From 5a2dd77bcc877f400712e8ae05565d23c08d9649 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Wouter Verwijlen Date: Mon, 16 Mar 2026 20:52:42 +0100 Subject: [PATCH] Workflow-discussion: Lumiera Workflow Proposals (draft v4) ...added new chapter 1: working with source material =========================================================== Remark from Ichthyo(committer): Converted from PDF to raw text with pdftotext wouter260316v4.pdf WorkflowProposals.txt Images extracted with: pdfimages -png -j wouter260316v4.pdf wouter/v4 Again adding the images separately to the Website-repository, in order to save storage space in the main repository.... --- .../workflow/Verwijlen/WorkflowProposals.txt | 340 +++++++++++++++++- 1 file changed, 321 insertions(+), 19 deletions(-) diff --git a/doc/design/workflow/Verwijlen/WorkflowProposals.txt b/doc/design/workflow/Verwijlen/WorkflowProposals.txt index cfe579ef4..8ec540d71 100644 --- a/doc/design/workflow/Verwijlen/WorkflowProposals.txt +++ b/doc/design/workflow/Verwijlen/WorkflowProposals.txt @@ -1,16 +1,15 @@ Lumiera Workflow Proposals ========================== :Author: Wouter Verwijlen -:Date: 19 August 2025 +:Date: 16 March 2026 :TOC: -I would like to share a first version of a collection of workflow ideas for Lumiera. These ideas come -from having cut hundreds (or possibly thousands) of videos over the past 20 years as a professional -editor, working in Avid Media Composer, Adobe Premiere Pro (from before it was called "Pro"), -Lightworks and DaVinci Resolve. +I would like to share a collection of workflow ideas for Lumiera. These ideas come from +having cut hundreds (or possibly thousands) of videos over the past 20 years as a professional +editor, working in Avid Media Composer, Adobe Premiere, Lightworks and DaVinci Resolve. -This document focuses on analysing the behaviour of Non-linear Editors (NLE's), in other words -software in which a user can edit films and videos, in order to discuss possible solutions for the +This document focuses on analysing the behaviour of Non-linear Editors (NLE's): software +in which a user can edit films and videos, in order to discuss possible solutions for the design of Lumiera. The main ideas behind these proposals are: @@ -178,14 +177,311 @@ specific project in order to select the parts needed for the final edit. I will which different NLE's handle this and will propose possible directions for Lumiera to support certain workflows. -[red]#To be written:# +Project creation +When starting a new project, a user often needs to set the project resolution and framerate. Adobe +Premiere (optionally) shows an import panel immediately after this. The first time you drop a clip +on a timeline, Resolve and Premiere will ask if you want to change your project settings to match +the clip settings, when these are different. -- Asset organisation: bins vs metadata-based structures (+ search bins/filters) -- Viewing footage: single clips vs source reels; continuous playback from browser -- Source monitor + program monitor vs a single monitor -- Creating selects: selects reels, subclips and keyword collections -- On markers and notes -- From selects to editing in the timeline: Timelines in the source viewer: reel to reel editing +Premiere''s import panel + +Projects themselves exist within an application's database (Resolve), or as a file/folder on local or +shared storage (Avid, Premiere, Lightworks, FCP). +One of the first things that needs to be setup is the organisational structure of the project, in other +words: the structure that's going to house all of the project's contents. Most applications use bins for +this, a bin being simply a container for items like video clips. In a sense they are similar to folders +on a computer''s storage, except bins usually only exist within the project in your NLE. Avid's bins +also exist as folders on local or shared storage, but this is an exception. +For top level organisation, bins can either be placed in other bins (Premiere, Resolve) or in +groups/folders (Avid, Lightworks). +As we'll see throughout this document, Final Cut Pro is usually the only application that takes a +different approach. Projects are called 'libraries' and FCP sorts footage based on events (top level +containers of timelines, footage and keyword collections), keywords (tags) and collections, instead +of bins (timelines are confusingly called 'projects'). Footage, when imported, is placed in an event +and from there all emphasis is on the metadata, in how you rate and tag (parts of) the footage. This +also serves as a replacement of the subclips feature found in other NLE's. + + Final Cut Pro''s Keywords dialog. ``Travel part 1'' and ``Travel part 2'' on the left are events. + +In any case, when working in a professional environment, you will probably want to start with a +template that defines your top level structure, instead of having to recreate your entire bin setup for +every project. Surprisingly, at the time of writing only Adobe Premiere has introduced a project +template feature (in version 2024). In other apps you will need to manually create