clip

The <clip> element is the root of an Open Clip.

Attributes

Attribute	Data Type	Allowed Values	Occurrence	Description
type	string	`clip`	1	Type of the element.
version	unsigned integer	`7`	1	Version of the XML element.

Note: Optional attributes (0 occurrence attributes) will be inferred from the parent node.

Children

Element	Data Type	Occurrence	Description
`<name>`	string	0-1	Name of the clip. Will be inferred from the file name if absent.
`<tracks>`	tracks	0-1	List of tracks in the clip.
`<versions>`	versions	0-1	List of versions in the clip.
`<sourceName>`	string	0-1	Source Name (aka Tape Name in some workflows).
`<startTimecode>`	time	0-1	Start timecode of the clip. If not defined, the start timecode of the intersection of all the tracks' time ranges will be used.
`<duration>`	time	0-1	Duration of the clip. If not defined, the union of all the feeds' duration will be computed.
`<editRate>`	rate	0-1	Rate common to all tracks. If not defined, a common rate of all tracks' edit rate will be computed.
`<comment>`	string	0-1	Unparsed text converted into a clip node.
`<handler>`	handler	0-1	Clip Handler. Might differ from Track handler.
`<userData>`	dict	0-1	Dictionary of metadata that are passed through without interpretation.

Note: Child elements with the attribute computed=1 will be ignored when parsed.

Examples

Example 1: One Track

                  0     1     2     3     4     5     6     7
Clip                    [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
  Track 0               [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  v0            [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[

This first example of an Open Clip contains a single video track. This one track has one <feed> for which there is only a single referenced media file. This example is the simplest Open Clip you can create.

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<clip type="clip" version="7">
    <tracks>
        <track uid="t0">
            <trackType>video</trackType>
            <feeds>
                <feed vuid="v0" uid="f0">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="file">Media/Video1.mov</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
    </tracks>
</clip>

Remarks:

Only a subset of the XML schema is used. Nothing more is needed to create an Open Clip.
Since the referenced file in the  is a streaming media, the path encoding is set to "file".
The <clip> starts at frame 1: It uses the timing defined by the media in the . There is no need to specify any timecode or duration: information not explicitly set in an Open Clip is inferred from the media. In this case, the timecode is inferred from the .mov file header. As for the duration of the <clip>, it is inferred from the media duration.

Example 2: Audio/video clip

                  0     1     2     3     4     5
Clip              [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
  Track 0         [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  v0      [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
  Track 1         [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  a0      [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
  Track 2         [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  a1      [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[

This second example illustrates an Open Clip, with audio and video component from heterogeneous sources. One 1 video track from a DPX sequence and 2 audio tracks from two individual WAVE files.

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<clip type="clip" version="7">
    <tracks>
        <track uid="t0">
            <trackType>video</trackType>
            <feeds>
                <feed vuid="v0" uid="f0">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/Video1.[0000-0004].dpx</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
        <track uid="t1">
            <trackType>audio</trackType>
            <feeds>
                <feed vuid="v0" uid="f0">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="file">Media/Audio1_1L.wav</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
        <track uid="t2">
            <trackType>audio</trackType>
            <feeds>
                <feed vuid="v0" uid="f0">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="file">Media/Audio1_1R.wav</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
    </tracks>
</clip>

Remarks:

Each <track> has its own <feeds>.
Each <track> has a unique uid, used to identify the track.
The element <tracktype> contains the audio keyword to identify the two audio tracks.
Since the referenced file in the  is a sequence of files, the path encoding is set to "pattern".
The <clip> starts at frame 0: It uses the timing defined by the media in the . There is no need to specify any timecode or duration: information not explicitly set in an Open Clip is inferred from the media. In this case, the timecode is inferred from the .dpx sequence file name, but could also be derived from the contents of the file headers. As for the duration of the <clip>, it is inferred from the media duration.
There is no method to set left and right for the audio stereo tracks. Use naming conventions for the media files.

Example 3: One Track Two Versions

                  0     1     2     3     4     5     6     7
Clip                    [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
  Track 0               [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  v0            [=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  v1                  [=====+=====+=====+=====[

This example displays an Open Clip with 1 track with 2 versions. Use this structure for the multi-versions workflows.

