Jason Levine – Healing People Daily with the Power of Digital Video & Audio

Hello, my friends. Inspiration is defined as:

The act or power of exercising an elevating or stimulating influence upon the intellect or emotions;

a. a divine influence directly and immediately exerted upon the mind or soul;
b. the divine guidance from the writings or words of a person so influenced.

As I officially approach my mid-30s (yes friends, I'll be 35 this year; and that's totally FAB) I'm consistently reminded of the people who've inspired me. And not only have I never forgotten them, but their faces, what they said, how they said it, and how their influence shaped the entire course of my path in life began to make a lot of sense. It's no real surprise that I 'took to the stage' to talk about, share and evangelize great audio & video products; but it's more than that. It's about truly connecting with people, and instilling an idea, a notion, something within them, that makes them want to do great things. Period.

And the more I started thinking about my job as an Adobe Evangelist, I'm not only in the 'evangelism' business...I'm in the inspiration business; the business of not only spreading the word, but giving the words meaning, life, purpose. That may seem rather 'heavy'; after all, we're talking about software, right? But talk to any designer, any web developer, any musician or videographer; there's a passion in what they do, and an absolute (love/hate/fire/water) relationship to the sytems and applications they work in. That's what it's all about. That's what we (the Evangelists) are here to do. We Inspire! (see the Evangelist Video on Vimeo)

Having already found some inspiration (The Beatles): at 17, in the home studio...with hockeyfrilla!

Evangelizing today: Coming soon to your city...:)

I will admit that I've been very fortunate over the years. From as early as elementary school (we're talking age 6 here) I have fond, crystal-clear memories of the first, truly inspirational character in my life, one who (inadvertently) paved the way for my love of all things music, and especially, piano. Her name: Elaine Benedict; "Mrs. B." as we called her (after all, this was First Grade!). And from there, it continues on throughout high school, college, and right up to the start of my professional career.

To my inspirational group, I salute you...

Elaine Benedict - Elementary School Music Teacher: A tall, soft-spoken, striking woman, and my 'first' real inspirational figure; she was someone who truly charted a course for me. Some may remember that in the late 70s/early 80s, music was still taught in public schools---regularly. She taught us the fundamentals of piano & guitar, scales, harmony, counterpoint (yes...Bach!), and melody. I befriended her early on, and even when I was an 'older' kid (ie, 13, 14) we stayed in contact. She even let me 'lead' our school production of 'CATS' (I played it ALL on synth). Mrs. B, I've loved you forever, and always will.

Martin Kale - High School Media Production: Cut to several years later, and suddenly I'm a small fish in a big pond. Having already built a recording studio at home, which included two Hi8 Editing Decks (and some primitive Sony Camcorders), I was already somewhat known for doing videos. Mr. Kale ran the Media Production department, and was in charge of our High School's TV Station (we had a show on the local cable network). A fellow teacher (from the previous grade) had recommended me to him. He was tough, critical, harsh at times, and brutally honest---but he knew his stuff, and his method was simply a way to get you to do more, do it better than others, and do it more efficiently. He was also responsible for teaching me how to properly wrap cables (and anyone who's worked in the industry KNOWS the importance of that!). We spent 4 years together (where I would eventually become the 'Executive Producer' of our TV Show), and it was truly an enlightening, life-altering and confidence-generating experience knowing him.

Michael Lawrence - High School A.P. Physics: Mr. Lawrence (or, M.L., as I used to call him) was the epitome of cool. The man was good looking (girls LOVED him), slim (again, "everyone" loved him), funny, incredibly brilliant, and he would often break out his electric guitar in class and play anything from Rockpile to Dave Edmunds to classic blues. We spent two years together (both in regular Physics, and senior year in Advanced Placement Physics) and he *almost* steered me away from music, simply because his methods, his demeanor, and his ability to convey meaning in the subject was just beyond anything I'd ever experienced. We actually did a video together (surprise) wherein I filmed and narrated a whole series of processes (some including laser light, pith balls, electromagnetics, etc) and the idea was to create something he could use as a reference, year after year. Still got that videotape, ML?? Truly, the coolest teacher EVER. An inspiration in delivery, and connecting with your audience.

