Can't render sequence containing luma key effect

[777bbbbq]

My five-minute sequence is not rendering.  When I click "render," the interface appears and says "rendering," but the progress bar is completely blank, as if the procedure is either extremely slow or not working at all. After a minute or so, I get an error message (see attachment).

I presume the rendering problem is related to the luma key effect that I used on several clips in the sequence -- because the error message references luma key. 

Can someone tell me how to render this sequence without abandoning the luma key effect?

PS The error message seems to reference a point six minutes into the video -- but the video is only 3 minutes long.

[Jeff Bugbee · Accepted solution]

Try rendering in Software only mode.

[777bbbbq]

Thanks, Jeff, but what is software only mode and how do I implement it?

[777bbbbq]

I found "software only mode" in project settings.  I changed to software only mode and the rendering worked.  It slowed down at luma key, but it worked.  Thanks!

[Ann Bens]

Software mode is not a solution but a workaround.

It means there is an issue with your GPU.

On a side not Luma Key is a non gpu acc effect.

I would choose a different preview codec.

[777bbbbq]

Got it. I'm beginning to think that I need to invest in a different kind
of computer. My notebook computer is supposed to be more or less
top-of-the-line, but I'm thinking notebook computers aren't good for
working with Premiere Pro.

[777bbbbq]

This is quite frustrating. I'm starting to get red lines without the
CUDA. When I switch CUDA back on, the sequence will render now without a
problem. However, yellow lines pop up that rendering will not take away.

[Ann Bens]

Yellow line is good

Red, yellow, and green render bars and what they mean | Adobe Blog

IMO for serious work you need a desktop and edit with a edit friendly codec.

[777bbbbq]

Guess I need a new computer, as you say.  The yellow line "works" I guess -- but it's choppy playback and a little demoralizing to watch.  I'd like to be able to see my sequences without these little hiccups -- so that when I do see an ugly effect, I can be sure that it's due to my editing and not to a rendering problem.

[Ann Bens]

What kind of footage are you editing? H.264?

Best imo is to convert to prores or cineform or use proxies.

[777bbbbq]

Just DV. And the Luma Key is just applied to a few still shots, not
video. The whole sequence for the video I'm working on is like 4 minutes,
composed of audio and manipulated stills, with no traditional video clips.
It's simple animation, basically, using motion effect and some luma key and
rotation.

[Ann Bens]

DV as in SD? Should edit like a breeze.

Make sure the still are no larger then twice the resolution of the sequence.

Instead of motion, try the transform effect.

[777bbbbq]

I haven't been paying too much attention to the size of the stills that I'm
uploading. Some of them may be unnecessarily large. I'll look into that,
thanks.

[777bbbbq]

I'll also check out transform.

[777bbbbq · Accepted solution]

Thanks, Ann.  I will now research changing codecs.  Seems to be an advanced subject, since almost no videos seem to cover it, at least on first glance at video search results.  Any idea how I can get advice on the best codec to use with a Dell G15 with Core-17 processor?

[Jeff Bugbee · Accepted solution]

Here's a good rundown: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/video/tips-and-solutions/compression-a-basic-understanding

The key takeaway is for editing, you want footage that is easy to decode by your computer. Heavily compressed interframe footage, like H.264/H.265 is not great for editing, but it's popular because file sizes are very small and they are easy to create (encode) by phones and such. Intraframe codecs, like Prores and DNxHD and Cineform, are much better for editing, though the better editing performance comes with a caveat: those files will be much larger in filesize.

[777bbbbq]

Thanks, Ann and Jeff. 

I think Jeff has summed up the answer to this one nicely in his last post.  So my focus for now will be on using images that are properly sized for my short animated videos -- and meanwhile watching related videos, like the one on compression linked to above by Jeff.   As Ann said, my videos should be editing easily based on their size and content -- which is heartening to know.  So for now I'll stop worrying about potential problems with individual effects like Luma Key -- at least until I'm sure I'm not needlessly overburdening my computer with oversized images. Thanks again.

[Chris Lei]

I have the same problem, and this is what I did to fix it.

go to file > new > Project > and make another project > once you finish making one, just copy (ctrl+c) the whole sequence on the old timeline and then paste (ctrl+v) it to the new project timeline. 

this works for me, hope it helps.

[Chris Lei]

go to file > new > Project > and make another project > create new sequence > once you finish making one, just copy (ctrl+c) the whole sequence on the old timeline and then paste (ctrl+v) it to the new project timeline. 

[bandsbayside]

You probably have some kind of a compressed format.

Compressed formats make your computer work really hard as it needs to decompress the compressed format each time it wants to read it. Try transcoding (converting) your media from whatever format it is to ProRes using the following video ProRes is large in size but it is uncompressed so your computer will have an easier time doing playback and even rendering:)

Hope this helps!