David Sugg, Warner Bros. Technical Operations, discussed where Warners looks to benefit from the Interoperable Mastering Format. A Warners’ initiative is DETE (Digital End To End), which holds most of the components required to create an IMF package. DETE currently delivers more than 500 different output formats (more than 40 percent qualify as a mezzanine format). Warners is testing DETE and IMF. “For us it is an obvious win,” he explained.
Why does Disney want IMF? The studio’s Mike Krause explained that the studio makes 234 versions of every film including various languages, aspect ratios, etc. “Mastering is expensive,” he pointed out, adding that still 81 percent of the film’s revenue comes from downstream distribution. Adding the various media outlets including airlines, on average Disney is looking at over 35,100 different versions of a single title. “That is a lot of media to keep track of… That’s 35,100 reasons when Disney wants IMF.”
Disney’s Annie Chang, who chairs the SMPTE IMF Working Group, related that ETC@USC started the IMF effort and published an IMF v1.0 document in February 2011. One month later, SMPTE’s IMF work began. SMPTE’s version is very similar to the ETC requirement document. Elements include composition play lists, output profile lists, packages and security.
Chang related that one difference is that the ETC doc includes uncompressed and JPEG2000 codecs; this was modified with a core framework and modular applications that plug into the framework “to allow for specific functionality and allows for future extensibility.”
Some SMPTE IMF documents are in the “finalizing” state for the composition play list and wrapping. Work is still needed in areas such as output profile lists and security.
There will be a testing phase before implementation. The SMPTE effort is moving fast “because the industry really needs this.” To get involved one could join the SMPTE working group or visit the IMF Forum.
Implementors also presented during the session. AmberFin’s Geoff Bowen said the company has a “great interest” in IMF. “Any re-use of existing standards is a good thing … and IMF is reusing everything that it can.” AmberFin is working on tools to migrate existing libraries into IMF assets. It additionally conducted successful IMF interop testing just before HPA, Bowen reported.
“Avid is a big supporter of IMF,” said Avid’s Tim Claman, noting that the company sees it as a way to “complete the transition to file-based workflows.” Avid is working with customers on uses. He urged the HPA Tech Retreat audience to get involved.
“We (vendors) are all working together nicely,” said DVS’ Dan Germain. “We can take packages and move them seamlessly, (when) vendors don’t traditionally like to work together.”
David Sugg, Warner Bros. Technical Operations, discussed where Warners looks to benefit from the Interoperable Mastering Format. A Warners’ initiative is DETE (Digital End To End), which holds most of the components required to create an IMF package. DETE currently delivers more than 500 different output formats (more than 40 percent qualify as a mezzanine format). Warners is testing DETE and IMF. “For us it is an obvious win,” he explained.
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