How to make proxies for editing right on set
Proxies are lightweight copies of the original files: editing on them runs smoothly even on a laptop, and at the end the project switches back to the originals. Editing apps can make proxies themselves, but usually that happens in the edit room. MultiSyncer Studio makes proxies on set, in the same pass as the card offload, and dailies for the director and producer along the way.
What is missing when proxies are made in the edit room
Premiere Pro and DaVinci Resolve can make proxies themselves. But usually they are started in the edit room, once the footage has arrived from the shoot, and then you wait while the computer transcodes everything that was shot.
| Task | Proxies in an editing app | MultiSyncer Studio |
|---|---|---|
| When they are ready | After the footage reaches the edit room and the transcode is started. | On set, right after the card's copies are checked, in the same pass. |
| Whose time | The editor's time and their computer's. | Runs on its own while the crew keeps working. |
| Several formats | Usually one set of settings at a time. | Several formats in one pass: ProRes 422 Proxy, DNxHR LB, H.264 and HEVC. |
| Dailies for the director and producer | A separate job: export, label, send. | Made together with the proxies: camera LUT, timecode, camera and angle, clip name, scene and take burned in, a watermark. |
| Sending | By hand, a file or a folder at a time. | Upload to Yandex Disk, Google Drive or Dropbox; the dailies link goes into the day report and the mail to the producer. |
| Where they are | Wherever the app saved them. | Next to the originals or on a separate drive, as set in the project setup. |
How to make proxies and dailies in MultiSyncer Studio
Set up the project
Once, before the shoot, you set:
- proxy formats: ProRes 422 Proxy, DNxHR LB, H.264, HEVC, several at once if you like;
- camera LUT: it is baked into the dailies picture;
- burn-ins: timecode, camera and angle, clip name, scene and take;
- a watermark as text or a logo;
- where to put them: proxies and dailies can go to a separate drive, reports to a folder of your choice.
Copy the cards as usual
Right after the copies are checked the app makes proxies for editing and lightweight viewing copies (dailies). There is nothing to start separately: it is the next stage on the card.
Send the dailies
Dailies, sound, proxies and reports are uploaded to Yandex Disk, Google Drive or Dropbox. The dailies link goes into the day report and the mail to the producer: the director and producer watch the day's footage on a phone or in a browser.
Hand them to the editor
The editor gets the proxies next to the originals and attaches them in their editing app. The original files do not change.
C0047_Proxy.mov · ProRes 422 Proxy · 1920×1080 · camera LUT ✓ done
C0047.mp4 · H.264 · 1080p · timecode, camera, scene and take, “DRAFT” ✓ done
Dailies link: in the day report and the mail to the producer
What to choose
| Format | What for |
|---|---|
| ProRes 422 Proxy | Proxies for Final Cut Pro, Premiere Pro and DaVinci Resolve |
| DNxHR LB | Proxies for Avid |
| H.264 | Dailies for viewing in a browser and on a phone |
| HEVC | Dailies, usually smaller than H.264 |