QDP DVD Projects

If you'd like a copy of any of these DVDs, let me know. The most I'll charge (if anything) is the cost of a blank DVD.

The DVD Process

For those who are curious --- actually, this isn't really for anyone in particular except myself. I have a need to document and I felt like I should put down instructions on how I make DVDs. You may find this interesting, but mostly it's here so that I don't forget steps along the way.

1. Process Raw Video
2. Consider DVD Layout & Menu/Title Designs
3. Manufacture Video Components, Collect Elements
4. Select Chapter Markers
5. Design Menus
6. Engineer Jacket Image
7. Burn, Baby, Burn

And now, allow me to expand on these concepts:

1. Process Raw Video - By "raw video", I mean that the video is either still on VHS or some other magnetic tape medium and needs to be digitally ripped, or the movie is already digitally ripped (in any file format or resolution) and needs to be reformatted. Most of the digital copies are in their rawest form, saved directly from the Video-In on the computer and include things that we don't want, such as the few seconds before and after the actual content where you can see the word "Play>" on the screen or some fragments of the last thing taped. There may also be gaps during the taping where nothing was recorded and left a few seconds of scrambled static. This is the raw video that needs to be processed. Clip off the garbage at the head and tail of the content, crop out any overly-long segments of static during the content and, finally, save the image into a format that's quickly burned to DVD. (MPEG NTSC 24 Bits, 720 x 480, 29.97 fps, preferred)

2. Consider DVD Layout & Menu/Title Designs - At this point you should put some serious thought into how you want this DVD to be laid out. You've just seen the entire video, so you've got an idea of what you've got to work with. Does it look like there will be a lot of chapters? Are there pictures to make a slideshow with? Would a particular segment of the video make good elements for the menus? Are there enough actionable shots to make a montage, and what music would go well with that? Should the video be split into multiple titles, or one single playthrough video? Will multiple chapter menus be needed?

3. Manufacture Video Components, Collect Elements - Now that you've got a rough ideo of how to lay out the DVD it's time to start collecting elements (images and fonts and highlight icons and all the bits and pieces you'll need) and assembling the additional videos. For example, when I made the paintball DVDs I collected a number of clips of action and pieced them together for opening intros for both of the titles. Collect video segments that would make a good background for the menus and apply whatever filters and effects are needed to make them suitable. Something to consider at this stage are title and text effects. The DVD software (that I use, at least) can add text to menus, but that text is fairly lifeless. If you want moving letters or animated titles, they've got to be done in a seperate video segment and that segment would be used as a menu background. If this is what you'd like to accomplish then this is the stage to make that title video. (It shouldn't be more than a minute in length.) Also during this stage you would record additional soundtracks (like running commentaries), or begin the monumental task of entering all the subtitles (extreme devotion!). Keep all your elements (images, sounds, music and video segments) in one location so that edits later can be done quickly.

4. Select Chapter Markers - This is quite possibly the most tedious step. You've got to watch the content in its entirety and decide where each of the chapter breaks will be and insert them. During this you'll decide if you want to have still-image buttons for the chapters or motion thumbnails (this is where you actually see scenes of the movie played out in the chapter menus). If they're just still images you'll have to pick out which image best conveys the chapter.

5. Design Menus - Create all the menus you'll need, laying out all the buttons, chapter links, background videos, select background music and link all menus to each other through various buttons. Test your menus thoroughly! You don't want to link to a menu that has no return button, or have a button that points to the wrong page or chapter. If the menu has a video or audio background then watch it until it times out. Make sure that what it does at the end (repeat or automatically play a chapter) is what you intend. Be aware of television's issue of overscanning and make sure that no important elements of the menus drift into the outter 10-15% of the screen.

6. Engineer Jacket Image - This is an entirely optional adventure that only really geeky people may want to embark, which explains why I spent two months working on pulling it off successfully. Sony DVD players (and maybe others, but I haven't heard of any) have a special feature, mostly to compliment their multi-disc DVD players. Usually when you press Stop on your DVD player you'll see a sort of title screen for your dvd player, something that says "Sanyo" or "RCA" or whatever so that people know that their video is set to their DVD player but no disc is playing. (And to get a bit of advertising in, I'm sure.) Sony DVD players will display, however, a poster or title of the DVD itself (if the DVD was compiled with support for it) even if the DVD isn't being spun. These jacket images are useful for when you have a multi-disc DVD and can visually see what DVDs are in the carousel. It is a tedious process to create a working jacket image. Once you get the process down however, it becomes (fairly) easier to make a jacket image for each of the DVDs your produce, so once you've got your menus and all that set up, if it's in your agenda go ahead and set up your jacket image.

7. Burn, Baby, Burn - The project's complete! Double- and triple-check those menus and video clips then burn the project to a DVD and to a disc image file (ISO). Once the burn is complete (it can take up to an hour these days, maybe less in the future) test it in a DVD player, not your computer. If it works, do a happy dance and then save that iso file you've created someplace safe so that in the future you can quickly generate another DVD. It's also a good idea to test out the DVD in its entirety on other DVD players. This means watching the DVD fully on multiple sets. This part sucks because by this point you've spent upwards 18 hours working on the same damn hour or two of video, and you're sick of it, but you've got to watch it. So do so, make sure it works and then put it in a jewel case (or DVD case) and show it off, do a happy dance and then ignore it for years because you're sick watching it over and over. This is the reward you get. Irony?

changelog:

• 11/24/04 - Was able to reduce the data rate on the video. First, dropping the bitrate from 8000kbps to 4000kbps resulted in a muddied video and just wasn't the quality that I wanted, so I remastered it down to 6000kbps and that looked decent enough. Luckily, I had a lot of play room because the original video (as I said before) isn't exactly the best of quality. The DVD is, therefore, completed and ready for anyone who wants a copy.
• 11/22/04 - Okay, I've finished working on the Gathering DVD, but the entire video itself clocks in at 81 minutes and that's right around 4.9GB. DVDs only hold 4.7GB, and most DVD players will spit and puke on a DVD larger than 4.2. I'm taking a few liberties - namely, this video was recorded off of a VHS camcorder in 1992 - so the original resolution was awful to start out with. I'm scaling back the resolution I burn to the DVD to see if I can fit more of the video.
• 11/16/04 - I just finished (mostly) the RageFest DVD last night. Technically, it was finished Sunday night, but it wasn't until Monday that I'd cracked the puzzle of creating Jacket images (the poster image that appears on the screen while the DVD is stopped in Sony DVD players) and had to add that feature (at the expense of two DVDs!). Sometime this weekend I'll have Robin record a running commentary with me and then it will be completely finished.
• 06/09/05 - Wow, I've forgotten to update this. I've finished switching over to an entirely Adobe setup and have produced (the test) a DVD for Vickie's Work Talent Show (she bellydanced) and have editing and produced the Sci-Fi Guys Episode V. Next on the block will be the SK Videos.