

I tried to broker a rental for him months ago, but it obviously didn't pan out. I hope he gets it out the door soon!

 

[Gunleik Groven]

I could obviously rent him a camera for a week, but then it's more tempting to just pack mine and fly over so that we can discuss things properly, also the integration with the rest of the tools we develop on our side. It would be pretty sexy if the script could watch the wireless signal we already send directly on the iPad, just as one random example. That would also enable the possibility to watch the live composites down the line. So if I get support for it in my company, I guess that's the best way to do it.

But I'll ask RED (hey are you listening? ) if it's possible to give him a (partly defect) loaner. The sensor block could be non-perfect even for the use he needs to do (though that wouldn't make recording lens metadata half as fun).

ALso I imagine it could integrate with the WMD.

I guess he could make it work off-the-shelf on a weopon. Curious what this Raven thingy has to offer....

 

[Scott Crawley]

I was tempted to do the same, and bring mine out there but it was not cost effective for me and I don't have wireless to bring.

No TC Buddy required, eh? That's just what I was hoping for. You are able to use the camera TC as master then or does the slate take TC from cam and Audio dept. and correlate them?

I must try to get him a RED Scarlet loaner to finish it.
Contemplating to go there myself for a week with my camera and discuss things with him.

It is not finished, but it works very promising as it is, and yes I have the beta and correspond with him around it.

It seeems to be very close, but he doesn't have a camera to run tests on.

I would sorta think it would be in REDs interest if he had a camera, as he is implementing the recording of all this juicy metadata in a very useable way.

The way it works is very sexy, you don't need the TC-buddy pulse to get the data (as you will on an Alexa)

 

[Gunleik Groven]

You need to have the camera fitted out with RedLink or an access point.
And it connects over wifi. As it is, it cannot use the hotlink, as that connects through the control port.

Had it working at the office, but struggeling with the access point, as it is. But I am 99% sure that is user error.

As we stream video as part of our workflow, I wouldn't mind seeing that video in the slate.

And there are really a ton of potential crossovers between what we develop and movieslate on-set. (we focus on post... and live, but still).

Movieslate has the potential of allowing us not to develop something very similar in the short run.
And I much more want us to focus our development team on non-existing solutions than existing.

When on wifi, the camera sends TC, filenames, rec start/stop (you can also do a lot of things to the camera directly from the slate. Not sure if that is the right way of thinking it.)

To us it MIGHT make sense to send me there and work with him for a while.

Cannot stress enough how smart I find the Movie-slate.

Have had it in use by newcomers and experienced people so far this week, and they take it really quickly and it's not treated as a hazzle.

 

[Gunleik Groven]

Got a new version today. lens metadata (like iris/focus on Canon lenses) is now keyframed in Movieslate.
Love this thing.
(Haven't tested that yet, but I love the implementation. Now I will start testing that)