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<clip type="clip" version="7">
    <tracks>
        <track uid="t0">
            <trackType>video</trackType>
            <feeds currentVersion="version0">
                <feed vuid="version0" uid="v0">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/Video1.[0001-0004].dpx</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
                <feed vuid="version1" uid="v1">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/Video3.[0002-0005].dpx</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
    </tracks>
    <versions nbVersions="2" currentVersion="version0">
        <version uid="version0"/>
        <version uid="version1"/>
    </versions>
</clip>

Remarks:

<feed> is the element that marks a version. In a <track> element, each <feed> is a different version.
The vuid attribute of a <feed> identifies the version to which that <feed> belongs. It must match one of the uid of a version.
In one <track>, each <feed> must have a different vuid.
currentVersion must be equal to a vuid. Be careful with the currentVersion attribute. It is found in both <feeds> and <versions>. It must be kept in sync to have a properly formatted Open Clip. Its function is to flag a preferred version. In Flame, it indicates the version to display in the MediaHub.
The duration of the <track> is the union of the 2 <feed>. In Flame, gaps due to differences between versions are indicated with the presence of No Media slates.
The two versions do not share the same start timecode because of the .dpx-defined timecode. See this example on how to manage start timecodes between versions.

Example 4: One Track Multiple Spans

            0     1     2     3     4     5     6     7     8     9    10    11    12    13    14    15    16
Clip              [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
  Track 0         [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed v0       [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====|ooooo+ooooo+ooooo+ooooo|=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[

In this Open Clip, one track is an aggregate of multiple media sources. When time comes to present the track in the application, each  is concatenated to the previous one, top to bottom.

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<clip type="clip" version="7">
    <tracks>
        <track uid="t0">
            <trackType>video</trackType>
            <feeds>
                <feed vuid="v0" uid="v0">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/Video1.[0001-0005].dpx</path>
                        </span>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/Video2.[0001-0004].dpx</path>
                        </span>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/Video3.[0001-0006].dpx</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
    </tracks>
</clip>

Remarks:

This example represents a single track (or layer). For multiple tracks, you must use multiple <track> elements.
You cannot offset a : There are no provisions to create black between  element since a span is not an editorial decision, but rather a storage location:  does not have any timing information other than what can be inferred from the media it refers to.
The duration of the <feed> is equal to the sum of the  elements.
Media has to be homogeneous across  elements. You cannot mix formats, such as having DPX for one , and then TIFF for another .

Example 5: Stereo Video Clip

                  0     1     2     3     4     5     6     7
Clip                    [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
  Track 0               [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  v0s0          [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  v0s1          [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[

This Open Clip illustrates a stereoscopic case, where there is media for a right eye, and other media for a left eye.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<clip type="clip" version="7">
    <tracks>
        <track uid="t0">
            <trackType>video</trackType>
            <feeds>
                <feed vuid="v0" uid="f0">
                    <storageFormat type="format">
                        <type>video</type>
                        <isStereo type="bool">true</isStereo>
                        <lSubFeedId type="uid">Left</lSubFeedId>
                        <rSubFeedId type="uid">Right</rSubFeedId>
                    </storageFormat>
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <paths>
                                <path subFeedId="Left" encoding="pattern">MEDIA/left-eye.[0001-0005].tif</path>
                                <path subFeedId="Right" encoding="pattern">MEDIA/right-eye.[0001-0005].tif</path>
                            </paths>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
    </tracks>
</clip>

Remarks:

There is only one track and one feed to account for both eyes.
In <path> elements, the subFeedId attribute is what differentiates the left eye from the right one.

In a Stereo Open Clip, the storageFormat element is a mandatory child of each feed that is stereo (with a subFeedID for each eye). It must be written as it appears here:

  <storageFormat type="format">
      <type>video</type>
      <isStereo type="bool">true</isStereo>
      <lSubFeedId type="uid">Left</lSubFeedId>
      <rSubFeedId type="uid">Right</rSubFeedId>
  </storageFormat>

Example 6: Multi-track From One OpenEXR

Clip
  Track 0 - BEAUTY:MasterBeauty 
    Feed  v0
  Track 1 – Matte1
    Feed  v0
  Track 2 – Matte2
    Feed  v0

This example illustrates how you can use an Open Clip to create, from a single multi-channel OpenEXR file, a structure that expresses the different channels of the OpenEXR.

