About Connected Conform

Connected Conform is a set of tools created to help you conform sequences that share similar sources and similar contents, either mono or stereoscopic. Aimed at helping you deliver multiple deliverables, it offers you two new types of specialized sequences, the Sources Sequence and the Shots Sequence. The former helps conforming multiple sequences in a single operation, the latter helps consolidate with shot distribution and processing.

Connected Conform is there to help you when you have multiple deliverables that share structure and source media but:

Are of varying length.
Require different finishing tasks such as visual effects or titling.
Use the same media, but in different locations, or of different durations, or even uses different sections of said media.

The Connected Conform tools allow you to:

Conform a group of imported sequences in a single operation.
Consolidate media ingest and linking by tying together related metadata of the segments.
Manage and distribute shots to be worked on from a central location.
Integrate the worked on shots with the imported sequences for final delivery.

All this can be accomplished using the Connected Conform tools which include:

Sources Sequence, a specialized sequence to conform multiple sequences in a single operation.
Shots Sequence, a specialized sequence to help with shot distribution and processing
Connected Segments, a concept to share information between related segments across different sequences.
Reel Group and the Sequences reel, which provides a central location for the Connected Conform workflow.

Connected Conform Workflow Overview

What follows is an example of a Connected Conform workflow. Also provided, links to online videos.

Step 1: Connecting Sequences
Online tutorial: Connected Conform Workflow - Conforming & The Sources Sequence
	Go to Conform. Import your sequences. Make sure that they are all in a single Reel group's Sequences reel. Click Create Sources Sequence. Go to the created Sources Sequence, and conform it. For added benefits: Enable Limit Handles and specify a number of handles. This option limits the amount of media relinked, but can ensure that there are enough heads and tails to slip around effects. Enable Save Sources. This option facilitates source management later on. And does not impact media cache usage unless you have enabled the Cache Source Media or Generate Proxies import options. Note: If you plan on using the Sources Connection workflow, enable Save Sources. Lock a track to exclude its segments from being included in the Sources Sequence. Do one of the following To work on shots, continue to Step 2: Connecting Segments. To work on the sources, see Connecting Sources.

Step 1: Connecting Sequences

Online tutorial: Connected Conform Workflow - Conforming & The Sources Sequence

Go to Conform.
Import your sequences. Make sure that they are all in a single Reel group's Sequences reel.
Click Create Sources Sequence.
Go to the created Sources Sequence, and conform it.
For added benefits:
- Enable Limit Handles and specify a number of handles. This option limits the amount of media relinked, but can ensure that there are enough heads and tails to slip around effects.
- Enable Save Sources. This option facilitates source management later on. And does not impact media cache usage unless you have enabled the Cache Source Media or Generate Proxies import options.
  Note: If you plan on using the Sources Connection workflow, enable Save Sources.
- Lock a track to exclude its segments from being included in the Sources Sequence.

Do one of the following

To work on shots, continue to Step 2: Connecting Segments.
To work on the sources, see Connecting Sources.

Step 2: Connecting Segments
Online Tutorial: Connected Conform Workflow - Metadata & The Shots Sequence
	Click Create Shots Sequence. From the Shots Sequence, prepare your shots by adding comments or renaming segments. Or, as in the following example, by assigning Shot Names to your segments. Select all the segments from the Shots Sequence. Right-click the timeline and select Rename Shot. Type in the shot name of your choice, but make sure to include the Background Index token. For example: ShotName_<background segment> Click Rename. And because the Shots Sequence connects the segments across the different sequences, every segment now has a shot name. By using the Background Index token you are assured that every background segment has a different shot name. Shot creation relies on segments using the same Shot Name: vertically laid segments with the same Shot Name are part of the same shot. Lock a track to exclude its segments from being included in the Shots Sequence. Applied Batch FX gets carried over to the Shots Sequence, but might prevent shots from connecting between sequences. Note: If you defined a limited amount of handles but need more content from the original source media file: Unlink the segment. Notice how every connected segment in the connected sequences is unlinked from its media file. Enable and set Limit Handles to the required number of handles. Using Link to Media File, relink the segment to its media. The segment now sports the new handles. This operation is similar to an un-consolidate.