your own +template project and duplicate that, or even literally copy and paste bins from a template project in a +file browser (Avid). + +Importing footage +Every application works with clips: virtual representations of (parts of) the video files that exist on +your preferred type of storage. Getting footage into your project ('ingest') will create these clips in +your project. Most apps will offer several options to do this: +1. Creating links to the original video files, wherever these may reside (on your computer, +external storage, network storage or in the cloud). +2. Copying your files to a dedicated folder managed by the application (this could again be on +local or network storage). Importing to a dedicated application folder is very useful for +feature film editing and TV production, but is less common elsewhere in the media industry. +Its strong point is that when your media is managed by the application, you won't have to +relink files when moving to a different editing station. +3. Optionally, files can be transcoded during import. New media files will be created in either +the app's dedicated folder or to a user specified location. The transcoded files will be much +more optimised for editing, resulting in better playback performance. This is part of a socalled offline-online workflow, in which you work on optimised files, and once an edit is +finished (picture lock), the clips on the timeline will be exchanged with clips that link to the +original camera files. Often, after color grading in an external application, all color graded +shots are rendered with their color corrections and placed back onto the timeline in the NLE. +A specific type of offline-online workflow is the proxy workflow. The proxy workflow +allows on-the-fly switching between the proxy files and the original camera files and will +ensure that exports of your video will use these original camera files when rendering. When +using a proxy workflow you can either create optimised files inside the application itself (or + + in Premiere''s case, via Adobe Media Encoder) or attach existing proxy files that were +created by a third party application or by the camera during recording. +After importing and possibly creating/attaching proxies, clip attributes might need altering. You +might need to change incorrectly determined frame rates or, more commonly, change the audio +channel mapping of your clips (e.g. setup clips with two audio channels as dual mono instead of +stereo). + +Clip types +We usually find the following types of clips in NLE's: +* Source clips which represent media files (containing video and/or audio streams) to its full +extent, and for other types of media (most notably still images) - these usually get a default +duration upon import. + +* Subclips which represent a portion of a video or audio file. + +* Timeline clips: duplicates of source clips that only exist within a timeline. Properties of +these clips can often be altered without altering the same properties of the source clip. + +* Compound clips/nested sequences: these are in fact (sub)timelines that can contain any +number of tracks and clips. + +* Multicam clips (group clips in Avid), in which multiple clips are synchronized and +combined into one. These clips contain clips with different camera angles (for video) or +audio recordings for the same event. + +* Filler (Avid), FX clips (Lightworks) or Adjustment Clips (Premiere, Resolve) that can hold +effects that are applied to all clips on lower tracks of a timeline, directly underneath. + +Bin types +Often there are two types of bins in which these clips sit, withrResolve having a third kind: +1. 'Normal' bins. +2. Search bins (Premiere) / filters (Lightworks) / smart bins (Resolve) / smart collections +(FCP): for these you setup certain rules based on clip names or metadata. All clips to which +these rules apply are automatically added to these bins. This means that the same clip can +simultaneously exist in a regular bin and a search bin, in contrast to normal bins, where each +clip will only exist in a single bin and you'd have to duplicate this clip for it to be also +placed in another bin (Lightworks being the exception here). + + Filter options in Lightworks + +3. Power bins (Resolve): these are bins that are accessable by all projects. + +Bin views +Bins offer several views to see its contents. These include: +* List View / Text View: all items in the bin are listed vertically. Multiple columns will show +different kinds of metadata – the user can choose which fields are displayed and can +rearrange their order. + +* Icon View (Premiere) / Frame View (Avid) / Thumbnail View (Resolve) / Tile View +(Lightworks): this will show a small frame from each clip in a raster. In general you're able +to change which frame is displayed if you wish to see another. + +* Freeform View (Premiere): same as Icon View, but you can freely position the clips +wherever you want. Note that Avid and Lightworks allow you to do this within Icon/Frame +View itself. + +* Script View (Avid): similar to Text View, but with a frame being displayed