In audio post-production, we often get AAFs or OMFs from the video editor which provide us with the edited audio from the picture edit. In this article, a panel of experts shares their experiences of using AAFs and OMFs in their professional workflows.
Before we turn to our experts, so that everyone is on the same page, we are going to define what AAFs and OMFs are and how they fit into the post-production workflow.
What is the AAF format?
AAF stands for the Advanced Authoring Format. It is a technology designed specifically for digital nonlinear post-production and authoring. You can consider it as a “Super-EDL,” but actually it is also much more.
AAF is Open Source, so it’s available to manufacturers for free to implement into their systems. The Advanced Authoring Format (AAF) is an interchange toolkit and exists to get video, audio and metadata from one system to another. It can wrap video, audio, data, and even references to external assets along with instructions on how to render this material into a finished program. For example, a file might contain a 30-minute sequence along with instructions on how to cut it down to 5 minutes … along with an external reference to text reports or still photographs located on a separate system. the AAF format is designed to replace OMFI.
The AAF solution has several components: It supports the complex combination of a piece of content and its associated metadata. This allows the content to be described as a media object. It facilitates the cross-platform interchange of metadata or program content.
It allows users to track the history of pieces of program content from source elements through final production. It allows access to networked content files on remote platforms or storage. It allows the combined project in a selected format to be rendered later in the post process.
It catalogues an extensive list of audio and video effects with a rich set of built-in standard effects. It provides a way to “wrap” elements of a project together for archiving. It encapsulates HTML and XML content, includes translators, and supports HTML/XML output. It provides for application program interfaces (APIs).
What is the difference between the OMF and AAF formats?
Open Media Framework (OMF) or Open Media Framework Interchange (OMFI) is a platform-independent file format intended for transfer of digital media between different software applications.
As we have described above, AAF (and OMF) are used to transfer sequence/timeline information from one application to another. OMF is supported in a number of applications including AVID and Pro Tools.
AAF is the newer format and contains more information than the OMF. OMF loses the volume automation and names of the tracks when exporting and importing from one application to another. AAF retains the volume automation and the track names. Most applications for audio and video support AAF and MXF formats moving forward.
The Expert Panel
Reid Caulfield (RC) - Reid is Re-Recording Mixer & VP of Operations at Central Post in L.A. He has merged decades of creative sound and video work with highly technical ability and infrastructure build-out experience for large & small facilities.
Graham Kirkman (GK) - Graham has been mixing, tracklaying and recording VOs for over 25 years now working on many projects ranging from Features to Advertising and everything in-between! In September 2016, Graham decided he wanted to be his own boss and started Luminol Audio Ltd. and he has been doing all things audio ever since
Kevin Dallas (KD) - Kevin is an audio specialist twice nominated for an RTS Award for Professional Excellence in Sound. Working remotely from my custom built garden studio "The Dubshakk" he provides remote Voice-over recording, Sound Design, Tracklay, Editing and Mixing for 5.1 delivery. Remote review for sign-off is also available.
Paul Maunder (PM) - After initially starting his career producing radio commercials, Paul went on to design and run a post-production studio, working on corporate videos and TV programmes. He is a certificated Pro Tools expert in post-production sound, and outside of the studio, he also works on location heading up film shoots. Paul also helps others progress their knowledge and careers through an involvement with Spirit Studios in Manchester
Korey Pereira (KP) - Korey is the owner and creative director of Soularity Sound, a post-production company based in Austin, Texas. They recently completed upgrading their space to Atmos. They work on everything from student films to features to immersive audio for 360. In addition to his work as an editor and mixer, he is a lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin and a guest lecturer at Texas State University.
Tom Lowe (TL) - Tom is a sound designer and dubbing mixer, working professionally in the industry for over 10 years at his company, Lowe Frequency. Specialising in sound for animation, film, and broadcast, he started working with ambisonics in 2017 with the purchase of a Sennheiser AMBEO mic.
