Question on Proxy Workflow with Merged Clips

[samm7417356]

Hi all-

I'm struggling to find a solution for an issue I'm having.

I'm a student that gave some 4k XAVC footage over to an AE to sync footage using the merge clip tool. She did this but I'm now recognizing that XAVC isn't such a edit friendly codec, even with a heavy processor behind it so I'm trying to figure out a way to alter my process to a proxy workflow.

I've unfortunately found out the hard way that the new CC proxy workflow doesn't apply to merged clips (Adobe, consider this a filed support request!) but I'm realizing that even a manual re-link isn't working because when I "make offline" my merged clips, that applies to the synced audio too. So when I re-link, the synced audio is pulling from the proxy video files.

The only solution I can come up with is to make proxies and re-sync each of those by hand.

Is there really no way to point video files to proxies once they're merged?

[Warren Heaton]

Hi samm:

No... and yes.

While you can't create a proxy from a merged clip (you've probably noticed that "Proxy" is dimmed), you can create proxies for the source video of the merged clip.

So, if you're looking at "clip001 - Merged" in your project, locate "clip001" and then create your proxy from there.

-Warren

[MovieM8kerJON]

I'm having the same problem, if you merged the clip before you made the proxy, will attaching the proxy to the original video clip update the Merged clip?

I'm having trouble determining if the merged clip is actually the proxy or the original.

[through_a_lens]

I second this comment. I'm having the same issue. Does linking original media to the proxy files change the merged clip to be original media and not proxy? @MovieM8kerJON

[Warren Heaton]

When you enable Proxies, you're playing the proxy in place of the High Resolution clip whether it's merged or not.

The thing that needs to be avoided is importing the Proxy files and merging those. 

So, your High Resolution media (or Original Media) and your sound recordings should be in your project while your Proxy files are connected, but not actually in the Project tab.

[through_a_lens]

Thanks Warren, do you know of any way to reconnect the high resolution camera original footage to the merged clip if I've made the unfortunate error of syncing and merging the proxy files and have not synced with the originals?

[Warren Heaton]

Hi through_a_lens:

You'll have to create new merged clips.

How far along are you in the edit?  If you're close to locking picture, you might just keep going as is.  Then, when you've locked picture, copy and paste to a new Sequence that the High Resolution settings and manually replace just the picture for the shots you used.

If you're not too far along or you may be re-editng the material frequently, I'd take the time to get your High Resolution footage merged asap and continue from there.

[mikep31219930]

"When you enable Proxies, you're playing the proxy in place of the High Resolution clip whether it's merged or not."

I think this answers my question, but just so we are clear.

1. I merged clips using the high resolution footage.

2. Then the merged clips started to chug on my machine.

3. I made proxies of the high resolution footage

*Now I am wondering if I toggle proxy's on, if the merged clips created from the high resolution footage will also use the proxies?

Thanks,

Mike

[laurenb75035402]

Hi Mike, this is what I'm also trying to get an answer to. Did you ever find out?

[mikep31219930]

It worked, so don’t worry!

[nicholast23059538]

Hi Mike,

Did this actually work for you? I'm in the same boat, and it doesn't seem to be working. Original clips are definitely using the new proxies, but the merged clips (which I made before creating proxies) are not. As far as I can find online, people are saying that proxies still don't work with merged clips, but is that not correct?

Thank you,

Nick

[Warren Heaton]

Yes, the merged clip that is based on a high resolution clip with an attached proxy will play the proxy when Proxy os enabled.  (Phew, say that five times fast.)

[nicholast23059538]

Hi Warren,

Please see my question above. This doesn't appear to work for me. Can you give me any suggestions? Thank you!

Nick

[maxm21774309]

Hi,

Maybe no one reads this thread anymore, but I am also having issues. And this is what I found out:

When I merge clips in the bin (using either the Merge Clips option or the Create Multi-Camera Source Sequence option) then YES, the merge clip will play a proxy when you create a proxy for the processed video file (the original video file). 

However, sometimes you have to manually merge clips as the sound cannot be automatically synced by Premiere. When you sync the video and audio manually in the Sequence and then merge the clips, then NO, even though you create a perfectly working proxy for the source video file (that you can drag into the timeline and it works perfectly), the merge clip will not use this proxy file.

Please note I watermark my proxies so it is easy to see if there is a working proxy used for a video clip. 

Now these manually merged video files don't use the proxy and therefore still lag and stutter a lot and a solution is required. If anyone has a solution, please let me (us) know, I'd be very thankfull.

Best, 

Rob 

[MyerPj]

Rob, if you use the first REPLY* button on the page, your post will go at the end of the thread, and people are likely to find it. Or start a new thread. By using a middle Reply button, it goes only into that conversation, and is thus in the middle of the page. I was just going to give up finding your new message when I happened to spot it.

I used the middle reply button for this post which I usually don't only in hopes you find it next to yours...

* We're trying to get rid of these nested replies in this new forum software.

[maxm21774309]

Thank you, I think I should prob use this reply button then. Figuring out a way to make the proxies work now. 

[Jim_Simon]

Adobe, consider this a filed support request!

