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 | |
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Online tutorial: Connected Conform Workflow - Conforming & The Sources Sequence | |
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Do one of the following
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Step 2: Connecting Segments | |
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Online Tutorial: Connected Conform Workflow - Metadata & The Shots Sequence | |
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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:
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Step 3: Apply VFX and Distribute Shots | |
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Online Tutorial: Connected Conform Workflow - Using Batch FX and Batch | |
![]() | Work in context of the timeline:
Work on individual shots, in the context of Batch:
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 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 context 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.
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, labelled Shots Track by default, 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.
Batch Group segments created for a Timeline that already has a Shots Track will be added to the existing Shots Track, instead of a new track, as long as the space required by the new Batch Group segment is free.
The "Shots Track" label can be removed from the Timeline Tracks, using the context menu. The tag is removed on all sequences located inside the current Sequences Reel.
It is also possible to manually flag a Timeline Version as Shots Track. The tag is only added to the current Sequence.
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.
![](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2025/ENU/Flame-ImportExportMedia/images/ac.menuaro.gif)
![](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2025/ENU/Flame-ImportExportMedia/images/ac.menuaro.gif)
Applying a Gap FX
You can create Connected Segments on GapFX. These can be copy & pasted within your sequence. The GapFX can then be synced to propagate the changes in the effects settings throughout the sequence. Connected GapFX are available when creating or updating the Shots Sequence.
Smart Replace
The Smart Replace option is available in the Renders Destination section of the Render node. When enabled, a Batch Render automatically replaces the Shot in the Shots Sequence and in any sequences that contain the Shot. The Smart Replace option is disabled if the Batch Scene does not have a Shot Name attribute.
A Preference setting in Timeline FX / Batch / BFX: Render Nodes Destination enables or disables the Smart Replace setting. When enabled, any new Batch Render nodes will have Smart Replace enabled, but you can still manually disable it in the Render node itself, if need be.
Smart Shot Replace
The Smart Shot Replace function is available in the context menu, from your Batch Renders Reel, in the Media Panel to manually perform a Smart Replace based on Shot Name data. It can be useful to disable the Smart Replace option in the Render node, enabling you to render, iterate and validate. Then, once you are happy with your shot, perform a Smart Replace in your Timeline. A keyboard shortcut is also available in the Shortcut editor.
Duplicating Segment Connections
You can create a duplicate version of the connected segment above the existing one, using the Duplicate Segment Connections, from the context menu of a connected Timeline segment.
- The operation is selection-based.
- The new segment has _copy appended to the Segment name by default.
- The new segment is created on every sequence where a connected segment exists.
- If there's a gap on the track above the selected segment(s), the copy is added to that track.
- If there is no track above or if there is one but it is filled with another segment, then a new track is automatically added.
Operations To Avoid When in Connected Conform
When working in the context of Connected Conform, avoid the following:
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.
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 context menu to propagate the effects to you deliverables' sequences.
The scope of Create Source Segment Connection can be set from the context 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. This is 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,
However, when relinking sources that already conform to the following Match Criteria, you are no longer prompted to Add or Rename the sources, regardless of whether or not Save Sources is enabled - the matched sources are simply relinked:
- Its timecode span is equal or smaller than the timecode span of the original source.
- The number of audio tracks is equal or smaller to that of the original source.
- The number of video tracks is equal or smaller to that of the original source.
- Both sources are of the same type (audio or video).
Colour and Visibility of Connected Segments
Timeline segments can be colour-coded and you can control their visibility (display/hide) via the Preferences and the Colour submenu of the context menu. See Colour-Coding & Hiding Timeline Segments for details.
In the context of Connected Conform, you can enable / disable Connected Segments / Link Colours and Connected Segments / Link Visibility On Sync from the Timeline Options dropdown menu, in order to share a colour between all connected segments and / or to share their visibility status. The visibility status is propagated after a Sync.