Lucy Mitchell (LM) - Lucy is a freelance Sound Editor and Dubbing Mixer for TV, Film and Computer Games living on the Surrey-London border, with new own facility LJ Studios in a purpose-built studio in the garden. She works on all genres and all areas of sound editorial; you name it.
We asked our panel of experts a series of questions and here are their answers for each of the questions in turn…
How do you handle AAFs?
RC: AAFs are" turned over” by picture editorial and loaded onto our content server. Assistants go to work on them immediately to determine whether they meet our turnover specifications (i.e. track groupings are correct, music and six not intermingled or “shotgunned" across the entire timeline). Obviously sample rate, bit depth and timecode rate are interrogated to ensure the AAF output was properly executed. If it was not, we reject the delivery and the picture edit house needs to re-execute AAF output & delivery.
GK: With new clients, I ask them to send me a consolidated AAF with 75 frame handles.
KD: Download and copy to my working SSD, then import and keep the import on AAF tracks at the bottom of the session.
PM: How I open AAF files in Pro Tools depends on the complexity of the project. For something really simple like a short corporate video mix with just dialogue and music, I’ll just double click the AAF and open it as a new session. Pro Tools is set as the default application to open AAF files. For more complex projects I will import the AAF into a pre-existing session template using Import Session Data. I always ensure that I copy the audio into the session audio files folder on import.
KP: When working with a filmmaker for the first time (or for the first time in a while) I typically send them my “Deliverables Spec Sheet for Post Sound.” It gives them the preferred settings when exporting assets from Avid Media Composer or Adobe Premiere Pro. This covers most of our work. Every once in a while if someone is using Final Cut X or Resolve, then the process of getting workable audio takes a bit more trial and error.
TL: Usually I talk the editor/animator through the process of export. This is usually only voice recordings and a few effects put in, as when dealing with animation, I’ll build up the rest of the sound. If I am dealing with live-action, a lot of the time I’ll ask for the rushes and Premiere Pro project and export the AAF myself. If I’m the editor, this is even easier!
LM: I use AAFs on their own more for factual television, lower budget fiction and feature documentaries as I don't usually need to conform microphones from rushes for these types of work. I tend to create my own session with my own naming conventions and import the AAF into that rather than opening the AAF itself to create a session.
I always duplicate the AAF in the session (or just copy everything onto new tracks, not move them) so that I always have the original import to refer to. This particularly useful if the editor has done a lot of fades, and volume or clip gain automation. I usually wipe this clean on the copied tracks when I start, but it's good to know how the editor and director envision things. It is also helpful if picture changes are made and you are Just sent a new AAF. If there are not many or complicated changes, then you can line up the new AAF under the old one and essentially conform by eye.
Do you still find people are sending OMFs, if so how do you handle these?
RC: 5% OMF delivery, mostly because we insist clients consult with us before AAF/OMF output.
GK: Haven't had an OMF for at least a couple of years
KD: Not seen an OMF for a very very long time.
PM: I still receive OMF files and usually I have no problem with these on most projects. AAF is my preference if I’m asked prior to them exporting it as it provides more options with regards to the preservation of metadata. When exporting from Avid Media Composer, AAF also allows for plug-ins to be included with the tracks. If the video editor, for example, has used the Avid 7 Band EQ on a track, it can be carried over into Pro Tools via an AAF. Generally, I’ll re-do any processing but it’s sometimes useful to hear what they’ve done as it can help to give me an idea of their creative intent.
KP: There was a time a few years back when Adobe did something with the way Premiere Pro exports AAF and they started going terribly awry. AAFs would be completely out of sync and randomly loop audio files. It was bad. For a good 2+ years, I started asking for OMFs from anyone editing in Premiere Pro. This year an editor sent me an AAF from Premiere Pro, which worked fine, but I still request OMFs from Premiere Pro.
TL: The last time I had an OMF was from an FCP7 project. Due to the length, it went over the 2GB file size limit. Often people would split this into 2 or more OMFs by length, however, I found a more reliable and safer way was to split it by tracks, so an OMF may contain only 2 tracks.
