Cut and Colour: The Benefits of High-End Edit, Colour and VFX All in 1 Pipeline
Since we set up The Post Arm as a direct route between the offline edit and final delivery, we are often asked why we do not simply position ourselves as another independent post-production company.
It is a fair question because we are as actively competing and bidding on projects with the same professionalism and dedication as any of our Soho rivals and we are happy to be evaluated by clients within that context. However, we are also very proud to be seen as the conduit by which two world class editing houses, The Quarry and Whitehouse Post, can offer deeper and more meaningful input into their clients’ projects.
Initially, there is the obvious benefit in that having access to Baselight grading and professional monitoring allows for a potent creative mix of editors, directors and colourists to explore looks and offer grades at the very earliest stages of a project.
What may not be so obvious though is that we can apply grades directly onto the same files the editor is using without interrupting their work, and they can simply update their timeline to see the results in their suites. They can choose to apply a grade onto any alternate shots as they edit whilst we can browse the Avid storage and anticipate a need to apply a grade to rectify weather problems or other circumstantial shoot issues. Thus, even if a particular take is never used, they can still present it as a viable option instead of it being immediately deemed as unusable. We also modify grades in response to creative or client feedback and by simply walking into the suite the entire creative team can be part of that evolution. The progression of a grade from Avid ingest files to camera original files is eased by our shared access to EDLs and the impeccable colour science within the Baselight.
Getting involved in this way we have on many occasions streamlined the colour process, arriving at a final grade far sooner. A great example was the Facebook “Manifesto” spots directed by Simon Rattigan and edited by Quarry’s Bruce Townend for AMV – constant colour involvement throughout the offline process meant that all creative parties were aligned on a look ahead of the final grade session. Director Simon Rattigan commented that “Grading while editing was just amazing. With Bruce and Seamus working in unison, we were able to refine the grade over several days and make constant adjustments as the cut evolved. That parallel workflow, not only informed the editing process as we’d instantly see how shots fitted together, but it also enabled us to share cuts with the UK client that looked pretty much how we wanted them to. Presenting beautifully graded offline edits certainly made for a smoother approvals process and probably played a part in persuading Facebook US to take and air the spot Stateside.”
We have also been available to provide colour as an intended part of the editorial process by providing best-light services for the dallies and thus engage with a director’s treatment and vision from the beginning. This is especially useful where Film stock is the acquisition medium. A recent experience for EE Gaming, edited by Paul Watts, provides testament to the benefits offered by a more considered grade being undertaken at such an early stage: “Having Seamus and Jim just down the hall is an unexpected treat, and certainly not something I foresaw when I used to lug 35mm cutting copies round to Seamus who was half way across Soho for a quick transfer to Umatic when I was a runner in the late '80s. Now it seems that the opportunity has finally caught up with the technical reality, whereby edit and the rest of post can come together, sharing the same data; and we all get to enjoy the creative opportunities and the various efficiencies that come with that. The care and thought that Seamus brought to this recent EE project had a significant positive impact on our journey.”
We have often contracted the workflow by starting our grade development and VFX work whilst the offline is still in progress. With the recent global Swiss Tourism spots directed by Tom Hooper and edited by Russell Icke at Whitehouse Post, we were involved in both pre-grading material for offline and feeding full resolution shots into our VFX pipeline to commence compositing the background landscapes. Russell Icke said “Having Seamus in the next room and flame across the corridor was a total blessing on this job! Being able to import comp tests into the edit & integrate my assistants in with our Post Arm helped speed up the process massively, especially whilst we were quickly finding, positioning, grading and comping landscapes through all the train windows once the core edit had been set. Being under one roof saved us weeks in post.” Balancing the amount of VFX shots against budget and time considerations, plus coordinating client feedback into such a cinematic and largescale edit became a much easier proposition when all the producers could deal directly with each other without borders. The creative and technical aspects were addressed within a single studio environment and resulted in the spot finishing within a four week period.
We had a similar experience with Daniel Kleinman and Harry Enfield on the BBC’s “The Love Box in your Living Room”. Here we integrated editorial, colour and VFX, hosting the WIP within the Baselight, still enacting editorial changes whilst updating VFX and GFX into the ongoing colour development throughout. Using all of our Baselights and flame systems to develop various period styles from such an early stage in the project meant we could complete over 270 unique VFX scenes in under two months.
A further major benefit of integrated colour and offline is that we have forged longstanding relationships with brands and their creative partner agencies by being seen as a single functioning entity that can steer a project from inception to delivery. With Cle de Peau Beauté we have collaborated with their creative teams by adding colour and VFX cleanup at every stage in the approval process. This has allowed for the exacting and meticulous beauty work to be viewed and critiqued across global markets and be adapted with sensitivity and purpose where needed. On our recent Range Rover spot, “Shanghai” cut by Quarry editor Sam Jones, we could re-interpret his complex multi layered style directly within the Baselight and thus supply grade intentioned offline edits for client approval. We could also develop that grade in response to client comments, either general or product focused, whilst also addressing certain VFX based comments on cleanup or location issues and ensuring those shots were always available for both the editor and the colourist.
Lastly, we have achieved significant success by utilising our presence within the studio to grade and finish numerous short films and promos. We recognise that creative ambition often surpasses the available budget in these areas, and we take pride in simplifying our process to make color grading more direct and efficient.
This could be as straightforward as exporting a conformed ProRes file from Premiere directly into the grading suite, or it might involve hosting a conform within Baselight while VFX are completed, re-imported, and refined. Regardless of the approach, the close collaboration between artists, editors, directors and DOPs, fosters a dynamic workflow where ideas flow freely, and progress remains flexible and seamless.
Overall, it is this unique access to the creative sources that singles us out amongst the Soho community and gives us a singular identity and desire. It fosters cooperation and communication and ultimately helps deliver a project with input from key creatives at every stage.
