Triggering Multiple Cues

[JG]

I'm tyring to setup a series of fade cues that will be triggered manually by an operator. The second cue wants to be triggered at a particular point in the dialogue while the first cue is still fading, and then again with the third cue. So far, the only way I've found to make Watchout hold for the second cue without pausing the fade on the first cue is to put all three in seperate auxilary timelines. I suppose this would work but I'm wondering if there's a more elegant solution I could use?

 

Jim

[jme]

Hi Jim

 

Just out of curiosity, how do you plan to trigger the fades manually? Space bar, MIDI, DMX?

When you talk about fades do you mean video/image fades or DMX light fades?

 

/jme

[JG]

The plan is to have an operator at the production computer push the space bar, though I'm open to other options. And yes when I'm talking about image fades in Watchout. Specifically, I have three still images up on three screens and want to start opacity tween tracks to take each of them out individually based on lines of dialogue.

[jme]

There are several ways to go, using auxiliary timelines which is my favourite, external control of the opacity track which is overkill in this case and the probably easiest way using a composition in free-running to black-out the image on the screen.

 

What you basically do is create a composition including a black image at the same size as the image you want to fade-out. Make an opacity track and fade-in the black image inside the composition at the same rate you want to fade out your image on the main timeline. Make the black image cue in the composition 1h long to be safe. Put the composition on the main timeline on a layer above the image you want to fade-out and make it free running. If you trigger the composition it will start the fade and continue even if you pause the main timeline.

 

I included a simple example to demonstrate this.

 

Regards /jme

2011-11-16 FadeOut3screen.zip

[ThomasL]

With still pictures, it is quite easily done with 3 MIDI Notes controlling 3 Aux Timelines.

 

For each Aux Timeline, put a Pause cue just before a fade out of the still pix (and probably a STOP-and-Jump-to-0 Time cue to stop the Aux Timeline and reset it for reuse)

 

In Watchout, open an Input Window and add 3 MIDI Notes - use the Learn feature to determine which MIDI Notes to assign. (You'll need a MIDI Keyboard - a virtual keyboard can be obtained free from http://www.granucon.com/SoftwarePages/Default.aspx. Install in the Production PC. You'll also need a MIDI port in the WO Production PC - I use MIDI Yoke from http://www.midiox.com). As an example, call the 3 MIDI Notes A, B, C.

 

Set the keyboard to output to MIDI Yoke (port) 1 which is what Watchout seems to only accept.

 

In Watchout's Task Window, assign a Trigger to each Aux Timeline - the same A, B, C in our example.

 

Now to play an Aux Timeline, hit A, B, or C on the MIDI Keyboard and that will play assigned Aux Timeline.

Since each Aux Timeline goes into Pause mode, the next A, B, or C will trigger the fade off.

 

You can also combine keys as a trigger, eg. for the 3 Aux Timelines, the triggers can be A+D, B+D, C+D such that D will trigger all 3 Aux Timeline simultaneously, and A, B and C will trigger only the ones they have been assigned to.

[JG]

Thank you for all the excellent suggestions. I had started playing around with free running compositions this morning, and looking at JME's exampes, I think that's the way to go for this particular production. I had also experimented with aux timelines in a maner similar to Thomas's, but using pause and play cue's from the main timeline to trigger the aux timelines. Generally, though, I'm thinking compositions in the main timeline might make composing the show intially a little easier, and give the operator and better view of what's going on once the show opens. Again, thank you everyone for all your valuable help.

 

Jim