LM: I haven't been sent an OMF in years. For simple shows, this isn't a massive problem as the main difference I can remember for me is the lack of metadata (like track names) that gets carries across. For OMFs with lots of tracks, it would be useful to have names of tracks when splitting off at the beginning. Also When dealing with multiple microphones, the more metadata in the audio regions the better, for troubleshooting especially. I seem to remember OMFs also have less information there.
Do you have any recurring problems with AAFs that you have to deal with over and over? If so what are they and what do you do to resolve it?
RC: Assistant picture editors - who are responsible for outputting AAFs - are mostly “journeymen and journeywomen” in Los Angeles and they float from company to company and from project to project. Shows are typically cut on Avid Media Composer or Adobe Premiere, and assistants, being always on the hunt for the next gig, always claim to be proficient on both platforms but they clearly are not. As a result, they may not have extensive experience in outputting AAFs cleanly. As well, many editors working on many systems across a network on a storage server are likely to have their various edit stations set up completely differently, even for the same show. So when it comes time for AAF output, it’s a total crapshoot as to what we receive so that we can begin sound. Corrupt AAFs are extremely common, but again, this is usually down to the inexperience of the people outputting the files. Very often, we need to get on the phone with them as they are setting up the process to ensure correct delivery.
GK: Only one but I work for mostly the same clients over and over again so they know what to do by now. For new clients, I ask them to send me a consolidated AAF.
KD: Being sent an AAF without any media or without handles.
PM: I usually work with repeat clients so it’s rare that I encounter issues again and again with AAFs. One I’ve seen a couple of times though is an AAF without embedded audio where they forget to send me the actual audio and I just receive the AAF itself! You would think that the tiny file size of a non-embedded AAF file might be a clue that it doesn’t include audio!
KP: Nested sequences in Premiere! These are the WORST. There is a certain sub-sect of editors that like to edit their films by creating a sequence for each scene of a film then dropping THAT sequence into a master sequence to assemble (and often further edit) their film. What this does when you export an AAF, is create a stereo mixdown of each original sequence and export THOSE in the OMF/AAF, which strips the ability to edit any of the audio or even do a proper dialogue assembly as the EDL is just “per scene.” This typically leads to the tough conversation that the editor (or assistant editor) needs to go back and re-assemble the full show or film. For any recurring clients or projects I sign on during pre-production, I have the conversation with editors on the importance of NOT using nested sequences.
TL: Not in my experience
LM: Not really. sometimes I get sent an AAF file, which has "audio files missing" when I open it. So either the editor didn't embed the audio, or they didn't intend to embed the audio but forgot to send the audio files separately.
If so what are they and what do you do to resolve it?
GK: The only thing I can think of that sometimes happens is that there's a clip or 2 offline - a quick call to the client will result in a new AAF of just the missing bits back online).
KD: I ask for an embedded AAF with 125 frame handles.
PM: On the occasions when this has happened I’ve spoken to the editor and guided them through the correct export process.
LM: One thing I often get is very short handles, or worse still, no handles at all, which is not helpful. Even after I've asked for 5 seconds worth! (Sometimes I get 5 frames instead). If this happens, I usually just email back and let them know, and they just reexport.
Do you have a document that you send out to editors to guide them through the way you would like to receive AAFs/OMFs?
RC: Yes, but for AAF only. The document included step by step, illustrated instructions for all major picture editorial platforms. We provide this document to the post supervisors early on, but they are generally ignored until the first AAF delivery is kicked back to them for being non-compliant. Then they read the document for the first time.
GK: I used to, but realised very quickly that the majority of the time they either don't get forwarded and therefore the editor (or much more likely, the CAR assistant) never get to read it. Or they get forwarded but the editor doesn't read it. When I did send it and it was actually read I got the distinct impression that I was teaching my grandmother to suck eggs, so I don't think it was appreciated!!