Carmelina McCarthy - High School English: Carm, as I used to call her(are you sensing a pattern here? ;), didn't like me when we first met, day 1, ninth grade. I tried for a week to do everything I could to get noticed, and she just 'didn't' notice me. Finally, after 5 days, I went up to her and asked, "What's the problem here? Why don't you like me?" She responded with, "I think you have talent...but I'm not going to praise you for simply 'being a good student'. You've got to earn it. Everyday. Create, everyday. That's the mark of true artistry, and you're an artist." This woman altered my thinking forever. She turned me into a (momentary) poet, forced me to write lyrics (which would come in handy in my Nashville days and beyond), taught me about Dylan (both 'Thomas' and Robert Zimmerman) and became a fantastic friend and role-model. She had also been on broadway, and had an incredible knowledge of theatre and music. Upon graduating, she would bestow upon me a whole collection of classic LPs; and she even quoted The Beatles' Let It Be to me, in my yearbook.

Mitch Benoff, Tony Carbone, Ivan Sever - Berklee College of Music, Music Production & Engineering Professors: And now we enter the College realm, and right from the start, I was fortunate to meet some incredible industry legends. Mitch & Tony had recorded some major artists back in the 80s, and knew EVERYTHING about mixing and the process of making records sound like records, vocals sound great, and making sure that you didn't get screwed when you wrote your own stuff (thanks, Mitch! Your music biz class was *the* best). Mitch was also the originator of one of my favorite lines, "You've got to Pre-Produce, to Reproduce." Ivan was a character who simply wanted to make it clear that the technology was one facet of the industry (as it was evolving at a rapid pace in those days)...but good recording technique comes from 'classic' knowledge, old-school methods, and a true understanding of how sound works and makes people feel (the sound 'workflow', if you will). At one point, I think he even lead us to a conclusion (which I had steered him towards) that ABBA were responsible for everything. I think he was right. I love ABBA to this day. He was a genius, and one of the funniest people I'd ever met.

George Monseur - Berklee College of Music, Conducting Professor: I've already written of George's profound influence on me about a year ago, but he was indeed quite the character. Having studied and apprenticed with the likes of Leonard Bernstein, Leopold Stokowski and others, he showcased to me that conducting had very little to do with 'holding a stick'...it's all about the body---and keeping people together, engaged, enraptured with your presence. He once conducted (for the class) an opera with nothing but the movements of his hips, ass and legs. Yes. And we could follow what he was doing, down to the individual cello part. His tagline, which I've alluded to, was simply...Be Brilliant. This is something I continue to use today, something I try to live by, to aspire to with each and every performance. An inspiration in using your (physical and mental) abilities to engage people...no matter what the situation, or obstacles in front of you.

Don Puluse - Berklee College of Music, Dean of Music Technology, Industry Icon: Quite simply, Don was a recording legend...and he was the Dean of the department that I was majoring in. I'd already known *of* him, as he engineered everyone from Janis Joplin, to Sly Stone, to Chicago, to Jaco Pastorius, and the list goes on. We became friends in the last year or so, just before graduating, and Don was instrumental in helping me land my first gig, straight out of college, with another industry icon (and an idol of mine, for as long as I could remember)...Roger Nichols. All I can say is...thank you, Don. Thanks, for everything.

John Stevens - Berklee College of Music, Songwriting/Harmony Professor, noted Beatle Historian I first met John when I took his 'Songwriting of John Lennon' class. Already being a Beatle fanatic at that point, I was quite curious what he was going to teach me (because after all, I knew it all! LOL...beatle freaks!). In short, we connected, we played music together, we formed a Beatle tribute band called 'The Blue Meanies', and he's been a life-long friend ever since. John is also responsible for encouraging me to really 'sing'...in registers I didn't know I was capable of. He's also got one of the best 'screams' in the biz. John's got several books on the songs of John Lennon, and continues to give lectures all over the country, including at the famed 'Fest for Beatle Fans' (formerly, Beatlefest). An incredible songwriter and guitar player, lyricist, and crazy-funny guy. I'm the Paul to his John. To the toppermost of the poppermost!

Stephen Webber - Berklee College of Music, Music Production/Engineering/Business Professor: Stephen was appointed as Professor in Engineering at Berklee during my last semester. He was a guitar player, recording engineer, and someone who had the most Zen-Calm studio attitude I'd ever seen. He was patient, meticulous, and very appreciative when things were done well. He taught me about many of the fundamentals of clean, isolated mixing, mixing to film/video, and the (early) process of making digital music for commercials and CD Mastering. He also recommended me to a studio in Lincoln, MA (home of Walden Woods) and got me a job as a House Engineer during my last semester. I can't say enough great things about this man. Oh, and he was also a sort of 'humanitarian', generally good-natured, superb human being. A lot of praise indeed, but that barely touches the surface of his kindness and generosity. An inspiration in patience and process.