Step 2: Connecting Segments

Online Tutorial: Connected Conform Workflow - Metadata & The Shots Sequence

Click Create Shots Sequence.
From the Shots Sequence, prepare your shots by adding comments or renaming segments. Or, as in the following example, by assigning Shot Names to your segments.
1. Select all the segments from the Shots Sequence.
2. Right-click the timeline and select Rename Shot.
3. Type in the shot name of your choice, but make sure to include the Background Index token. For example: ShotName_<background segment>
4. Click Rename. And because the Shots Sequence connects the segments across the different sequences, every segment now has a shot name.
  By using the Background Index token you are assured that every background segment has a different shot name. Shot creation relies on segments using the same Shot Name: vertically laid segments with the same Shot Name are part of the same shot.

Lock a track to exclude its segments from being included in the Shots Sequence.

Applied Batch FX gets carried over to the Shots Sequence, but might prevent shots from connecting between sequences.

Note: If you defined a limited amount of handles but need more content from the original source media file:

Unlink the segment. Notice how every connected segment in the connected sequences is unlinked from its media file.
Enable and set Limit Handles to the required number of handles.
Using Link to Media File, relink the segment to its media. The segment now sports the new handles.
This operation is similar to an un-consolidate.

Step 3: Apply VFX and Distribute Shots
Online Tutorial: Connected Conform Workflow - Using Batch FX and Batch
	Work in context of the timeline: Apply a Timeline FX to a segment in the Shots Sequence. Right-click that segment, and select Sync Connected Segments. The Timeline FX is applied to every connected segment across the connected sequences. You can right-click any segment from any connected sequence. Metadata connection is not unidirectional from Shots Sequence to other sequences. There is no hierarchy, only links. Rendering a segment and then selecting Sync Connected Segments also connects the renders between connected segments. Work on individual shots, in the context of Batch: Select the shots in the Shots Sequence. Each shot must have a Shot Name. Click Create Batch Group. It creates a Batch Reel for each of the shots. It also creates a new Version track as a placeholder where your shots are rendered. Work on the shot in Batch, and render the shot. It is now available in the Batch Renders reel. Make sure the placeholder segment in highlighted in the timeline. Select the rendered shot and select Media Replace from the Secondary Edit box in Timeline, or press `Ctrl-Shift-R`. This operation updates every connected sequence with the new media. Note: This example assumes that there is only one artist working on the sequences. But you could well distribute the shots (Batch Groups) using the Shared Libraries. Or without creating Batch Groups, you could use the Shot Publish approach to distribute the shots. Both approaches create a Version track and use placeholder segments.

Step 3: Apply VFX and Distribute Shots

Online Tutorial: Connected Conform Workflow - Using Batch FX and Batch

Work in context of the timeline:

Apply a Timeline FX to a segment in the Shots Sequence.
Right-click that segment, and select Sync Connected Segments. The Timeline FX is applied to every connected segment across the connected sequences.
- You can right-click any segment from any connected sequence. Metadata connection is not unidirectional from Shots Sequence to other sequences. There is no hierarchy, only links.
- Rendering a segment and then selecting Sync Connected Segments also connects the renders between connected segments.

Work on individual shots, in the context of Batch:

Select the shots in the Shots Sequence.
Each shot must have a Shot Name.
Click Create Batch Group. It creates a Batch Reel for each of the shots. It also creates a new Version track as a placeholder where your shots are rendered.
Work on the shot in Batch, and render the shot. It is now available in the Batch Renders reel.
Make sure the placeholder segment in highlighted in the timeline.
Select the rendered shot and select Media Replace from the Secondary Edit box in Timeline, or press Ctrl-Shift-R.
This operation updates every connected sequence with the new media.

Note: This example assumes that there is only one artist working on the sequences. But you could well distribute the shots (Batch Groups) using the Shared Libraries. Or without creating Batch Groups, you could use the Shot Publish approach to distribute the shots. Both approaches create a Version track and use placeholder segments.

Creating Batch Groups

Once you have created a Shots Sequence, you can, from Conform, create Batch Groups. One batch group is created for each different Shot Name within the selected segments. Each batch group can be seen as a discrete unit of work encapsulated.

Creating a Batch Group:

Select the segments for you need to composite in Batch.
The Batch Group can be created from any sequence within a Sequences reel, including from the Shots Sequence.
Assign a Shot name to the segments, using the Events list in Conform View, or the contextual menu.
Segments without a shot name do not create a Batch group.
Create the Batch Group. Do one of the following:
- In Conform View, click Create Batch Group.
- In Timeline View, right-click the timeline and select Create Batch Group.