KD: No, but I probably should have, although I usually work with the same people regularly.
PM: Again, because I work regularly with a small number of clients I don’t need to provide regular guidance on AAF/OMF export. I have thought about creating a document though as it would be handy from time to time.
KP: Yes I do. You can download it here… “Deliverables Spec Sheet for Post Sound.”
TL: I usually guide them through the process over the phone if required, or remote login session preferably. This is when going from FCP X -> X2Pro or FCP X -> DaVinci Resolve. Alternatively, I send a screenshot with the settings to use in the case of Premiere Pro.
LM: I don't have a document that I send out, I usually just ask for an embedded AAF with 5 or 10 second handles (depending on the project). Because most of the work I tend to do is for post-production facilities, I'm used to working with experienced editors/assistants who usually know how to export them.
I do have more problems with independent films/lower budget programming/online content where the editors have less experience, or just haven't worked on a facility. Although they can be great editors, they haven't always done the whole assisting thing where they would learn the deliverables side of things.
I do sometimes ask the Indie Film editors to lay their tracks out a specific way if they ask how I'd like it (you'd be surprised how many picture editors actually don't keep everything split across tracks in a consistent way. I've had sound effects on tracks that may be mostly dialogue, voiceover spread across multiple tracks, stereo music files across odd and even tracks and so on. I have experienced this in facilities as well, but thankfully less frequently. They are not unworkable, they just take longer to sort through when "splitting off" the AAF into my Pro Tools template. You can't just highlight the whole track and copy it to another. Unfortunately, when AAFs are sent in such a disorganised way, it can add over an hour to the day and can sometimes mean that I can miss some important audio when splitting off an extremely messy project. That said, this is more an editor issue I guess than an AAF issue.
Are there any NLEs that you routinely have problems with?
RC: Anecdotally, Premiere Pro AAF’s seem to be the most problematic. Missing files, corrupt files, handling of “effected” audio files (i.e.”baked-in" speed ramps, pitch shifts, reverbs etc). We always ask for both the effected ("rendered”) file as well as the unrendered files but the unrendered originals are rarely available and the rendered files are corrupt or incompatible with Pro Tools.
GK: Funny you should say that, but Apple’s Final Cut is (was?) a nightmare with AAF/OMF's. I haven't had this for years (thank God) but I'd sometimes get over 100 tracks when all that was needed was 8. (indeed, all that was in the timeline was 8!!!) This was when I worked for a post house. We never really got to the bottom of it, but it seemed to be something to do with nested/multi-channel clips? I'm very glad to say that I haven't had this ever since being freelance!
KD: I recently worked with a new client who uses Resolve and they were not sure how to make an AAF. I called an editor friend who told me what I needed to ask my client for. It was very straight forward. I also downloaded a free copy of Resolve to have a look for myself. It seems well thought out, offering a Pro Tools option in the delivery workspace of Resolve. It’s great to see this support from a software manufacturer especially when they have their own DAW.
PM: No specific NLE, but I’ve had issues before with AAF files, which have included video and have on occasions been unable to even import the audio when the video has been present. For that reason, I always prefer an audio-only AAF and a separate export of the video.
KP: Overall the current version of Premiere Pro seems to be able to properly export an AAF, but with two caveats.
As mentioned above, if an editor uses nested sequences, none of the raw audio exports properly. The editor will need to go back and rebuild the show.
I remember the first time I tried to import an AAF (or OMF) from Premiere, none of the media would re-link in Pro Tools. The only way I have found to get around this shortcoming is to de-select all of the options for matching from the Pro Tools import menu. Why Adobe hasn’t fixed this is beyond me. AAFs from AVID work fine.
TL: Not so much these days!
LM: I've had issues from Premiere Pro and Da Vinci Resolve. Sometimes the file itself is corrupt and won't open. Other times there is offline media, fades are missing, no clip gain etc. I never have these issue with editors using Avid. I also dread starting a job when I see that it has been edited on Final Cut Pro because as far as I am aware, you can't export AAFs from FCP without using third-party software. This may have changed though, I haven't come across a project on FCP for a long time.
