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Problem alpha channel quicktime movie animation codec does not work in after effects
Posted: 18 August 2016 03:08 PM   [ Ignore ]  
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Joined  2016-07-11

Hello, i have a problem when i go to save a quicktime movie with the alpha configuration, when i open the file in after effects this have the background yet i checked my settings one and other time and doesn´t work. please can anybody helpme?

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Posted: 18 August 2016 03:26 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 1 ]  
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Hi fredoagudelo,

QuickTime is a name for a huge collection of codecs, with very different features.

Most QT based results are in no need for anything but RGB values. So, you need either to chose a format that can work with alpha channels or render out the channel in a separate version.

I tested QT Animation here, and it works. Make certain to interpreted the file correctly in Ae.

I have send you an upload link to your Private Messages here on Cineversity. If you could just render this clip with 12 frames or so?

Formats with alpha options: “Animation [M+]”, or “ProRes4444”
Formats typically used as end-delivery (e.g. web publishing) format have no alpha channel. For those formats (if you must, not advice to use such formats at all!), use the “Separate Alpha” option in the Render Settings.

Typically, it is not advised to use QT for rendering. Any interruption requires a new restart of the whole rendering, etc. Especially any compression that is not lossless has to be avoided during production, certainly with any wish to use alpha information during the post-work. Many QT formats switch occasionally Gamma, if not told otherwise, which is an old problem that carries on, based on old gamma based times. Most formats only support 8bit/channel, which seems very dated – to say the least. Not even to talk about color management.

Image sequences are way more common and industry standard, but also here, avoid 8bit/channel, and for high quality work, use Open EXR.

All the best

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Posted: 18 August 2016 03:43 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 2 ]  
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Thanks Dr. Sassi, i have used animation codec for QT with million colors + i espected that this codec save the alpha channel but doesn´t work and then i have saved the png sequence but when i open it in AE all the information of the image is lost…i have tried several ways to save alpha and make a composition in AE but anything of that i made works correctly…

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Posted: 18 August 2016 03:52 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 3 ]  
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Thanks for the feedback, fredoagudelo,

If you use the “Interpret Footage” while your QT file is selected, what is the selection in the “Alpha” field.
Image:
https://www.amazon.com/clouddrive/share/t3xzZz6t4baQPFeidW0QA4q0Ytfzhh14RBsz8gEp7nm?ref_=cd_ph_share_link_copy

PNG is not on my list when I produce anything, no experience with that, I have switched to 32bit OpenEXR a long time ago.

Please upload the Animation codec, otherwise, what else can I tell you?

Talk to you after I have a short clip.

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Dr. Sassi V. Sassmannshausen Ph.D.
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Posted: 18 August 2016 03:57 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 4 ]  
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P.S.:

or try this file, I can see in Ae an alpha channel.

https://www.amazon.com/clouddrive/share/BvHIQYbAO1ct0PsMnJaqvh9w169f7LMD9PPZZAj8AsQ?ref_=cd_ph_share_link_copy

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Posted: 18 August 2016 04:07 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 5 ]  
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in AE interpret footage i select “straigh unmatted” option, i saved a sequence file with the 32bit OpenEXR but is the same problem, here only the last image of the sequence saved the alpha information. theres is something wrong on the preferences of C4D? thanks for your help.

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Posted: 18 August 2016 04:15 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 6 ]  
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PS. the file you sent me have the alpha channel and AE let see it.

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Posted: 18 August 2016 05:17 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 7 ]  
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Thanks again.

Please open a new scene file, place a sphere in it and render it with alpha switch on. Render it, check it in Ae, if the problem occurs:
Select then both the C4D file and the QuickTime file and compress it [zip] then upload to the upload link I have send you to your cineversity Private Message.

I will have a look into it.

That my QT file worked shows that presumably Ae is not the problem.

So, please share your file. Please per upload link, I don’t download from anything than drop-box or amazon anymore.

All the best

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Posted: 18 August 2016 06:36 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 8 ]  
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Here is an OpenEXR sequence frame 19-65, already set up in Ae.
https://www.amazon.com/clouddrive/share/6Die71iUK1cgpyDu9wM5iVFVVplkxCstubun4tEfiDI?ref_=cd_ph_share_link_copy

Preview image full UHD: (sorry about the links, but the forum is currently not able to share images like that)
https://www.amazon.com/clouddrive/share/avUDLheYis62lsrsBo3y4SM96zwqpYbtFMVyc7cRMDn?ref_=cd_ph_share_link_copy

I checked it, as you mentioned a problem there as well. Is in the Picture viewer only one frame with alpha in the “layer”?

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Dr. Sassi V. Sassmannshausen Ph.D.
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Posted: 18 August 2016 06:40 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 9 ]  
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Dr. Sassi
i have created a new scene file and the problem ocurred again…i shared the zip with C4D and Ae files on the link you sent me…thanks a lot

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Posted: 18 August 2016 06:54 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 10 ]  
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Thanks for the file, fredoagudelo!

I checked the C4D scene file and render out a QT Animation M+ and got an alpha channel.

I checked the QT file of yours hand there is no alpha channel in it. (I guess you have not used QuickTimes Open EXR, which is not a “real” Open EXR…)

So, we can exclude Ae and C4D (considering you are on the newest build always: the file was created with 17.016. There were some new updates since. Update with Back up enabled in your update window!) Might be an option…if not:

This leaves me here to suspect QuickTime itself. Since you are on Mac: Check your Activity Monitor if QuickTime is running fine and check if you have the latest build there as well. I have QT7 and X on my Mac, BTW. Perhaps reinstall it? Or just restart the whole thing ;o)

Since we have checked out all things, and if nothing works, please check with the support. I have no other idea than to suggest to check the separate Alpha option as workaround to keep you running. But something is not OK, I agree.

http://www.maxon.net/en-us/support/how-can-we-help/

I hope we could exclude enough to accelerate the following steps with the support. Sorry for your trouble—of course.

My best wishes.

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Dr. Sassi V. Sassmannshausen Ph.D.
Cinema 4D Mentor since 2004
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Photography For C4D Artists: 200 Free Tutorials.
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