ARRI Projection HDTV User manual

ALICE
COLOR MANAGEMENT
Instruction Manual
As of: April 2003
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2
Contents
Contents
Safety Instructions.........................................................3
1 ALICE
ARRILASER Interactive Conguration Editor...........5
2 Operation.......................................................... 7
2.1 Viewer area.......................................................7
Timeline.............................................................8
Projectable Area ................................................9
Pixel Info............................................................9
Display Settings..................................................9
2.2 Conguration Area ..........................................11
Input Format.....................................................11
Output Format..................................................12
Calibration ......................................................12
Crop Area.......................................................13
Crop box handling with the aspect locked:.........13
Crop box handling with the aspect unlocked: .....14
Right mouse button...........................................15
Deinterlace ......................................................16
Sharpen ..........................................................16
CMS ...............................................................17
3 The File Menu ..................................................18
4 Conguration...................................................20
4.1 Naming Conventions in ALICE ..........................20
Cinemascope geometries..................................20
Inter Positive fullap geometries...........................21
Loader LUTs for Color Management ...................21
4.2 Input Format File Specication...........................22
Location of input format le ...............................22
Syntax of input format le..................................22
4.3 Fine-tuning ALICE .............................................24
Memory Footprint.............................................24
Multi Threading................................................24
4.4 Accessing DVS Disk Recorders ..........................25
4.4.1 Browsing Disc Recorders...................................25
4.4.2 Network Timeouts.............................................26
4.4.3 Partition Change Policy.....................................26
4.4.4 Command Line Interface Syntax.........................27

3
Contents
Safety Instructions
Caution:
This manual is an addendum to the existing
ARRILASER instruction manual.
Please make sure to read the ARRILASER
manual prior to continuing with this manual!
5 Color Management for Video Look ....................28
5.1 Operation from ALICE ......................................28
5.1.1 Conguration of CMS node in ALICE.................28
5.1.2 Soft clip Parameter ...........................................29
5.1.3 Display settings ................................................30
5.2 Conguration...................................................32
5.2.1 Monitor Setup..................................................32
Calibration of the HD class A reference monitor..32
5.2.2 Film Setup........................................................32
5.2.3 Color Management Node.................................33
The CMS node syntax ......................................33
Node type identier and node arguments ..........34
5.2.4 Soft clip Conguration File ................................35
Location of soft clip conguration le..................35
Syntax of soft clip conguration le....................35
Soft clip parameters demystied ........................37
5.3 Provided proles ..............................................37

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Introduction 1

5
1 ALICE
ARRILASER Interactive Configuration Editor
The ALICE offers the fastest, easiest and safest way to
generate a new image processing configuration file and
gives visual control over the whole image process from
the raw input sequence to the final images positioned
on the film. General input parameters like start/end
frame, calibration and loader-LUT can also be specified
and will be transferred to the GUI input window when
quitting and saving the ALICE window. Furthermore
additional information is provided about the input
images such as image type, pixel size and bit depth.
Analyzing and controlling tools further simplify the
configuration process.
The purpose of ALICE is
• to judge the quality of the input images
• to select the frame range visually
• to build a job and select appropriate job settings
with visual control of the final rendered images
positioned on the film.
• By choosing an ICC profile for the workstation monitor,
the effect on the actual output on film can be previewed.
This is especially helpful in transferring colors that lie
outside of the normally reproduced color space of the
choosen film. All results can be accurately previewed.
ALICE uses the same image processing as the image pro-
cessing used during recording. Therefore, the results of image
processing operations previewed in ALICE are completely
identical to those being recorded later. Zooming in and out is
always done by replicating or omitting pixels to exclude
all possibility of inaccuracy of the displayed image.
Introduction 1

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film view •
processed view •
original view •
timeline •
• projectable area
• home button
viewer area •
• configuration area
• pixel info
• display settings
Operation 2