If so, what steps do you take to get useful AAFs/OMFs from editors that use these problematic NLEs?
RC: We attempt to warn them in advance of the pitfalls, we provide telephone support and we provide documentation. It’s like talking to a wall.
GK: Get straight onto the editor (If he/she is still there!!!) if not, I just contact production and strongly suggest that they will have to send me another AAF that works :-) Meanwhile I'll start working with the AAF that is already supplied because I've probably got to have it finished that night!!!
LM: Because I usually work with editors within facilities, I don't want to patronise them or tell them how to do their job, and to be honest it isn't my job to troubleshoot something for the editor or the assistants.
As I don't work with NLEs, they are able to troubleshoot much more efficiently than me, I'd just be googling! Admittedly, If I come across issues regularly enough I do learn how to resolve them in order to help and speed up workflow. Working with more inexperienced editors/indies I wouldn't be as surprised to be asked for my help in troubleshooting and how to export AAFs correctly and I am happy to try to help but it's not something I come across that often.
Which type of AFFs/OMFs do you prefer and why?
RC: Embedded seems to be working best at the moment, but it depends on the particular version of the NLE in question that they’re using.
GK: Embedded only! Not too sure why you'd ask for non embedded as that just adds another possibility of things not re-linking.
KD: Embedded, then you should have everything contained within one file.
PM: Unless the project is massive, I prefer embedded audio because it reduces the likelihood that any audio files will be missing or lost. Also, I’ve seen an issue where non-embedded audio can occasionally have the wrong unique ID, which makes re-linking more difficult when opening the AAF or OMF with Pro Tools. In the worst-case scenario, I’ve had to re-link using Find All Candidates and re-link every single audio file individually!
KP: I have a strong preference for not-embedded AAFs/OMFs. Especially when the editor follows my spec sheet and exports all the audio files as 48/24 .WAV files, it saves the step of needing to “force to session format” on import creating another set of files to keep track of.
This method also eliminates the need to export multiple embedded OMFs because they exceed the maximum file size of the format. I also (somewhat controversially) prefer the “whole file” option vs trimming the audio to a certain handle length. Yes, it makes for a larger file size, but makes it MUCH easier to simply drag out the full handles on projects where I don’t necessarily have time to do a proper dialogue assembly.
TL: Embedded. Explaining to people there are a load of other files they have to send can get complicated!
LM: I prefer embedded so that they have to send me just one file. There's no worry of some files getting lost on upload/download. It also is less to download as in my experience, AAF files are smaller than sending separate audio files folder. A bit like zipping a file, It also makes it easier to keep organised.
Does it vary depending on which NLE it is coming from?
GK: No it doesn’t.
KD: No it doesn’t.
KP: Sometimes, yes. AAFs generally coming out of Media Composer generally work. WIth Premiere Pro, I will sometimes request an embedded OMF/AAF, especially when working with inexperienced picture editors or filmmakers. It creates one file they need to send me - removing the back and forth of explaining the 200kb AAF they sent me does NOT contain the audio I need to mix their film. It also removed the need to un-check all the boxes in Pro Tools when importing an embedded OMF from Premiere.
LM: Not that I'm aware of, but I mostly get things from Avid Media Composer anyway.
Can you describe your AAF/OMF workflows?
RC: AAFs/OMFs are downloaded and/or ingested into a specific AAF directory on our content server, upon which our assistants open & interrogate for delivery compliance. They then set about creating Pro Tools sessions off of the AAFS - always using "Save As” in Pro Tools so that the original AAF session remains pristine. Then they arrange the mess of tracks into some coherent order for our editors & mixers according to the conventions that have been set down for that particular show. Commonalities include things like Dialog tracks being grouped together on the timeline, same thing for SFX & Music tracks. The session is played down in its entirety, with our assistants correcting any timeline errors they encounter (i.e. SFX on music tracks, incorrect channel configurations, etc). Duplicate dialog tracks or completely silent tracks are muted but not deleted. A client will always swear that "there was another mic source" on the shoot, so we keep all tracks available so we can have a look if something seems to be missing.
