seamless loop not working after export

[Ls528]

I am using premiere pro to add audio to seamless loop animations.

When I preview in Premiere the loop is seamless,
I export (H.264) and view in Quicktime with loop switched on, but I get a black frame and/or break in visual and audio at the start of each loop.

The animation files are either sequenced images or added as looping MP4s, normally 15 seconds (450 frames) and I repeat along timeline to match audio files which are either 30 or 60 seconds

I have basic limited skills in premiere pro and sense that I just need to get the settings right, I've tried so many different things - would be immensely grateful for your tips?

[gerikp]

I just ran a test by exporting a timeline with images and opened in Quicktime and set it to loop. I didn't have a black frame like you did. But that doesn't really prove a point. My guesses are that you might have left an errant blank frame at the end of your timeline when you exported. Did you use in and out points when exporting? Maybe try setting an out point one frame before the end of you timeline and try exporting again?

It might be helpful to describe the steps you are taking to make your video in further detail and show us some screen shots.

[Ls528]

Thanks so much for looking into this so quickly.

I'm at a total loss.

For simplicity, I just added an MP4 which loops seamlessly in quicktime.

Seamless loops works perfectly in premiere pro editor preview but when I export from Premiere the seamless effect is lost.

I add mp4 clip, select and press ? to mark i and out points. Out Point is marked at 14.29 ??

When I export movie, I get a lag at the start of each repeat.

Really desperate to resolve this as seamless loops are essential to the videos so that I can keep the files as small as possible.

Thanks in advance.

[gerikp]

First, I will address the stutter you are seeing at the start of the loop. I believe this is something in Quicktime and playing an H264 file. I placed your file into a professional video presentation software and didn't see any lag or stutter. I then exported your same video out of Premiere Pro as a Quicktime ProRes 422 file and had no lag when I played it back in Quicktime Player again. So I'm not sure if your use case and final destination is Quicktime, so you might want try a different playback solution or export as Quicktime ProRes files.

Second, the blackframe. The video you attached is 15 seconds and 33 milliseconds long. And I do see a black frame at the end. So somehow there is a black frame being added to the end of your video. Are all your framerates the same between your source video, your sequence timeline,  and your export settings? Premiere Pro's CTI playhead is always looking forward to the next frame so your out setting at 14.29 is natural. If it were just me I'd go back to the timeline and just move your out point to the left one more frame and export again. Again, maybe try exporting a QuickTime 422 file instead of MP4.

[Ls528]

Thanks so much for taking the time to look at this.

Your answers bring a lot of clarity and mostly the realisation that the viewing experience is player dependant and not universal. Quicktime is the default player on my machine, but the films will be presented mostly online and so my sense is that H264 is the best solution.