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<clip type="clip" version="7">
    <tracks>
        <track uid="BEAUTY:MasterBeauty">
            <trackType>video</trackType>
            <feeds>
                <feed vuid="v0" uid="v0">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/RGB_2Mattes.exr</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
        <track uid="Matte1">
            <trackType>video</trackType>
            <feeds>
                <feed vuid="v0" uid="v0">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/RGB_2Mattes.exr</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
        <track uid="Matte2">
            <trackType>video</trackType>
            <feeds>
                <feed vuid="v0" uid="v0">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/RGB_2Mattes.exr</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
    </tracks>
</clip>

Remarks:

In this case, the uid of the different tracks are not random at all: they are the actual layer names of the multi-layer OpenEXR file. This is the important bit: if the uid does not match an OpenEXR layer, that track defaults to the first layer of the file, in this case the BEAUTY pass. For example, if the uid is set to Matte3 but the OpenEXR file only contains layers named BEAUTY:MasterBeauty, Matte1, and Matte2, the track will default to the BEAUTY:MasterBeauty layer.
This structure opens up the possibility to version an OpenEXR.

Example 7: Timing Versions

                  0     1     2     3     4     5     6     7     8     9    10    11    12    13    14
Clip              [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+**\*****\*****\*****\******+=====+=====+=====+=====[
  Track 0         [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+**\*****\*****\*****\******+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  v0      [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  v1                                                                      [=====+=====+=====+=====[

This example illustrates 1 track, 2 versions, but with each version having a different start timecode: version 1 starts at 0 frames, the other starts at 10 frames.

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<clip type="clip" version="7">
    <tracks>
        <track uid="t0">
            <trackType>video</trackType>
            <feeds currentVersion="version0">
                <feed vuid="version0" uid="v0">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/Video1.[0000-0005].dpx</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
                <feed vuid="version1" uid="v1">
                    <startTimecode type="time">
                        <rate type="rate">24</rate>
                        <nbTicks>10</nbTicks>
                    </startTimecode>
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/Video3.[0001-0004].dpx</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
    </tracks>
    <versions type="versions" nbVersions="2" currentVersion="version0">
        <version type="version" uid="version0"/>
        <version type="version" uid="version1"/>
    </versions>
</clip>

Remarks:

The duration of the <clip> covers the whole of the durations of the 2 versions.
Frames where there is no media are presented in Flame as No Media slates.
Feed v0 starts at 0 because it uses the start timecode of the media defined in its span.
The <startTimecode> does not have to be at the rate of the media: It is just a unit of measure that defines where the media starts on the Timeline. It is still good practice to keep similar timings across the Open Clip to avoid conversion mix ups.

Example 8: Timing a Clip

         00:00:02+00   +01   +02   +03   +04   +05   +06   +07   +08   +09   +10   +11   +12   +13   +14
Clip              [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+**\*****\*****\*****\******+=====+=====+=====+=====[
  Track 0         [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+**\*****\*****\*****\******+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  v0      [=====+=====+=====+=====+=====+=====[
    Feed  v1                                                                      [=====+=====+=====+=====[

This example illustrates how to define the start timecode for an Open Clip.

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<clip type="clip" version="7">
    <startTimecode type="time">
        <rate type="rate">24</rate>
        <nbTicks>48</nbTicks>
    </startTimecode>
    <tracks>
        <track uid="t0">
            <trackType>video</trackType>
            <feeds currentVersion="version0">
                <feed vuid="version0" uid="v0">
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/Video1.[0000-0005].dpx</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
                <feed vuid="version1" uid="v1">
                    <startTimecode type="time">
                        <rate type="rate">24</rate>
                        <nbTicks>10</nbTicks>
                    </startTimecode>
                    <spans>
                        <span>
                            <path encoding="pattern">Media/Video3.[0001-0004].dpx</path>
                        </span>
                    </spans>
                </feed>
            </feeds>
        </track>
    </tracks>
    <versions type="versions" nbVersions="2" currentVersion="version0">
        <version type="version" uid="version0"/>
        <version type="version" uid="version1"/>
    </versions>
</clip>

Remarks:

The duration of the <clip> covers the whole span covered by the 2 versions.
Times where there is no media are presented in Flame as No Media slates.
Feed v0 starts at 0 because it uses the start timecode of the media defined in its span.
<startTimecode> does not have to be at the rate of the media: It is just a unit of measure that defines where the media starts on the Timeline. The rate you select defines how many ticks are in a second.
<startTimecode> defined in < (the second feed) overrides the timecode inferred from the media within.

clip

Attributes

Children

Examples

Example 1: One Track

Example 2: Audio/video clip

Example 3: One Track Two Versions

Example 4: One Track Multiple Spans

Example 5: Stereo Video Clip

Example 6: Multi-track From One OpenEXR

Example 7: Timing Versions

Example 8: Timing a Clip

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