One Batch group is created for each unique Shot name, in the location defined by the Batch Group Destination box. Each segment of the shot becomes a clip node inside Batch, stored in a Schematic Reel.

Note: A BFX applied to a segment becomes part of the clip node when the Batch Group is created. If you open the clip node options, you can use any of the regular Edit BFX, Explode FX, or Convert to 3D Comp options.

When you use Create Batch Group in Conform, that Batch group's Render node uses the following settings:

Its attributes, such resolution, source timecode, or tape name, are taken from the back plate. The node is also connected to the back plate.
Its In/Out marks are from the original timeline segment.
Its name is set to the Shot Name, or by the Default Render Node Name preference.

When you create a Batch group, a related segment is created on a new Version track in every sequence connected to Shots Sequence by the connected segments. By using Replace Media, this related segment can be replaced with the result of the Batch group, with every connected sequence automatically inheriting the replacement.

Once the work is done in Batch:

Render the result.
The rendered clip, with the original clip's metadata, can be found in the Batch Renders reel.
Open the Timeline view.
In the Shots Sequence, on the new Version track created previously, select the related segment to be updated.
Select the rendered clip from the Batch Renders reel.
Select Replace Media from the Secondary Edit box. The new media is now available across all connected sequences.

Selecting where Batch Groups are created:

Use the Create Batch Group Destination box to decide where the Batch Groups are created.
You can choose to create Batch Groups in a new library, a new shared library, or as a series of batch group of reels.
Pick Destination allows you to select a destination when you create the Batch groups.

Note: By default, the Batch Group created starts at the frame matching the source frame number of the background element. Enable Preferences > Timeline FX / Batch / BFX > Ignore in Publish/Conform to have the Batch Group start at frame 1.

Operations To Avoid When in Connected Conform

When working in the context of Connected Conform, avoid the following:

Applying a Gap FX: Any created Gap FX is local to the sequence where it is created; a Gap FX is not connected between connected sequences.
Applying a Batch FX to vertically composited segments: The flattening of the vertical structure require by a Batch FX disables segment connections since it destroys the spatial information for the concerned segments. Use instead the Create Batch Group workflow, where such information is preserved.
Note: Applying a Batch FX to an individual segment is a supported operation in the context of Connected Conform.

Connecting Sources

Use Source Segment Connection to set Connected Segment from a source to other instances of this source within the same Reel Group. For example, perform your colour corrections from the Sources Sequence Once done, propagate the changes to every instance of the source you worked on, to every sequence in the Sequence Reel.

In the Sources Sequence, right-click the segment with the source media that you need to connect and select Create Source Segment Connection.
This connects together every segment, in the Sequences reel, that uses the same source media.
Use the Sources Sequence as a working sequence.
Use Sync Connected Segments from the contextual menu to propagate the effects to you deliverables' sequences.

The scope of Create Source Segment Connection can be set from the contextual menu's Source Segment Connection Options:

Sequences Only: Enable this option to connect only segments located in the Sequences Reel. Disable this option to extend the scope of the connection to the whole Reel Group, including the Sources reel.
Overwrite Existing Connections: Enable this option if connections already exist but you want to overwrite them with new ones. For example, you duplicated multiple times a segment referencing the same source, but now you need these connections to share the same source segment.
Sync Up: Enable this option to synchronize the segments as soon as the connection is created. This automatic sync only happens when the connection is first created: after this, you need to manually synchronize the segments.

Adding a sequence to sequences already connected through Source Connection:

Verify that the sources for the already imported sequences are all saved in the Sources reel.
If the sources are not available in the Sources reel,
Add a sequence to the Sequences reel.
Disable the Save Sources option.
Link to the sources located in the Sources reel. This automatically adds Source Segment Connections to the new sequence, complete with the link icon.

For this operation to work properly, you must make sure that Save Sources was enabled and that the sources were all imported to the Sources reel the first time you created the Sources Sequence. And when you import and relink the new sequence, the Save Sources option must be disabled. Because Flame assigns a different ID to a source every time it is imported, and because the Source Connection relies on that ID to create the connection,

Note: Do not mix Sources and Shots connections. If a Shots Sequence exists in the Reel Group, take precedence over the Sources Sequences: it owns all of the Segment Connections. If you try to link media to a newly added sequence while a Shots Sequence exists in the Reel Group, there can be no Source connections, only Shot connections.