Re: Editing solutions on Linux

On Wed, Apr 07, 2004 at 08:59:37PM -0500, Michael Duffy wrote:
> Greetings,
> 
> We are considering Linux as part of our pipeline for our next project.
> Right now we are evaluating the software that we will need to pull off
> production of a feature film.  One area I'm not familiar with though
> are the editing solutions for Linux.  Our animation department needs
> to be able to edit together the shots that the various animators work
> on.  Currently I think they use Premier on Windows, but that's not
> available for Linux.  They need to be able to graphically (timeline)
> assemble the footage and adjust in and out points.  Input can be
> either a sequence of images (TGA, TIFF, etc), or possibly AVI input
> would work as well.  It does need to be pretty fast and simple to use,
> since these are animators, not editors.  The frames from animation
> will probably be rendered at 1K, but might be in the 800 pixels across
> range.  Wide aspect ratio images will need to be supported (we aren't
> working with SD here).
> 
> So what is available?  Either a commercial or an open source solution
> is fine.  Jahshaka doesn't look like it is finished enough for
> production use.  Kino?  Cinelerra?  Cuisine?  

I've used Kino and Cinelerra before, but not for any big production.
I take video footage of my Linux User Group's meetings and edit them
together. For that, I use Kino. Kino is really easy to use, works great
with DV cam input, and automates the process of conversion to mpeg2,
divx or even back out to raw DV. Unfortunately, it doesn't hold a candle
to Premiere. And I think you might find it's features a bit lacking.

Cinelerra is much more sophisticated, offering a timeline a bit more
like Premiere's, complete with audio and video transitions and other
effects. I personally find the UI to be kinda awkward (I wish they had
built the app on KDE/QT widgets instead). I think I could use a
training session to make it sing. (I made a DV presentation to my LUG
and demoed Cinelerra, making my awkward-UI comment. Many people
objected, saying that it looked quite nice for an open source app. Your
mileage may vary. :-) ).

I can't comment on Cuisine, since I've never used it. And, I'm not sure
about non-free software available on Linux in general. I think if
something as slick and robust as Premiere were availble, I myself would
seriously consider buying a copy.

Another thought--you might want to contact Adobe and tell them what you
are doing. You want Linux, and Premiere presently won't run on that
platform (even with emulators like Wine and Crossover Office). Tell them
you want a version!  The more industry folks putting pressure on them,
the more incentive they have to porting to X and Linux (it should be a
snap considering that Premiere already runs on OSX).

> If our lighting department winds up on Linux then they will probably
> be on Shake, but that is probably too expensive a solution for
> animation.  Lighting could also be on Macs, which makes Shake even
> more appealing.
> 
> Thanks for any input,
> Michael Duffy

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R. Douglas Barbieri
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http://www.dooglio.net

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