Building a Post-Production Tool for fashion show

2024-04-01

Working with Chanel's post-production team, I had the chance to develop a custom tool to streamline their workflow. With the support of (Walter Films)[https://walterfilms.com] and (Plani Presse)[http://plani.fr]

The goal? To make their live productions more efficient, accurate, and adaptable—especially when dealing with large fashion events without an OB van.

The Challenge

The need was clear:

• Sync the live video with LTC (Linear Timecode)
• Capture cut points directly from an ATEM switcher
• Automatically generate an AAF (Advanced Authoring Format) for use in Avid, including Group Clips for easy editing. S ounds simple enough, right? But the existing solution was far from ideal.

The Existing Solution

Previously, Chanel used an EVS-based system to generate the AAF file at the end of the show. While this method worked, it had several critical issues:

• No flexibility: If the EVS device failed, there was no replacement. And if a clip had problems, there was no way to regenerate the AAF with a different clip.
• Lack of control: Handling varying delays (from RF, 4G, etc.) wasn’t possible, making resynchronization impossible in real-time.
• Frame accuracy: It missed about 30% of the cuts by a few frames—not a massive issue for a fashion show, but frustrating enough to slow down the process.

On top of this, the EVS system itself is no longer maintained or supported, leaving Chanel with a product that could break without warning, with no backup.

Why AAF Over EDL?

While an EDL (Edit Decision List) provides a linear timeline with multiple clips, an AAF offers far more flexibility. It allows you to:

• Adjust the start/stop points of each cut
• Easily switch to another POV with just a click in Avid
• Ensure traceability of clips, especially with MXF Op Atom, providing a clear lineage from capture to edit.

This made AAF the perfect choice for Chanel’s needs, especially with their workflow based on Avid.

The Solution I Developed

To address all these challenges, I designed a software-hardware solution that significantly improves both flexibility and accuracy:

• Frame-accurate syncing: By listening to LTC (Linear Timecode), the system ensures perfect sync with the video. Frame accurate.
• Real-time event capturing: Using a Stream Deck, we could log external events (e.g., a model tripping on the runway), which then get annotated directly on the timeline.
• Instant AAF generation: At the end of the show, the system generates an AAF containing:
  • All the clips
  • The timeline with all cuts
• Group clips for multi-camera editing in Avid.

If any issues arise (e.g., needing to swap clips or correct timing), the AAF can be regenerated in under 5 seconds, even for timelines with thousands of cuts.

The Result

This solution has made Chanel’s post-production workflow not only faster but also far more resilient and adaptable. With just a few clicks, their team can now:

• Automatically generate and adjust AAFs, minimizing human error
• Swap out problematic clips without redoing the entire timeline
• Sync everything in real-time, even with varying delays from different camera systems.
• No EVS dependant (while the MXF op atom records and stream to Avid Nexis is still done with EVS)

Overall, the tool has saved countless hours in post-production and provided a much smoother editing experience.

You can check the film here