7
2 Operation
To start ALICE click the ALICE Button beneath the image
processing configuration list in the input tab of ALGUI.
Any preselected image processing file will be applied in
ALICE, as long as it is compatible with ALICE’s configuration.
If not, or if no file is selected at all, ALICE will be opened
with default settings. Geometry, loader LUT and calibration
can be preselected before opening the ALICE window or
inside the ALICE window. If a chosen setting is not compatible
with the ALICE configuration default values will come up.
The ALICE window is separated into the viewer area
and the configuration area  photo.
2.1 Viewer area
The viewer area includes the viewer window, timeline,
projectable area, pixel info and display settings. It offers a
visual control of the raw input sequence and is used to
create interactively the configuration parameters. A preview
shows the actual position of the final images on the film.
• The ‘original’ view shows the original raw input
images.
• The ‘processed’ view accurately displays the effects
of the chosen filter and geometry settings (output
format, crop area, deinterlace, sharpen and CMS, if
activated).
• The ‘film’ view shows the processed images
positioned on the film for final control.
• The ‘timeline’ is simply a display of a frame range.
By default it is the length of the clip or sequence. It
does not limit or control the actual start/end
parameters saved in the jobscript.
Operation 2.1

8
Timeline
• To change the displayed frame range, enter the start/end
frame in the corresponding text field at the beginning
and end of the timeline  photo.
The ‘cur‘ field shows  photo the actual displayed
frame number. Typing a particular number in that
field will show this frame on the display.
The ´inc´ value  photo indicates the step width
for moving through the timeline using the arrow keys
on your keyboard. To skip frames, change the ‘inc’-
value numerically or by choosing the predefined
values in the drop down list.
• To reset the displayed frame range click on the home
button at the right end of the timeline. This will
refresh the images and reset the frame range.
• Additional keyboard shortcuts can be used.
Arrow left/right:
retreat/advance a step based on the frame
increment setting.
Page up/down:
retreat/advance by approx. a tenth of the timeline
range.
CTRL + arrow up/down:
double/half the increment value.
Operation 2.1

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Projectable Area
• By choosing an output format in the ‘projectable area‘
 photo, internally the corresponding ‘projector
mask’ is selected. The ‘projector mask‘, the ‘save title
area’ or both together can be activated. Additionally
the reserved region for the soundtrack and the frame
line can be displayed.
Note: The areas are only seen in the film view and
have no effect on the processed images!
Pixel Info
• With the mouse pointer you can pinpoint the RGB
code values (CV). The x/y position is shown in the
upper left corner of the ‘pixel info‘  photo section.
Note: In the ‘original’ view the original CVs from the
input images (8, 10, 12 or 16 bit) are displayed.
In the ‘processed’ view 16 bit RGB values are
shown, because internally all image processing
is done in 16 bit. The ‘film’ view shows the 10 bit
cineon CV as they are sent to the recorder.
Those values will change by changing the
loader LUT.
Display Settings
• Choose a zoom factor from the drop down list in the
‘display settings‘ area  photo to zoom in/out
(25% - 200%) or use the right mouse button or
keyboard shortcuts.
Right mouse button:
zoom in/out, fit, 100% (the mouse pointer must be
positioned in the viewer window!)
Keyboard shortcuts:
ctrl –/+ (numerical keypad), ctrl F (Fit), ctrl 0 (100%)
Beneath the zoom factor drop down list the information
about the position of the upper left image corner (X,Y)
and the size (width, height) of the displayed image
part is shown  photo .
While the image is usually displayed as a linear
image (exception: Cineon files), the ´view cineon´
button will display the image in cineon logarithmic
space, as they will be transferred to the recorder. In
that mode the influence of changing the loader LUTs
can be seen. The ´view cineon´ button is only
activated in the film view.
To judge the influence of the Color Management, use
the ‘proof‘ and the ´gamut´ button (see chapter 5).
Operation 2.1

10
input format •
ouput format • calibration • • crop area • CMS
• Sharpen
• Deinterlace
Operation 2.2.

