Compositing Pipeline¶
Note
Before you start anything, make sure that ftrack-connect is running.
Artist Workflow¶
Open a scene file¶
Once an artist is assigned a compositing task, the artist must navigate to the Ftrack task and open the Nuke scene file from the actions menu.
When the application launches, the artist timer will start in Ftrack. This tracks the time the artist spends on the task.
The timer stops when the application is closed.
Nuke File Location¶
When the artist starts nuke from ftrack, the corresponding shot’s nuke script will be launched. The file should be called <shotname_version>.nk and will be located at:
/data/production/<show>/shots/<sq>/<shot>/scene/compositing/
For example the location of a nuke file for shot ‘001_0010’ in sequence ‘001’ for project ‘test’ will be:
/data/production/test/shots/001/001_0010/scene/compositing/001_0010_v01.nk
Nuke File Structure¶
A nuke file for a brand new shot must have the following nodes.
- The read node
The python script in the file attribute calculates the correct path of the read image. Usually this will be:
/data/production/<show>/shots/<sq>/<shot>/img/plates/<filename>.<frame>.dpx
- The slate
The slate adds shot and user information to the movie.
A bunch of python scripts in the slate node pull in the shot and artist information from ftrack and populate the slate. You shouldn’t have to touch any of these scripts, just make sure the slate node is connected to your write_mov node and it should work for you.
- The write nodes
There will be 2 write nodes in the nuke script.
1. The Write_dpx node will output dpx images. These are normally used during final delivery. The python script in the file attribute calculates the correct path for your output images. Usually this should point to:
/data/production/<show>/shots/<sq>/<shot>/img/comps/<version>/img/<filename>.<frame>.dpx
2. The Write_mov node will output a movie. The movie is used for internal reviews. The python script in the file attribute calculates the correct path for your output movie. Usually this should point to:
/data/production/<show>/shots/<sq>/<shot>/img/comps/<version>/mov/<filename>.mov
Note
Make sure the codec is set to Avid DNxHD Codec, so that the shot can viewed correctly for dailies.
Saving a New Version¶
To save a new version, simply click on “LVFX-Save New Version” option under the File menu or hit Alt+Shift+S
This will save a new version of the file using the correct naming convention.
Submitting To Dailies¶
The Write_mov node has a tab called Dailies with a ‘Submit to Dailies’ button.
When an artist wishes to submit the movie to dailies, they can click this button. This will render the shot and then encode and upload the movie to Ftrack. This process can take a while, so be patient!
Submit To Render Farm¶
Open the Shot Submit plugin by selecting it from the Loco VFX menu in the nuke menu bar.
This should open the Shot Submit window.
The plugin should come pre-populated with your current nuke file. You can select the write node that you want to render from the drop down menu. Specify a frame range and frame step if you want, by default it will render the entire frame range with a frame step 1.
Don’t change anything under the job set section. The default options will work for you.
Note
Make sure the client pool is set to “Linux Farm” and Frame Spilit Mode is set to “No Splitting”. (The default options) This will ensure your job will be run on a single linux farm machine and your job does not consume all or run out of nuke render licenses.
If you render a movie on the farm, the movie will automatically be encoded and submitted to Ftrack for dailies post render.
Starting and Stopping the Ftrack Timer.¶
As mentioned above, the artist timer for the task starts when the application is launched. Sometimes, an artist may want to leave their nuke session open overnight (if a render is on going) but may not want to keep their timer running. Similarly, an artist may want to restart the timer without having to restart the application.
For instances such as these, the artist can use the ‘Start Ftrack Timer’ and ‘Stop Ftrack Timer’ scripts located in the ‘Loco VFX’ menu in the nuke menu bar.
