The post-production team working on the film Filmage: The Story of
Descendents/All required a portable and flexible workflow for on-the-go
input/output (I/O). Editors Justin Wilson and James Rayburn of Dallas-based post
house CharlieUniformTango turned to AJA’s Io XT Thunderbolt-enabled professional
video device to finish the indie documentary which shares the story and influences
of punk rock band the Descendents.
The production team accumulated over fifty captured segments, hours of fan
content, tour photos, videos and memorabilia. Integrating such a large volume of
formats and frame rates together, while achieving the right balance between new
and old footage, proved overwhelming. This meant the team would need to spend
time between the office and home, working nights and weekends to execute the job.
Rayburn remarked, “Io XT is dependable, and I can use it anywhere – in my house,
at the office or on set. No matter where I am, I can just plug it into my computer,
fire it up, and just like that, we’re monitoring my Avid cut using the HDMI out from
the Io XT.’
Rayburn used a laptop, Avid Media Composer, an AJA Io XT, LCD monitor and two
smaller Asus monitors throughout the post process. The laptop drove the Asus
monitors, sending a video signal through the Io XT, so that the edit could be
reviewed in real-time.
Once finished cutting the film, the filmmakers enlisted the expertise of Filmworkers
Club colourist Mathew McClain to preserve and enhance the picture quality.
Throughout finishing, KONA LHe Plus cards were used.
“I’m not used to the high level of deliverables for a film like this, so when we
finished it in Avid, we had distributors come to us with several different format
requirements for the audio channels and digital files, so having the KONA LHe Plus
for output to HDCam SR tape was a tremendous asset come delivery,’ said
Rayburn.
Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All made its Los Angeles theatrical
and VOD debut in September 2014.
