Apple M8728Z/A User Manual - Page 237

Stage 1: Shooting the Film and Recording the Sound Audio is always recorded separately from the film, on a separate sound recorder. This is known as shooting dual system sound. While shooting the film, you need to include a way to synchronize the sound to the picture. The most common method is to use a clapper board (also called a slate or sticks) at the beginning of each take. There are a number of other methods you can use, but the general idea is to have a single cue that is both audible and visible (you can see what caused the noise). Stage 2: Developing the Film The developed film is known as the original camera negative. This negative will eventually be used to create the final movie and must be handled with extreme care to avoid scratching or contaminating it. The negative is used to create a video transfer (and typically a workprint, as with the traditional method) and then put aside until the negative is conformed. Stage 3: Transferring the Film to Video The first step in converting the film to a format suitable for use by Final Cut Pro is to transfer it to video, usually using a telecine. Telecines are devices that scan each film frame onto a charge-coupled device (CCD) to convert the film frames to video frames. Although the video that the telecine outputs is typically not used for anything besides determining edit points, it's a good idea to make the transfer quality as high as possible. If you decide against making workprints, this may be your only chance to determine if there are undesirable elements (such as microphone booms and shadows) in each take before committing to them. The video output should have the film's key number, the video timecode, and the production audio timecode burned in to each frame. The actual videotape format used for the transfer is not all that important, as long as it uses reliable timecode and you will later be able to capture the video and audio digitally on the computer prior to editing. An exception is if you intend to use the video transfer to also create an edited video version of the project, perhaps for a video trailer. This requires two tapes to be made at the transfer-one that is high quality and without window burn, and another that has window burn. It is strongly recommended that the audio be synced to the video and recorded onto the tape along with the video during the telecine process. There are also methods you can use to sync the audio after the telecine process is complete-the important thing is to be able to simultaneously capture both the video and its synchronized audio with Final Cut Pro. Appendix A Film Background Basics 237