Workflow for Archiving Projects (Keep Only Used Footage + Graphics)
Hey everyone, looking for advice on a good workflow for saving project files and footage once a video is finished.
For Context:
I make YouTube long-form videos that mix a lot of animation with live-action footage.
- My raw footage comes from my camera as H.264 files (usually 40+ clips).
- At the start of each project, everything gets transcoded in Media Encoder to Apple ProRes for editing.
- The ProRes files are used in both Premiere (for editing) and After Effects (for animation and compositing).
- The final edit in Premiere includes those AE renders and linked comps.
- I also have a ton of graphics, assets, and precomps — many of which never make it into the final version.
- Once it’s done, I export the finished video for YouTube.
After finishing:
It's not common but I do sometimes need to go back and make changes. But I also need to keep on eye on storage space. I’d like to archive the project in a way that:
- Keeps only the camera footage I actually used, with some handle room.
- Doesn’t keep the huge ProRes versions.
- Filters out unused graphics and AE assets.
- Still gives me the option to bring the source back to ProRes later if I need to revisit or revise the project.
I know Premiere has some project management tools for consolidating media, but I’m not sure if they handle this setup cleanly because my footage is trancoded first and then used in both Premiere and After Effects. Would I need to manually relink my old footage somehow?
Has anyone found a reliable workflow or tool for this kind of situation?