This is largely a user forum.  You need the following to make it count.

Feature Request/Bug Report Form

[Paul Carlin]

I'm in the situation where I had created the proxies, then merged the clips.  However, when I moved the project to a new computer I had to re-create the proxies.  The merged clips DID NOT update to use the new proxies.  Now I have a library of original source clips with proxies and merged clips that refuse to use the proxies.

[Jim_Simon]

With double-system sound, it's better to create new media (Transcodes) than to use proxies.

The following can help.

https://blog.frame.io/2017/05/15/sync-clips-in-davinci-resolve/

[BuckBanzai]

I had a similar problem and found a workaround that solves at least the perfomance issues while editing:

I simply renamed all my proxies with a batch renamer to remove the _Proxy ending in all of them, made all my merged clips offline and then batch relinked them to these disguised proxies. Fortunately adobe allows in the relink window to untick "file extension" - this way I was able to relink my .MXF AVC raw files to .mov ProxyProres in one go.

Now I can continue editing from the external HDD with the merged clips in proxy quality with a decent performance. For H.264 playouts of preliminary edits, this should work fine. Also our post will go over to Resolve in the end, so we might just leave it at that for picture lock even.

If somebody is doing finishing in PP however, they should be able to just reverse this methot and relink their merged clips back to the true raw files in the very end.

Hope this helps

[zachary_red]

I have also found that creating the proxies after creating the merged clips will not link them to the merged clips, only the originals. Seems like an oversight on Adobe's part. Maybe there is a reason that someone would not want them to automatically link, but the fact that there isn't even an option to link them is pretty weak.

[Warren Heaton]

Merged clips in a Proxy workflow work exactly as they should.

Probably the most important thing to understand is that the proxy file is made from and attached to the High Resolution clip.  Then the user can switch between the High Resolution file of the Proxy file being used, even if the High Resolution file is part of merged clip.

Proxy files can be created and/or attached before or after merging.  Also, one would never export the Merged clip itself as a proxy as there’s nothing to attach to afterward.

[zachary_red]

"You never attach to a merged clip."

Yes, I know that. It's not even possible.

"Proxy files can be created and/or attached before or after merging."

I have found this to not be true. Have you successfully attached proxies after creating merged clips?

Today I was creating merged clips while creating proxies in the background using EditReady.

When I attached those proxies to the original high resolution clips, the proxies worked perfectly fine for the originals. However, the merged clips did not adopt these proxies.

As some else mentioned earlier in this thread.

"...when I moved the project to a new computer I had to re-create the proxies.  The merged clips DID NOT update to use the new proxies.  Now I have a library of original source clips with proxies and merged clips that refuse to use the proxies."

So from what I gather, merged clips in a Proxy workflow DO NOT work exactly as they should. Once you link new proxies to the High Res originals, those proxies should be adopted by any merged clip that uses said original.

[Warren Heaton]

Yes, I have attached proxies before and after merging clips.  I have also merged clips while I have Offline Full Resolution, but Proxy is Online.

While EditReady is a great application, you're creating proxies outside of the Create Proxies Workflow.  Even though that is supported via Attach Proxies, Reconnect Full Resolution Media and Toggle/Enable Proxies, I'd try removing that step in your troubleshooting of this issue.

It's probably worth reviewing this information:

Adobe Premiere Pro Help | Ingest and Proxy Workflow in Adobe Premiere Pro CC

Especially this part:

Attach Proxies, Reconnect Full Resolution Media & Toggle/Enable Proxies

These two options are used for manual attachment of Proxy or Full Res media. These options are useful if you create proxy media outside of the Create Proxies workflow (for example, media created via third party software, hardware, or a combination of both) or you want to reattach Proxy or Full Res media to Offline clips. The supported workflow allows attachment of Proxies with other frame sizes & PAR (pixel aspect ratio) combinations that are divisible by the Full Res clip (for example, 1920x1080 1.0 PAR Full Res and 960x540 1.0 PAR Proxy or 1440x1080 1.33 PAR Proxy), but other parameters such as fielding, frame rate, duration, and audio channels must match. Mismatched audio channels results in warning dialogs and are not allowed, but other mismatched video parameters are not blocked and results in issues.

-Warren

[zachary_red]

I am attaching a link to a video here, so maybe you or someone else can point me to where I am going wrong.

Here are my steps:

-Create a project.

-Import Video and Audio track

-Create a merged clip from the timeline (named it BEFORE_PROXIES)

-Select the original master clip, right click, create proxy (I created a preset with a LUT and text overlay to make it obvious when the proxy is in use, but the problem exists no matter what preset I use.)

-Media Encoder renders out proxy

-Go back into Premiere, test merged clip. As you can see when toggling proxies the footage doesn't change.

-Create a new merged clip (named it AFTER_PROXIES)

-Now the proxies work

-Proxies do not work on the merged clip created before proxies, but do work on the merged clip created after the proxies.

Video Link Here

Warren Heaton

Yes, I have attached proxies before and after merging clips.

I don't know where my workflow differs from yours that allows your proxies to attach to the merged clips that were made before attaching proxies. Please let me know.