As Marie Kondo once said, "Tidying is just a tool, not a final destination." So True! But nevertheless, it's a critical tool to get you to your final destination, aka your EXPORT! This tutorial will illustrate the value in file management for your post-production workflow in Premiere Pro. Lets get it!
OVERVIEW
- Folder structure before ingest
- Key preference settings for media
- Use the Media Browser, not just File > Import
- How to create and display proxy files
- How to rename clips and create bins
- How to add metadata to clips
- Add search folders
FOLDER STRUCTURE: Before importing your media into Pr let's make sure your assets (footage, sound, VFX, Graphics, etc.) are properly organized. Very quickly can your assets end up in a dizzying list, slowing down your workflow, causing unnecessary frustration. Below is a standard folder structure that industry professionals utilize. Not just for our own benefit, but let's say you're collaborating on a job with others, this will make handing off your project to another editor a smooth efficient transition.
- 01_Production: contains documents related to your project (scripts, release forms, storyboards, etc.)
- 02_ProjectFiles: will hold sub folders: After Effects, Audition, Premiere Pro. Inside each of these folders will be saved project files (.prproj, Auto-Save, and any other folders that the program generates.
- 03_MEDIA: Consists of production dailies "footage" that can be broken up into subfolders like: DAY01, DAY02, DAY03 and so on. (Depending if you captured audio externally you would add two subfolders inside DAY01 > Audio and DAY01 > VIDEO)
- 04_Graphics: Save whatever graphics are relevant to your project (photoshop, illustrator, logos, etc.)
- 05_SoundMixes: Mixes from Audition or Pro Tools are stored here.
- 06_SFX+Voiceover: Two subfolders for each SFX + Voiceover assets.
- 07_MUSIC: Pretty straight forward in that it holds temp tracks or final tracks that maybe you downloaded from a royalty free site or licensed content.
- 08_Exports: Should have two subfolders: Cuts, Stills, thumbnails, etc.
MEDIA BROWSER, NOT FILE > IMPORT: The problem with relying on File > Import to access your footage is that you can't see the files, which can be an issue especially if you hadn't properly structured your folders. Where as, navigating to the project panel and selecting Media Browser to locate your assets is a much more user friendly approach. In the video, after I've selected the 03_MEDIA Folder and the day in which I want to access my footage. You can see what your media looks like through the thumbnails. Once here, just hold double click your trackpad or mouse to import the footage into your project panel.
CREATE PROXY FILES: Proxy files are useful because it speeds up your workflow. By compressing your original footage, which if it's 4k and depending on your computer may be too demanding for either disk bandwidth or CPU processing power for decoding to enable responsive editing. In the Media Browser you will notice a Wrench Icon. Select the files you want to proxy the check INGEST and click on the WRENCH ICON. The video below picks up at this step.
ORGANIZING WITH SMART BINS: To bin or not to bin? That's not really the question anymore since Adobe over the years has added value to this soliloquy with what's called SMART BINS! This is essentially a dynamic search that improves the functionality of a bin through keyword search. Let's see how this works!
Some say it's not the destination, but the journey...enjoy!