Roger Nichols - Engineering Legend, Digital Audio Pioneer, Immortal One: Upon meeting Roger for the first time (during the 'job interview'), I handed him a *cassette* of some of my recent mixes. He took the tape, he paused, he exclaimed, "We don't do ANALOG here!" and he tossed it into the corner of the room. That was Roger, in a nutshell; unpredictable, humorous, disgustingly brilliant, straight-forward, and painfully honest. He would wind up hiring me, and we would begin a working relationship (and friendship) that continues to this day. Roger taught me 'how to hear'. He gave me the tools to develop 'golden ears', and literally taught me 'everything I know', once I entered the professional music world. He was unusually kind, forever generous of his time and knowledge, and continues to inspire me to this day. Roger, you know how I feel...and I always go in for a hug, don't I?

Jason, Roger & John Denver, mixing what would be his final studio album, Nashville, 1997

So there you have it, my friends. A long list, indeed, but one that I felt needed sharing. As I continue to travel the world, I only hope that I can provide even a small level of this type of inspiration; not only for products, but for the ability to get out and *try* something new; try animating, try editing, try masking & photomerging, etc. etc. It's truly an attempt to share the love and good feelings, and provide some insight into what's possible with a little inspiration and incredible tools.

Until next time,

Blog on.

Posted by Jason Levine at 8:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Hello, my friends! I'm a mere week away from heading out to CeBit with Greg Rewis, but since there have been *many* inquiries about the above-mentioned topic, I felt the need to do a proper blog post on it.

Though I've mentioned this concept before (ie, Cross-Continental Client Collaboration; an alliteration of my own, and I think it's quite brill!) I think it's worth pointing out (again) that using Adobe Clip Notes as part of your collaborative/review process can not only save an enormous amount of time, but can absolutely change the way you *think* about collaboration, cutting down a great deal of the boundaries and limitations that we face on a daily basis when using older methods for content approval (ie, DVDs, individual file exports, etc)

A look at Adobe Clip Notes inside of Acrobat Reader

Before we begin, it's important to note that Adobe Clip Notes can be exported and imported from either Premiere Pro CS4 *or* After Effects CS4. This also means that even if you simply wanted to do a stills/image review of a portfolio, or even a series of images to be used in a video, you can simply drop them down into the timeline and export. Simple, easy, it's all contained in one document, and you don't have to worry, will they be able to open this file successfully?

Because my friends, *that's* the beauty of Adobe Clip Notes. It uses a technology that is accessible to everyone, on either production platform (Mac or Windows), and that's PDF. Now, your client *will* need the Adobe Reader to be able to use Adobe Clip Notes. Mac OS Preview will not work, as it was built upon an older version of Acrobat, and therefore does not support embedded video and audio. But even still...the Adobe Reader is cross-platform, it's downloadable, and it's FREE. FREE. So even if they don't have it (and it must also be version 7 or above; but we're on version 9 now, so...) they can get it quickly, and once again, be involved in the process straight away.

So here's how it works. I'll start in Premiere, and having just cut together this short sequence, I want to send this off to my client for review. In my case, I'm only going to send the first 10 seconds of this 'trailer rough cut'. When I choose File>Export>Adobe Clip Notes, it takes me to a familiar dialogue, where I can now choose my export options.

Making some important decisions; Using Presets, Embed, Stream, Password Protect, Notes

Once you're in the export dialogue, it's fairly straightforward. For starters, you'll notice a series of presets that you can choose, designed around standard NTSC/PAL frame sizes/rates/aspect ratios. However, because we're working from P2 footage, it doesn't conform to a standard NTSC or PAL frame size. For this purpose, I'll generally *always* set my video frame size manually. This is carried out in the Video Tab, and even if you want to shrink it down (ie, in half, by a third, etc) you can have the exporter automatically figure out the appropriate match for a given width or height using the Constrain Proportions checkbox.

Setting the appropriate frame size

Now, after you've done that, it's time to decide how you want your clients to view the content. One of the beautiful things about Clip Notes is that you are simply not limited by duration. In other words, if you're sending a short piece for review (ie, ten seconds of a rough cut) you have the option to EMBED the content directly into the PDF (because after all, that's what we're creating here..PDF documents).

Now, for 10 seconds of 960x720p @ 23.976, my exported PDF with embedded video/audio was around 4MB. That's not going to break anyone's in-box. But for longer durations, you have the option to stream the content, rather than embed it. This allows you to keep the files-in-transit extremely tiny; and if you or your client has an FTP, it can all be set-up and uploaded *directly* from Premiere Pro or AE---directly. Brilliant.