GK: Download, import (copy NOT link to) make a direct copy of those tracks and then make those copy tracks inactive (I use this as a safety check when/if things seem wrong in a clip).
KD: Map start timecode to picture start, import Clips and media, tick checkboxes for Import Clip Gain, Import Volume Automation and Only Include Clips On Timeline.
PM: If I’m importing the OMF or AAF into a session template, I’ll first create a new session from the template. Most of the stuff I work on is 48KHz, 24 bit.
Once I’m happy that the session start time and timecode rate are correct, I’ll import the AAF/OMF. I do this by either dragging and dropping the AAF into the Tracks List or I’ll use Import Session Data.
There are several settings in particular which I always check when in the Import Session Data window. In the Audio Media Options, I choose Copy from source media to ensure that Pro Tools copies all of the audio into the session’s Audio Files folder, rather than referencing it from its original location.
If there is a video present, I generally don’t import it here as I prefer to import a separate QuickTime so I’ll only import audio tracks.
Under the Session Data section, I usually import the Clip Gain and Volume Automation if there is any. Of course, I’ll re-do all of it anyway but sometimes it’s useful as a very rough guide or if, for example, some background music cuts off partway through the track, looking at their volume automation can tell me if they intended the track to fade before then.
The pan odd tracks left/even tracks right feature seems completely useless and I think that’s one feature which nobody would miss if it was dropped from Pro Tools.
KP: A lesson can be learned as to the importance of watching down a show once you have imported it into Pro Tools. Recently I was mixing an episode of television and two of the nine acts did not properly import the AAFs from Premiere Pro. It is hard to tell what exactly the problem was, but a handful of clips were just wrong. The audio did not match the guide track. I re-downloaded and re-imported the file and it worked. It is hard to tell where it went wrong, but even the best workflow can go awry. Spending the time to watch a show at the beginning of the process vs the guide track will save the embarrassment of having something discovered days or weeks into the project.
LM: For documentaries, I do the following…
Create my own session and import the picture and guide audio, along with my template for that job. I import the AAF into this at the bottom of the session.
On the import window, I select "copy from source media". I include clip gain and volume automation but remove rendered audio effects and deselect panning odd and even tracks. (I keep automation not only to see what the director or editor wants, but some editors will move volume automation or clip gain to -infinity rather than mute or delete a clip or section of a clip. When editing music for factual telly, I've often seen music fade to nothing in the automation while the actual track on my timeline continues, sometimes for seconds!)
I go through and "split off" the AAF by copying everything (not moving) into their relevant tracks (dialog, editor's effects, music etc) Once split off, I make the original AAF tracks inactive.
The next bit is dependant in the job but I would usually highlight everything on my timeline and "coalesce clip gain to volume automation". This is so I can delete all fades and then "heal" all the regions (command-H). The reason for this is that some audio regions are cut and crossfaded in the edit purely because there is a picture edit, or the clip gain jumps, despite being one continuous audio file. For more control over my volume, I like the whole audio clip to continuous so that I can one level of clip gain, with no unnecessary crossfades.
Deleting fades is also useful for dialogue editing as I'd inevitably want to change what the editor has done anyway. But as I mentioned before, I always keep a copy of the AAF inactive underneath, with all the volume and clip gain automation intact.
Please share anything else on AAFs and OMFs that hasn’t been covered.
RC: There seems to be either an application bug in Premiere Pro and Media Composer - or an operations /knowledge bug in terms of the picture editors - where a great many AAFs that we receive have no organization to them at all. Track one will have mostly dialog, say, with random SFX or music clips thrown in beside a clip of dialog, with the second channel of the SFX or music clip in question being 40 tracks down the timeline. This is what we call “shotgunned.” One line of dialog by character ‘A’ on a track, and his second line 12 tracks away. Never mind that the convention of having Character “A’s” dialog should be all on a single track or group of tracks, and Character “B’s” dialog on the next set of tracks down. Every line by any given character comes in across any number of tracks (sometimes more than 100, including music and SFX).