11
2.2 Configuration Area
This chapter explains all available ALICE nodes and their
parameters in a systematic way according to the standard
GUI configuration. It is mainly intended as a reference.
In this window a configuration file for the image
processing can be build.
Note: This configuration file works only together with
the chosen geometry.
See chapter 5.5, Image Processing of the ARRILASER Manual,
for a detailed description of the image processing function.
Input Format
• In the ‘input format‘ section  photo the size, bit
depth and pixel aspect ratio of the selected sequence
are displayed.
By default images of the size 1920x1080 are auto-
matically recognized as HDTV 1080 (pixel aspect 1.0),
of 1280x720 as HDTV 1280 (pixel aspect 1.0),
of 720x486 as NTSC (pixel aspect 0.9385), and
images of the size 720x576 are recognized as either
PAL (pixel aspect 1.067) or PAL Plus (pixel aspect 1.416).
The right choice for PAL or PAL Plus must be
selected by the user
All other formats are taken as generic and a pixel
aspect of 1 is assumed. For modifying this default
selection please refer to chapter 4.
Start and end frame for the selected sequences are
taken from the ALGUI window.
• To change the recordable frame range, enter the start/
end frame in the corresponding text fields  photo.
Operation 2.2.

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Output Format
• The determination of the ‘output format’  photo is
a two-stage selection procedure:
First the desired projection aspect ratio must be choosen
(i.e.: 1:2,35 CS means squeezed for projection with
cinemascope lenses).
All available geometries for this aspect ratio will appear
in the second drop down list. The pixel resolution
and the pitch size provides additional information
about the chosen output geometry.
A crop box with the appropriate aspect ratio will
appear on the display. Geometries which are not
available in the list can be generated in the ALGUI
geometry setup as described in chapter 5.2.2.2 of
the ARRILASER manual. Restarting the ALICE software
will place those new geometries in the list.
Note: Changing the ‘output format’ will reset the
crop area to the maximum appropriate
settings to fit into the new ‘output format’.
Calibration
• Select the actual ‘calibration‘  photo
and ‘loader LUT‘  photo for the used film stock
and lab and the format conversion look-up-table (LUT).
The LUT converts the given files into the Cineon format.
Choose 10log, if the files are already in the Cineon
format. Those settings are taken from the ALGUI
input window; changes will be returned to the
ALGUI input window.
• ‘Intermed Positive’  photo:
Adds the necessary changes to the image processing
config file for intermed positive recording.
Necessary adjustments like flip the image, paste on
black background and invert the loader LUT (interposlut)
are automatically done. Results can be seen in the
film view. No other adjustments need to be done for
intermediate positive recording.
Operation 2.2.

13
Crop Area
• With the crop node a ‘crop area‘  photo can be
specified by the x/y-size and the origin of the crop box in
relation to the original image.
By selecting a projection aspect ratio (e.g. 1.66) in the
‘output format’ node the maximum appropriate ‘crop area’
settings are adjusted automatically and, if necessary,
the image is auto scaled to fit into the chosen ‘output
format’.
By default the x-size of the crop box is set to
maximum input image width and the image height is
selected according to the aspect ratio.
Crop box handling with the aspect locked:
CTRL + drag the center -> move the crop box.
ALT + drag the border -> vary the size fixed to its center.
Drag a corner -> vary the size fixed
to the opposite corner.
Drag a side -> vary the size fixed
to the opposite side.
Operation 2.2.

14
Crop box handling with the aspect unlocked:
If the image should not be cropped in order to get the
selected output format the ´lock aspect´ button  photo
can be switched off. This mode allows to only downsize
the aspect ratio starting from the chosen ratio in the
‘output format’ node. The result is a horizontally-
centered image with a letterbox on both sides. Check in
the film view for the look. The projectable image height
remains constant according to the chosen projection
aspect ratio.
To enlarge the aspect ratio (e.g. 1.66 to 1.85) means to
decrease the projectable image height. To do so, change
the projection aspect ratio in the output node!
Drag a side -> vary the size fixed
to the opposite side.
ALT + drag a side -> vary the size and aspect
fixed to the center.
Operation 2.2.

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Right mouse button:
To reset the crop box to its default, to maximize or center
the crop box use the right mouse button, when the mouse
is located in the image area.
Operation 2.2.

