16fps silent films on 24fps DCP

[al_sub]

Dear all,

is there a way to force DCP-o-Matic to double every second frame when importing a 16fps file (silent film; so the source is not good enough to interpolate) and want to create a 24fps DCP?

Right now, DCP-o-matic wants to reduce the speed and make a 30fps DCP. When setting to 24fps DCP, it wants to play the film on 150% speed...

Many thanks & kind regards,
Raff

By the way: I love the 48fps DCP workaround, where every frame is tripled, but still many cinemas or festivals are not used to project more than 25fps and don't know or don't have the permission to set the appropreate projector settings...

[Carsten]

Have you ever seen a 16fps movie with every second frame doubled? I don't think this is a good idea. 30fps with a slight slow-down is the best you can get.

Note, there are archiving frame rates allowed, among them 16, ≈18, 20, and ≈22fps, but that doesn't mean equipment is able to reproduce them.


- Carsten

[al_sub]

It's a common encoding on BluRays eg. Mostly better results than interpolating as the difference between 2 frames is too big specially at action or unsteady camera sequences.

And yes, archiving frame rates are not (yet) supported by most installations. As I said: The best solution is a 48 or 60 fps DCP, but many cinemas don't know how to handle them, yet.

However, just found a workaround: Create a 48fps DCP, import the DCP again and make a 24fps DCP out from it. DCPoMatic will take every 2nd frame (out of the tripled ones) without re-encoding.

[Carsten]

Wouldn't that cause extreme stuttering at these low frame rates?

1-22-3-44-5-66-7-88...?


- Carsten

[al_sub]

Not as bad as strange artefacts caused by calculations or 150% speed...

[scozz76]

I recently did some 8mm conversions that captured at 20fps, I then put them into Premiere Pro and set the output framerate to 24fps - No stutter at all and it appears to be at original speed.

So I suggest, if you have Premiere Pro, set your source material to playback at 20 then output to 24.

or set your source to 15 and output to 30. You can then set your source to 29.97 and do a conversion to 23.97 and then DOM to 24. The long way but should work.