Importing an AAF Sequence

To import an AAF sequence using the MediaHub:

  1. Open MediaHub, and set it to Browse for Files.
  2. Review the AAF & XML Import Options. Because you are importing an AAF, pay attention to Preferred Media: if offline intermediates were used during the offline editing, decide now whether you wish to relink to the original media or to the offline intermediates.
    Note: By default, the sequence is imported at the resolution of the AAF, not the project's. You can set a resolution with the Sequence Resolution box.
  3. Using the file browser, navigate to the AAF sequence to import.

    You can view the frame rate from the Preview Panel.

  4. Drag the file from the browser to the Media Library.

    Flame converts the AAF to its sequence format. According to the Media and Relative Search options, the sequence can be relinked or not, and the sources also imported, or not. The media itself is imported using the option file format options defined in the Format Specific Options tab.

You can also import a sequence from Conform:

  1. Open Conform.
  2. Click in the Media Panel the destination for the imported sequence.
  3. Right-click the Events list, and select Load New FCP XML/AAF/EDL...
  4. Set the AAF & XML Import Options.
  5. In the Media Import window, locate the sequence to import using the file browser, and click Import.

    The sequence is automatically added the Sequences reel of the current Reels group.

Important: If the AAF sequence contains embedded media, the AAF sequence imports, but without its media. You need to relink the sequence to its media after the import.

You can select multiple sequences to import, using Shift-click and Ctrl-click.

With Save Sources Separately active, the sources are saved in a Sources reel. And if a source is used multiple times in a sequence or across multiple sequences, only one instance of the source is imported.

If you plan on perform a Connected conform, you must import your sequences in a Reel group. Make sure to drag and drop the sequences on top of a Reel group, or to import from Conform. In Conform, imported sequences are always added to the Sequences reel of the current Reel group, ensuring that you can use the Sources and Shots sequences required for the Connected conform workflow.

Tip: When exporting the AAF, save the AAF to the root of the media used in that timeline: the media should either be with the AAF, or within a folder alongside the AAF.

About Limited Support for AAF From Adobe Premiere and DaVinci Resolve

Adobe Premiere Pro CC 2017 (and later) and from Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve (version 12.5 and later) export lossy AAF sequences that do not contain all the effects required to rebuild an identical timeline in Flame.

To see how the sequence will appear Flame, export the sequence from Premiere (or Resolve), and import it back in. The resulting sequence is what you can expect in Flame.

Link to Media Files and Search and Import Files

The options Search and Import Files and Link to Media Files are performed sequentially:

  1. If Link to Media Files is enabled, Flame locates the media files based file paths and names found in the AAF.
  2. For the media that cannot be found, and if Search and Import Files is enabled, Flame tries to locate the media files in the location defined by the Directory Up field, trying to match media to segments based on the defined Match Criteria.

About Avid Media Composer Intermediates Formats

Transcoded intermediates from Avid Media Composer that are supported in Flame:

Transcoded intermediates from Avid Media Composer that are not supported in Flame:

When conforming unsupported intermediates, use the Preferred Media > Original Sources option from the Media Import window to link to the original media files. Or from Media Composer, transcode the sources to a supported format.

Sequences made using a unsupported frame rate, such as 48 fps, cannot be imported in Flame.

Note: In MXF Op-Atom files generated by Avid Media Composer, audio tracks appear in the MediaHub as a single audio channel file (A1). But once imported, the tracks display the original channels.

About R3D Media Files and Media Composer AAF

In Flame, when you conform an AAF using RED .r3d media files, you can also apply the RED Source Settings defined in Avid Media Composer. Source Settings are the color settings edited in either Media Composer.

To use the RED Color Settings defined in Media Composer:

  1. From the Conform tab contextual menu, select Load New FCP XML/AAF/EDL...
  2. In the Media Import window, enable AAF & XML Import Options > Keep Source Settings.

    This setting can also be set in the MediaHub.

  3. Locate and Import the AAF file.
  4. Once the AAF is imported, link the segments back to their R3D sources by Conforming an Avid AAF.

    The RED sources are displayed using the color settings defined in Avid Media Composer.

When using Keep Source Settings, never relink to clips already imported in Flame because they already have color settings that cannot be overridden by the relinking process. Instead, make sure to use one of the following approaches:

Debayering resolution is not part of the information contained in the AAF Source Settings. You must therefore specify the debayering settings before locating the R3D files, or the media's resolution will not match that of the sequence. You should do this from the MediaHub before importing the AAF, or from the Media Import window as you locate the AAF.

Matching the resolution of an AAF to the fully debayered resolution of R3D files:

  1. In the Media Import window, locate and select one of the R3D files.
  2. In the Format Specific Options tab, enable Show All Formats.
  3. Select File Format > R3D from the box.
  4. Select Options Category > Debayering.
  5. Set the Debayering Mode box to Full.
  6. Open the AAF & XML Import Options tab.
  7. Select Select Resolution from the Sequence Resolution box.
  8. With the R3D file still selected, click Copy from Selected Clip.

    The resolution information is copied from the R3D file. Any AAF (or XML for that matter) will be imported to that resolution.

Tip: Often times the AAF will be have been created at an HD resolution in Avid Media Composer. But by working at full debayering resolution on Linux workstation, you can benefit from the faster GPU debayering. Override the AAF resolution with the Sequence Resolution in the AAF & XML Import Options; use Copy from Selected Clip on one of the R3D files to match resolution. Make sure to also set the R3D debayering to Full.

To set the debayering settings before importing the AAF:

  1. Open the MediaHub.
  2. In the Format Specific Options tab, enable Show All Formats.
  3. Select File Format > R3D from the box.
  4. Select Options Category > Debayering .
  5. Set the Debayering Mode box to the desired debayering resolution.

    You can then following the instructions above to import the AAF.

To set the debayering settings as you import the AAF:

  1. From the Conform tab contextual menu, select Load New FCP XML/AAF/EDL...
  2. In the Format Specific Options tab, enable Show All Formats.
  3. Select File Format > R3D from the box.
  4. Select Options Category > Debayering .
  5. Set the Debayering Mode box to the desired debayering resolution.
  6. In the Media Import window, enable AAF & XML Import Options > Keep Source Settings.

    This setting can also be set in the MediaHub.

  7. Locate and Import the AAF with RED Color Settings.
  8. Once the AAF is imported, link the segments back to their R3D sources by Conforming an Avid AAF.

    The RED sources are displayed using the color settings defined in Avid Media Composer.

Note: Format Options you set from the Timeline in Flame are overwritten when you relink the media to the AAF: the media is imported using the MediaHub settings.
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