16
Deinterlace
The ‘deinterlace‘  photo node enables the merging
of two fields of video originated frames. There are no
arguments required.
• For quick comparison between ‘deinterlace’ on/off
toggle key D in the processed view mode. Pushing
down the key will disable the effect on the image and
the color of the icon will change to black & white. For
‘effect on’ release the key.
Sharpen
The ‘sharpen‘ node  photo applies a sharpening process
on the image. The details of the sharpening process are
determined either by choosing a predefined kernel file and
following the description of the convolution node (see
chapter 5.5.2.4 of the ARRILASER manual), or by choosing
variable and using the unsharp masking as described in
chapter 4 of the Release Notes CLIF 3.5/ALGUI 3.44. In
this case a filter size and strength must be choosen. Filter
strength is set in percentage and can be varied from 0 to
200. To judge the sharpening effect set the display settings
to 100%. For quick comparison between sharpen on/off
toggle key S in the processed view mode.
Operation 2.2.

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CMS
The Color Management system (‘CMS‘  photo) node
is used to apply high quality profiles for standard devices
such as Sony HD Monitor and Kodak Vision print stock
projected by a xenon lamp in order to bring the colors of
the film output close to what can be seen on the monitor.
• In the ‘CMS‘ node a monitor profile (M) and a print
film profile (P) is selected.
For images with high saturated colors the soft clip can
be adjusted by choosing one of the prepared soft clip
settings from the list. See chapter 5 Color Management
for Video look for more detailed information on the
Color Management. To judge the CMS settings switch
the proof button on. For quick comparison between
CMS on/off toggle key C.
Note: This node is key protected and only available,
when the Color Management option has been
purchased.
Note: The toggle on/off feature for ‘Deinterlace’,
‘Sharpen’ and CMS only works in the
processed view!
Operation 2.2.

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3 The File Menu
‘Preferences’ has three tabs:
• Appearance:
to adjust the background, perforation, film,
soundtrack and frame line color in the film view.
Transparency of soundtrack and frame line can also
be adjusted. The general ALICE font can be changed
as well.
• Color Management:
The profile for your workstation monitor can be
selected here. It is necessary to make a selection in
order to use the ´proof´ button. Settings for the out-of-
gamut display can also be modified in this dialog
(see chapter Color Management for Video look for
more detailed information).
• Network:
Available DVS hard disk recorders as well as
appropriate network timeouts can be determined in
this dialog (see chapter 4.4 Accessing DVS Disk
Recorders for more detailed information).
The File Menu 3.

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• ‘Select sequence’:
The file browser opens and the sequence can be
selected in the display. This change will also be
returned to the ALGUI, if ALICE is left with saving.
• ‘Save configuration as…’
will open the file menu. The actual image processing
configuration can be saved without leaving ALICE.
• ‘Save job as…’ will save the actual job (including all
settings from the ALGUI) without leaving ALICE. You
will first be asked to save the image processing
configuration file for that new job and then be
prompted to save the job.
• ‘Save view as…’
is used to save the current view as a
- JPEG-image (8bit uncompressed or compressed)
with overlays, if activated or a
- TIFF-image (8 or 16 bit) without overlays.
Overlays are the ‘projector mask’ and the ‘save title
area’.
Note: JPEG image saves the view as displayed, with
a size according to the present magnification
factor.
TIFF images are always saved in the true image
size, regardless of the magnification factor.
They also preserve the internal data range
used, so images with bit depth less than 16
will appear dim as TIFF files.
• Choose ‘Exit and save configuration’
or close the ALICE window with the X
to save the image processing configuration file and
exit ALICE.
The File Menu 3.

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4 Configuration
4.1 Naming Conventions in ALICE
On startup, ALICE analyzes all configuration files, directories
and environment variables relevant for recording. In
addition to the information stored in the files, there are
some conventions for naming files. These are relevant
for ALICE only:
Cinemascope geometries
Geometry files with “CS” (in capital letters) in their file
name are assumed to define cinemascope geometries,
thus causing the recorded image to be warped for
anamorphic projection.
Example:
Format: CS_2K1828x1556
xSize: 1828
ySize: 1556
xOffset: 220
yOffset: 0
xOrigin: 1797
yOrigin: 2514
pitch: 1200.0
pullDown: 18960
Conguration 4.