On a recent 10 episode series, the AAFs were SO messed up in this regard that when we halted the sound work and offered to fix it for x hours = x dollars, the producers said no to more money, took it back and had an assistant editor sort through to correct the organizational issues. They called us the next day to say that they indeed could not fix the issue on their end because it had taken their assistant picture editor eleven hours to fix the timeline on a 22 minute show and could we do it for less (which we had already offered to them - 4-6 hours of billable time - for us to fix the issues on our end, at standard book rate - and they said no). They then had the balls to ask if we could do it for less than we had originally quoted them and we said no. 100 hours of work later, their assistant editor quit in disgust.
Also, for reality TV, picture editors are cutting their own SFX. This can be problematic because picture editors don’t care about channel groupings or stereo vs mono. So I don’t know if this is endemic as a picture editorial workflow issue or is truly a setup problem on the NLE workstation.
Case in point: For months we were waiting and slowly prepping for picture turnover on a large number of episodes of a show. For all of those months, the Sound department was told that edit & mix were to be 5.1. All of our 5.1 templates were ready to go. Finally, upon the first episode’s turnover, I just thought (as the show’s mixer) to ask one more time. No, I was told, the show was to be straight stereo. Okay. So the assistants ingest and we all sit around combing through the episode. This is an important step because our notes then need to go back to the post supervisor so that his people can modify their timelines for progressively proper AAF delivery as the episodes roll on.
And then we noticed: all of the SFX and music cut by the picture editors (again, this is becoming very common in Los Angeles) - was dual mono. Their various Media Composer systems were all set up differently in this regard. So, for a 4-Act episode (22 minutes), Act one would be cut by one team, Act 2 by another, etc. And with each of the NLE’s being set up differently, Team A would import a music cue of SFX clip from their shared library, and it would import as dual mono (this is a setting in Media Composer that apparently defaults this way and so someone needs to know that it needs to be changed in the first place). Team B would work on the second act, but their system was set up properly to import dual-channel stereo. So our sound assistant now has to go through inch by inch to flag all of the incompatible channel format issues.
So immediately, there is a ridiculously huge workflow problem that needs to be remedied by the Sound department. So we go to the post supervisors to alert them to the problem but they complain that they don’t have the manpower or resources to fix the issue on 20 NLE systems, and can the Sound department please fix it? So now we have to go back to the producers for more time & money. They go back to their post supervisors to read them the riot act for this massive mistake, and the post supervisors come back to us to complain that we ratted them out.
Okay. So what do we have? Multiple systems set up incorrectly, editors who don’t know stereo from mono (why would they?) and don’t care, frankly. Executive producers pissed off that they have to spend more money for us to fix it, and post supervisors pissed off at sound for having uncovered the issue because they might get fired for it. So not the Post supervisors don’t like the sound house.
We’ve seen this on a number of different shows by disparate production companies. And this was all pre-COVID, by the way. I want you to imagine for a moment what it was like when they had to send all of their picture editorial people home to work from there! MESS.
As a facility owner/operator, the biggest issue I see with all of this is that all of this is being pushed down the line to the vendors near the end of the production chain, even on Netflix & Apple et al shows. And as we all know, the further down the end of the chain you get in production & post, the less money there is available to fix massive workflow issues, and as a rule, we have stopped doing favors that cost us money.
GK: Not sure it matters, but AAF's in the old days (sound like my dad) were mostly beautifully constructed and organised. Those days are gone. Now music tracks overlap with FX, dialog randomly appears on tracks 13/14, FXs come across as mono (but then sometimes the same FX stereo later on!!) Basically, AAF's need more time after import to go through with a fine-tooth comb and this time has never been added on to our day, so it's another thing to expect to do in the time booked.
