For students in ANIM-207 Animation I, the following settings are for a simple project produced with drawn animation shot with Digicel. Use this method if you intend to edit sound to an animation project and export a final QuickTime movie.
As a start, once you have recorded the animation with Digicel Flipbook, export an AVI, which you will subsequently import through Premiere.
To Export an AVI Movie
Referring to the main menu, go to File > Export > AVI. From there, an Export AVI dialogue window will open. You should then select the following under “Movie Contents:”
- Start Frame = Enter a value (e.g., the first frame or “1”)
- End Frame = Enter a value (e.g., the last frame)
- Start Level = Enter a value
- End Level = Enter a value
- Frame Rate = 24 FPS
- Screen Size: Leave this as the native format (i.e., 720 x 540)
- CODEC: Clicking the Codec button will call up a Video Compression dialogue box; choose “Full Frame — Uncompressed.”
- Save in > Your folder in the Save Here disk.
- File name: Give the movie a short name.
- Save as type: AVI (the default format).
- Press Save.
To exit the Export AVI window, press OK or Cancel.
Next, take the following steps.
Adobe Premiere Production Steps
Project Folder
First things first, make a folder on the Scratch Disk or your local drive. This is very important! The folder is where Adobe Premiere will store its project information and files, including the media that it uses to do its work. Moreover, you will add your own image and sound files to the folder and keep them there, and you’ll move the directory back and forth from your space on the network drive or to a portable drive.
When you make the folder, be sure to name it, using your name and the project name, such as:
- yourname_projectname
To open Adobe Premiere and begin working, refer to the computer workstation’s Start Menu and select Adobe Premiere. Once the program boots up, from the Welcome to Premiere Pro Window, choose “New Project” and select a couple of important options:
When the New Project dialogue box opens and prompts you, under:
- Video Format: Choose “Frames,” which is a good option for animators
- Location: Select your project folder on the Scratch Disk or your own drive
- Name: This part is very important! Go to:
- Location: Browse for your folder on the Scratch Disk and choose:
- Computer name (e.g. 05 288b) > Scratch > Your Folder
- Name: Give the project a short, one-word name, such as <yourname_shortproj>
- Press OK.
New Sequence
Once Premiere has fully opened and laid out a project, you will want to create a New Sequence, which have a timeline and is where you will add clips — still images, video, and sound files — to assemble, edit, and composite.
- Referring to the Main Menu, go to File > New Sequence
When you establish a Sequence, you will be prompted to choose a Sequence Preset. However, we will not be using a preset. Instead, we will create our own format.
This is IMPORTANT!
From the New Sequence Window, go past the Sequence Presets. Instead, click on the “Settings Tab.” From there, you will enter several important details:
Editing Mode:
- Choose “Custom”
- Timebase: Select “24 frames / second”
Video Settings:
-
- Frame size: 720 (horizontal) x 540 (vertical) — these are the same settings as Digicel and will result in a 4:3 orientation, provided that you have selected the correct square pixel (1.0) aspect ratio below. Note that the dimensions and aspect ratio are different than what you would typically use for other digital projects at Emily Carr.
- Pixel Aspect Ratio: Square Pixels (1.0)
- Fields: No Fields (Progressive Scan)
- Display Format: Frames
Audio Settings:
-
- Sample rate: 48000 samples/second
Sequence Name:
- Give it a suitable name, particular to what you are working on.
By the way, you might find later on that when you refer to the Premiere Interface and look at the Timeline, the Frame Rate Settings are still “Timecode” and not “Frames.” Go to the Project Window, right-click on “Sequence 01” and choose Sequence Settings > Video > Display Format > Frames.
To Export a Compressed QuickTime Movie
Before you export a QuickTime from Premiere, you should make a folder called “movies” in your project folder (if you haven’t done so already). This is where you will keep the “stand-alone” movie files that you render from the software.
To prepare a final rendering of a Premiere project, you should use the Work Area Bar in the Timeline to select the section that you intend to export.
Then, referring to Premiere’s Main Menu, go to File > Export > Movie, to organize and prepare the rendering process.
From the Export Settings Monitor Window, click on the Output tab:
- Deselect the “Match Sequence” option. We’ll override the Presets in a moment.
- Format: Choose “QuickTime” and make sure to “check/select” both:
- Export Video, and
- Export Audio
- Output Name: Click on the blue, underscore name. Locate where you intend to save the movie file>
- Save in: Scratch Disk / your project / movies
- File name: Give the movie a short one-word name, without spaces in the name
- Select the Video tab:
- Video Codec: Choose “H.264”
- Basic Settings:
- Quality: Choose 100%
- Deselect the Link button
- For a full-size movie, keep the same dimensions as your original project settings:
- Width: Enter “720”
- Height: Enter “540”
- Frame Rate: 24
- Aspect Ratio: Square Pixels (1.0)
- Click on the Audio tab:
- Audio Codec: Choose “Uncompressed” or “AAC”
Finally, go to the bottom of the Export Settings Monitor Window and click the Export Button.