for each clip and +a large field for entering comments. In Script View, the vertical order of clips can be +rearranged, in contrast to Text View, which only supports automatic sorting. + +* Metadata View (Resolve): similar to Avid's Script View, except you can''t reorder clips. + +* Filmstrip View (Final Cut Pro): similar to Icon View, but + +Avid is famous for allowing you to save your Text or Script View configuration as a preset that can +be quickly recalled. Premiere allows this through its Metadata Display window, Final Cut Pro by +Control+left clicking any column header and Lightworks via the Columns > Presets menu, but these +methods are less straightforward than Avid's. Another neat feature that Avid has is a bin map: an +overview of bin contents that can be toggled when in Frame View. + +Creating a custom view preset in Avid Media Composer, which can be selected from the dropdown menu in the top bar. + +Note that all apps offer a search/filter box (or button) on top of each bin view. Final Cut Pro and +Resolve allow skimming clips from the bin view, simply by hovering the mouse on top of the +thumbnail and moving it from left to right. + +Organising footage +Once your footage is represented by clips in bins, organisation can begin. Wildly different methods +exist for this. In the simplest version you will just drop your footage in one or several bins and be +done with it. In professional environments there are often strict bin structures and naming +conventions, and additional methods for organising are being used: + + * First and foremost: with multi-camera shoots and/or when audio has been recorded +separately, now is the time to synchronise these. Create multicam clips and/or synchronise +sound, either in the NLE itself, or in an external application. I personally create source reels +first (see further down this list), export these to another application for syncing, import the +synced reel back, and in case of a multicam shoot, split this reel into multiple reels and +convert each to a multicam clip (Premiere and Resolve both support this). + +* Metadata. This is a very powerful way to search for or filter specific types of content and it +could be a chapter on its own. Metadata is often created by the camera during recording, +added during offloading by a DIT (digital imaging technician) or applied after ingest by +assistant editors. Nowadays metadata is also added by AI/machine learning algorithms to +help identify the contents of a clip, create transcriptions from audio, etc. Avid provides the +option to (automatically or manually) connect clips to lines in a script (ScriptSync). + +* The aforementioned subclips are often used to extract sections out of a longer clip. + +* Sequence/timeline markers to mark points in time, or sections (so-called ranged or spanned +markers; terminology is different per app). + +Plenty of marker options in Adobe Premiere + +* Timeline clip notes (Avid): these can be added to a timeline clip, and will stay connected to +this clip. You can''t trim them off and they will automatically move whenever a clip moves. +They can be burned into a render upon export. Premiere and Resolve offer clip markers +instead – these are similar to sequence markers, but are attached to clips. + +* Tagging or rating (parts of) clips (FCP and to a lesser extent Resolve). FCP's rating only +goes as far as letting you mark clips or sections as ``favorite'' or reject clips entirely, but its +keyword system (as described later in this chapter) is much more elaborate and useful. +Resolve has an option to add keywords, but its workflow is quite clunky when trying to +apply this to a section within a clip. + +* Clip colors. Often there exist multiple levels at which a clip can get a color. Colors can be +applied based on source clip (usually different colors for different media types), timeline + + clip, timeline track, offline footage, different framerates, and more. Avid has the most +options in this field and lets you choose exactly which types of colors to display on the +timeline. Manually set clip colors are a very useful organisational tool, e.g. to differentiate +between camera''s, interviewed persons in a documentary or different locations. + +Avid has many options for choosing how clips are colored in the timeline + +* Flags (Resolve). Similar to markers, but these apply to entire (source) clips, while markers +apply to a single point in time or a time range within a clip. Multiple flags can be added to +each source clip. + +* Reels: source footage is divided over one or multiple timelines to be able to quickly navigate +many clips without having to load individual clips in the source viewer. These are called +'source reels'. A special kind of source reel is a 'sync map', which contains all footage of a +day of shooting from multiple cameras synced and layed out chronologically. +FCP doesn't quite support source reels and instead offers continuous playback from the +browser window. Resolve has a 'source tape' option that works in a similar way. + + Simple example of a source reel (top), converted to a