DV Filmmaking

Appendix A. The Release Print

In this chapter

Creating a Broadcast Master

Striking a Film Printt Master

Outputting Your Audio

Mastering to DVD, and the Benefits of Distributing Your Work in a Digital Format

Streaming Your Work on the Internet

Making Your Voice Heard

A release print is the final edited version of a project that filmmakers show to an audience. The term comes from the days before video when each copy of a film took the form of a print created by a lab. Creating, or striking, a 16 or 35 mm release print was the final step in the postproduction process, and came only after a series of earlier prints had been examined, tinkered with, and finally perfected into a form that was ready to share with the public.

I mention the release print here because even if you’re working entirely with digital material, you’ve reached a similar stage with your project. Whether you decide to create an HD or Digital Betacam master to use in a television broadcast, to strike a film print of your work for distribution to theaters, or to master your work onto DVD or VHS for distribution to people in their homes and in educational settings, you’re crafting the finished version of your project. In other words, the last part of this book is about the last step in the postproduction process: creating the equivalent of your release print and getting your work to an audience.

Creating a good film is no easy task. Now that you’ve gone through the trouble of shooting your dream project and massaging ...