FTP information goes here; test the connection; upload begins after export

From here, it's a matter of setting a password if you like (leveraging Adobe Acrobat's 128-bit encryption), as well as the ability to add some 'instructions' for your reviewers. I can't tell you how incredibly USEFUL this feature is. Effectively, it's a little dialogue box that will pop-up when they launch the PDF, just before the review begins. This gives you an opportunity to point out certain things to look for, listen for, etc...but most importantly, it also allows you to personalize the document. This is good for collaboration, and your clients will thank you for it. ;)

There's also the ability to add your email address. Effectively, upon completion of the review, when your client chooses to Export their comments, it will automatically launch their default mail client (if it's not already running) and place the 'attached' XFDF (ie, we're not regenerating a PDF file post-review, it's a very small, XML text file known as XFDF) into a new outgoing mail, already addressed to YOU, the sender. Pretty awesome, and yet another way to insure that the comments get back to you, and one less thing for the client to have to worry about.

Upon clicking 'OK', this Clip Notes doc will be sent to the new, background Adobe Media Encoder CS4. If you're doing the export from After Effects, it's automatically sent to the Render Queue. Keep in mind, of course, that you'll still need to set a 'destination' before beginning the render. But this is a good practice anyway (in lieu of placing the export in some random place or last-used folder on a drive that's no longer connected! Always check the output destination...in both apps!)

Sorting through various comments

Now, once the person on the other end is commenting, what's incredible about Clip Notes is that they're actually able to make comments on the exact frame where they want a change to be made. They can also grab the 'play head' inside the video window, scrub to a position, and when they release the mouse button, it will stamp the timecode (frame-accurately) into the commenting box, and he/she can proceed to type.** Amazing. Just amazing. The client can sort through (as you see above) all the comments, make additional ones, delete ones they don't want, etc. When they're done, click Export, and they're ready to begin the last step...getting the comments back to the creator/editor/animator, etc.

**note: scrubbing of the playhead refers to using the Quicktime export option for Clip Notes. If you export as WMV, you cannot scrub. This is a limitation of WMV (and even Windows Media Player), not Clip Notes itself

So, at this point you're probably sitting by your machine, waiting for the client's comments, when the email arrives, along with the attached XFDF. This is where Adobe Clip Notes is totally unique, totally time-saving, and will totally change the way you think about collaboration forever...

Import the Clip Notes comments from the File Menu, and upon doing so, you'll notice some markers in the timeline...markers at the EXACT timecode locations where comments were given. This gives you (the editor/animator) not just a general idea of 'where to make said change', but a frame-accurate location of where to make a change. And you can view the comments, skip through them, and make the changes as you go. Incredible.

Clip Notes Markers in the Timeline, Premiere Pro CS4

Double-click on a marker and the full marker dialog appears with the time-coded comments

In After Effects CS4, you don't even have to click on the markers to see the comments, as they appear directly inside the timeline ruler

And from this point on, it's all a matter of making the requested changes and moving onto the next review, the next level of approval, and finally...the next job. ;) With Adobe Clip Notes, you can be anywhere in the world and effectively send your clients review copies of your hi-def work, allowing them to comment freely (and accurately) right inside a document that they can (1) open successfully; and (2) view on just about any machine, Mac or Windows. It makes the client feel like a true part of the collaborative process, and it saves an incredible amount of time, because they can simply 'write' what they feel needs to be done---fewer phone calls, fewer thoughts lost in the ether...it's all there, appearing now, in your timeline. Truly time-saving; truly revolutionary. Truly, with Adobe Clip Notes.

Until next time, my friends....

Blog on.

Posted by Jason Levine at 11:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Hello again, my friends! Well, I'm freshly back from the very successful Nordic Production Premium CS4 tour and as mentioned, we've got some new content up on Adobe TV, specifically, new videos detailing some of the great time-saving features you can find in CS4 Master Collection.

This is the first roll-out, and expect new videos every week for the next several weeks or so. Join me, Karl Soule, Greg Rewis, Rufus Deuchler, Paul Burnett & Julianne Kost as we showcase workflows that can save you time, but also enhance your productivity. They're fun videos, they're quite short (hey...short & sweet) and they're a great way to learn about great features, new and old.