sync map (bottom) + +Viewing footage +Once basic organisation is in place, the editor can start watching and adding further notes/comments +to narrow down large amounts of footage and seek out options of useful content for the edit. Most +apps offer two types of monitors for video playback: source and record/program monitors. FCP has +only a single monitor that switches between these two functions. Some others (Avid, Resolve) give +users the choice between single or multi viewer modes. Lightworks and Avid support an unlimited +amount of floating viewers. + + You can open (and position) as many viewers as you like in Lightworks + +Viewers are usually coupled with timecode display and have a ton of settings. I won't go into details +about these. +In most applications you can also watch your source footage from the bin when in Frame/Icon +View. You''ll be able to use JKL shortcuts for playback, mark in and out points and add it to the +timeline, similar as to when the clip is loaded in the source viewer. Final Cut Pro lets you click and +drag in-out regions in the thumbnail. + +Selects +Time to create a selection of material to consider for the rough cut. One way to do this, as +previously described, is by creating subclips or by tagging. Drop the subclips in a bin in Icon / +Frame View and you have a good visual overview of selected shots. This is great for selecting Broll or for projects that require a very visual approach, f.e. trailers, music videos or aftermovies (not +hoping to ever cut one of those again though, but that''s a different story ;). +Another way to select footage is to cut selections from source clips or source reels to one or more +selects reels: these are timelines that hold your selections and are only used for that purpose. Selects +reels can then be loaded again as if they were a source clip, in order for an another selection to be +made. This is called reel-to-reel editing. Many apps allow seeing the source timeline, either in their +own panel (Premiere) or window (Lightworks), or by switching the timeline panel between a source +and record mode (Avid, Resolve). A method known as ``pancake timeline editing'' works when an +application supports viewing multiple timelines simultaneously. By stacking timelines above each +other you can easily drag selections from one timeline to another. This is possible in Premiere, +Lightworks and Resolve. + + Pancake timeline editing in Lightworks + +Reels can be further managed by using markers to describe certain points in time or sections, and +these markers can be viewed as a list in their own panel. When selecting a marker in this panel, the +playhead of the corresponding monitor will jump to the (start) frame of this marker. Markers can +have multiple input fields and a color. They are one of the most important tools to be able to make +notes and navigate large amounts of footage over extended periods of time. As an aside: Lightworks +has an option to turn ranged markers into subclips, quite useful, as it allows you to use markers to +make your selection. +Some NLE's have a 'ripple markers' option for timeline markers. This means markers will move +when clips in the timeline are shortened or extended. +FCP has ``todo markers'' that can be checked. And when tagging clips with keywords in FCP, +keyword collections are automatically created in which all sections of clips with the same keyword +can be found. It's also possible to manually create keyword collections and drag and drop clips or +tagged sections ('content ranges') there. +Back to the reels: one advantage of reel-to-reel editing is that it's very useful to see the audio +waveforms of your source clips on an actual timeline: this way you can freely zoom and scroll. +Final Cut Pro will only display a clip''s waveform at the bottom of the clip preview in the browser, +but when an interview is an hour or longer, this waveform will be squeezed in a way that's of little +use. +Another advantage of reel-to-reel editing is a sense of space: you get an idea of where certain +footage can be found (more to the left, in the middle, or at the end of a reel). Combined with +markers, clip colors and gaps between sections, this makes it easier to find things back later. A third +advantage is that it's easy to filter in rounds: you can narrow down your footage in multiple reel-toreel selection passes. +I personally often use a variation of reel-to-reel editing, in which I lift sections in my source reel. I +then duplicate this reel, remove the first video and audio track(s) and keep the lifted parts to create +my selects reel. The advantage here is that I can rate sections as ``not useful'' (V1), 'possibly useful' +(V2), 'quite useful' (V3) or 'highly useful' (V4) by lifting the video clip one, two or three tracks up – +see it as a 4-star rating system. I''ve seen other editors use this method for selecting footage, +although in all fairness I''m not sure how widespread this technique is. + + Lifting selections; also note the use of clip colors, gaps and markers for organising the selects reel. + +In FCP you can create your own