PM: For TV shows which are in multiple parts (as in, segments which would be separated by ad breaks), I sometimes receive separate AAFs for each section. In that case, I will use Import Session data for each part in turn, adding it to the existing timeline. Since each section from the same show usually has the same incoming tracks, I’ll use the Match Tracks option to add the media to the similarly named existing tracks in the session.
There are a couple of really critical settings to be aware of when doing this. Firstly, ensure that Clips and Media is selected under the Track Data to Import option and secondly, under Main Playlist Options be sure to choose Import - Overlay New On Existing Playlists. This will add the audio to the timeline and won’t remove any existing audio.
Accidentally choosing Import - Replace existing playlists can be a disaster as it clears everything you’ve previously imported from those tracks.
Finally, there have been a few occasions when parts 2 or 3 of a show have had the wrong timecode start time within the AAF because the editor has somehow exported it incorrectly. On these occasions, I will choose Map Timecode Start To form the Timecode Mapping Options and manually enter the timecode location where I want that part to start in my session.
KP: A lot of headaches can be avoided by helping our picture editors develop good habits.
Don’t use nested sequences in Premiere Pro
Keep your tracks organized. Group your tracks together in food groups (Dialogue, Effects and Music). Very recently I have a project deliver where production sound would crossfade into a music cue, which then faded into a sound effect. There was also another project where the editor was told “post sound would want each sound effect on its own track.” They delivered 200+ tracks with almost all of them with only a single file on it. Why!??
Premiere Pro allows you to mix mono, stereo and multichannel on the same tracks. This then creates a number of extra tracks when importing into Pro Tools (1, 1L, 1R, 2, 2L, 2R, etc.) If the editor can create the audio tracks before they start editing, they can create their track layouts and make sure the audio the import ends up on the right tracks (8-16 dialogue tracks, 4 mono effects tracks, 4 stereo fx tracks, 4 stereo background tracks, 1+ stereo music tracks). Not only will it help them deliver tracks not only organized but avoid these extra tracks on import.
TL: I’ve found DaVinci Resolve to change from version to version, especially during the betas. Sometimes the Export to Pro Tools option worked, sometimes having to use the Media Composer option was better. Also, for adding handles this is hidden in the “Video” tab, even if you’re asking for an audio-only AAF, the handle length has to be added under “Video”. In the latest release, this seems to be stable, and the Export to Pro Tools option seems to work, I’ve heard of issues with metadata, however, this usually doesn’t affect me
LM: I am not sure if it's still an issue, as I haven't had a project like this for a while, but I have had a few programmes that have mixed frame rates on the picture side, and when importing the AAF, not all the audio comes across into Pro Tools. Entire regions weren't there, not just blank regions with "missing audio files".
It wasn't immediately obvious why the files were missing but after lots of phone calls back and forth we realised that the audio I was missing in my 25fps session were files from videos with different frame rates. They eventually had to export separate AAFs for each frame rate, which sometimes took a long time because they hadn't arranged their video projects in a way that made this simple/quick. Then I'd have to import them into separate Pro Tools sessions to make sure it is all in sync before importing it all back into my master session. So it was all a bit of a faff and very time-consuming.
Pro Tools Post Production Basics - OMF and AAF
To conclude this article, we are featuring a 2 part post-production basics tutorial in which Paul Maunder describes the OMF and AAF file interchange formats and demonstrate the process of exporting audio from video editing applications for use in Pro Tools.
In part 1 we take a look at the process of exporting audio in AAF or OMF format from some of the common video editing platforms.
In part 2 we describe how to import embedded and non-embedded AAF and OMF files and how to use Import Session Data to import a multi-part OMF file.
In Conclusion
We hope that this article has been helpful for me starters to better understand what OMFs and AAFs are and how they fit into the post-production workflow and for those who are more experienced, an insight into how a number of audio post-production specialists handle OMFs and AAFs.