The first four videos can be found here:

Everyday Timesavers: VIDEO

Everyday Timesavers: DESIGN

Everyday Timesavers: WEB

Everyday Timesavers: PHOTOGRAPHY

A screen shot from my video. Get it? It's a piggy bank; saving money, etc. It's actually animated ;)

Until next time,

Blog on.

Posted by Jason Levine at 8:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Hello again, friends! Today saw the completion of the CS4 Production Premium Tour in Stockholm, and as always, it's a pleasure to be in front of such a captive audience. As Max and I began the presentation at the Skandia (despite the odd blue skies, though sub-zero temperatures) several hundred of our 'closest friends' turned out to learn and be inspired...and I believe they were ;)

As in Finland, Norway & Denmark, the time-saving message of Production Premium (and specifically, workflows around using OnLocation for Direct-To-Disk capture, Adobe Clip Notes for client commentary, the amazing native RED workflow, and our Speech Search/Metadata/F4V export story) continued to wow users, new and old. And just on that: having polled the audiences in each city, we saw a great deal of new faces, many of whom were actually working in *other* facets of production (ie, design, web, etc) further emphasizing the cross-media nature of CS4, and moreover, how the creative world continues to evolve.

Max welcomes the crowd, as Jase preps for the start

A look at the theatre, naturally-lit, with my hands raised in true healing fashion

Showing the Ease of Multi-Format Editing in Premiere Pro CS4

Talking about the RED Camera Workflow

A rather strange pic of me, but hey, they can't ALL be brilliant! lol

Sharing the XML love, with Premiere Pro CS4's Final Cut Import Feature

So, that about wraps up this blog post. I want to once again thank everyone (from every country) who came out to the seminars and spent their morning with us. The responses, feedback and suggestions that we receive from YOU, our esteemed users, is simply invaluable. Thank you for allowing me to spend some time with you, saving some time with you. The pleasure is truly mine. ;)

Until next time,

Blog on.

Posted by Jason Levine at 4:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Hey there, my friends! As the title suggests, Friday's CS4 Production Premium seminar in Copenhagen at the CineMaxx (our usual spot) was another fab show. With an incredible turnout, the enthusiastic crowd really embraced the new format of the seminar (split into two parts, TimeSaving & Editing Workflow) and lots of great feedback and questions followed. So many in fact, that Max and I didn't leave the theatre for nearly an hour after the seminar had finished. You just have to love Adobe users ;)

So, tomorrow we're in Stockholm for the final city on this Nordic Tour, and then I'll be back in the states for a brief while until I hit the road again with Greg Rewis, stopping in Hannover, Germany for CeBit, and then onto a few broadcast education conferences in New York.

For more information, check out the following links:

3-8 March: CeBit - Hannover, Germany

15-17 March: CBI/CMA - NYC

24-29 March: NBS-AERho - NYC

I'll be posting more information on the Education Broadcast conferences as we get a bit closer. In the meantime, I hope to see many of you in Stockholm tomorrow! And don't forget: we've also got an incredible line-up of partners and resellers in attendance as well, so be sure to bring your questions...

Until next time,

Blog on.

Posted by Jason Levine at 10:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Greetings, my friends! Just a quick update from the road to let you know that we're half-way through the Production Premium CS4 tour, and it's been an overwhelming success!

This time around, I've created a slightly different program, focusing on the 'Everyday Timesaving' aspects of PPCS4 in the first half of the show, with some intense editing workflow and post-production features in the second half. Needless to say, I think it's been resonating very well with our audiences, and the responses have been nothing short of phenomenal.

Having said that, two of the bigger 'hits' of the tour, thus far, have been the showcasing of our RED camera support and the new abilities in PPRO CS4.0.1 to import FCP Projects. Again, unlike launch tours, I've spent a good deal of time going through the entire workflow process (and highlighting all of the ins-and-outs with regard to setting the RED Source Panel attributes) along with demonstrating real-world workflows for sharing projects between FCP and Premiere. The latter has gone over particularly well, because I'm really stressing the idea of 'sharing the love'; making life easier by using all the tools at your disposal; and now, more seamlessly than ever before. The message is appreciated, the time-saving aspects undeniable, and the sincerity, well, I am nothing if not sincere and honest ;)

I've now arrived in Copenhagen and look forward to our seminar on Friday, spending the weekend visiting some customers in Sweden, and then the final show on Monday in Stockholm.

Thanks to everyone in Helsinki and Oslo who attended. You truly make the experience of touring and presenting worthwhile, and it's my esteemed pleasure to be able to spend some time (and save some time) with you. ;)

Until next time...

Blog on.

Posted by Jason Levine at 11:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)