rating system by using keywords (as shown in the screenshot at the +start of this chapter) and then having everything filtered through keyword collections, as described +in this blog post at Frame.io. Quite handy as well! + +Proposals +* Which system(s) of organising a project and selecting footage should Lumiera support? I +would say: most. They don't interfere with each other, so let the user choose. Definitely +support source timelines and let people rate, tag and mark all they want. Subclips might not +be necessary when a tagging/keyword system is present, as Final Cut has proven. + +* Metadata-based organising, searching and filtering of content are must-haves. + +* I would include a native rating system (1 to 5 stars should suffice) that works both on clip +sections and entire clips, rather than FCP's favorite/reject system, as it's more granular. + +* As for bins-in-bins vs bins-in-folders: the first one is more flexible (bins can contain both +media files and other bins, while folders can only contain bins) and more closely resembles +how folders work on a PC, so my preference would be to go that route, although there's also +something to be said for the strict division of function that folders+bins have. + +* I would like to propose an option to automatically create source reels based on rules you can +set, for example: one source reel for every day of shooting. These automatic source reels +could have a filter function to select which clips are being displayed on the timeline. This +way it becomes easy to say something like "show me all clips from the second day of the +shoot from camera A". + +* A versioning system for timelines is something that only Resolve has recently picked up +with its Create (and Restore) Timeline Backup feature, and honestly I've been amazed by +how this hasn't been a core feature in NLE's for decades now, as it makes so much sense to +have. Let users make snapshots and perhaps make one automatically every day, without the +need to manually duplicate and rename timelines and putting them in some sort of archive +bin. + +* Importing: auto-import based on watch folders could be very useful during certain stages of +an edit. Setup which folders to watch and whenever a new file is dropped in that folder it +will be imported into a bin of choice. Especially handy when working with sound effects. +However, we might not want to be scanning folders all the time. + +* About sound effects: there's a free application called Metadigger that let's you quickly filter +your sound collection by metadata and then copy sound files to your project folder with a +keyboard shortcut. Something like this, built-in, would be quite handy for those of us with +local sound effect libraries. + +* A small one: I'd like each project to remember the last location you imported from. I often +switch between projects and each time I want to import something in current NLE's, the file + + dialog points to the last used directory, which is often the wrong one. Not a big deal, but not +ideal either. Chapter 2: the timeline ----------------------- @@ -723,10 +1019,10 @@ Most NLE's have functions for selecting many clips at once, called ``select forw backward''. In Adobe Premiere these are tools: click and you select all clips to either the left or right of the mouse cursor, and using Shift will toggle between selecting all clips on a single track or on all tracks (it doesn't respect track activation status though, which it should). Other NLE's (Resolve, -Avid, Lightworks) only have keyboard shortcuts for these functions, which do only affect activated -tracks. This is a bit faster: in Premiere you need to switch to the Select Forward/Backward Tool, -make your selection, then switch back to your previous tool. With a keyboard shortcut you only -have to press a single key (if your track selection is correct). +Avid, Lightworks) have keyboard shortcuts for these functions (in Avid you can place a button in the +GUI as well), which do affect activated tracks only. This is a bit faster: in Premiere you need to +switch to the Select Forward/Backward Tool, make your selection, then switch back to your previous +tool. With a keyboard shortcut you only have to press a single key (if your track selection is correct). Arranging clips ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ @@ -789,7 +1085,7 @@ entering trim mode. * Lightworks has a trim mode that defaults to ripple trimming, unless you specifically use the “drag to black” feature by Control-clicking trim edges when entering trim mode. When using the keyboard, one needs to mark a section and use the Remove command (similar to -Avid''s ``lift'') to create a gap. +Avid's ``lift'') to create a gap. Next to ripple/non-ripple trimming there are three other edit operations closely related to trimming that need to be mentioned: @@ -1100,6 +1396,12 @@ Chapter 3: finishing -------------------- [red]#To be written.# +- Nodes vs Layers +- Audio mixing +- Color grading +- Visual effects compositing +- Titling + Chapter 4: a broader GUI concept -------------------------------- [red]#To be written.#