ADOBE PREMIERE CC 2014 (8.

1 CARAVAN) - September 22, 2014

review by Vashi Nedomansky





The newest version of Adobe Premiere Pro CC 2014 (8.1) has implemented critically
needed features both big and small, which make Premiere Pro the most robust, stable
and efcient NLE available for all my needs. The Premiere Pro team has been listening
to editors from all around the world and have delivered dozens of specic new features
that we have all been asking for. In addition, Adobe has added features that will future-
proof every type of post production project and workow no matter what the scale.

I have edited my last 4 feature lms on Premiere Pro including: SHARKNADO 2, THE
GRIND, THAT WHICH I LOVE DESTROYS ME and the upcoming HEADLOCK. I just
nished editing a music video using the latest version that Ill be reviewing today. After 3
weeks of cutting, I have to say It felt incredibly fresh, snappy and clean. Cosmetically
and under the hood, this release is a huge leap forward. There are literally about 50
amazing updates in this release and Id love to share with you the best new features
that help me work quicker, smarter and more powerfully.

1.
First, lets visit the new GUI so I can point out a couple small things that make a world of
difference. As you can see, the darker default layout has removed extraneous buttons/
menus that cluttered the previous versions. With more negative space, it now offers a
atter, sleeker work environment. The pop-out menus now live on the tab of each panel
for easy accessibility. Blue replaces orange as the core color for indicating time code,
bin outlines, track indicators and playhead. The blue color is subtle and soothing,
especially for long edit sessions when eyes become fatigued. Long asked for by
countless editors, The project panel now has 4 sizes of text for greater legibility and no
more squinting at long lists of assets. The video and audio track selection interface is
also cleaner and leaner and blends in wonderfully with the timeline. The FX badges on
clips in the timeline can also be toggled off to further streamline the visual editing
experience. My edit bay and tabletop are horribly cluttered, but my timeline shouldnt be.

2.
Heres the rst gigantic new feature that solves the problem of multiple editors sharing
multiple projects in Premiere Pro. In the 8.1 update, an editor can now browse, open,
analyze and import timelines or individual assets from as many projects as needed.
Separate Media Browser instances allow you to gain access to as many projects as you
like. The bonus to this is the import function now brings in only the specic les selected
and not the entire project as before. A folder is created in the project panel and just the
les you need live in your main project. Previously, only one project could be open at a
time.
The constraints of single project workows have been lifted as Premiere Pro CC 2014
now allows for fully collaborative interactions between multiple editors, sequences,
timelines and projects. From a no-budget indie lm all the way up to David Finchers
GONE GIRL, sharing the heavy lifting of post production is now effortless.

Additionally, these sequences can be dragged from the media browsers into the source
panel which then reveals the full timeline with access to all clips and edits. This is called
the Source Monitor Timeline View. By stacking 2 timelines vertically in what I call The
Pancake Timeline, an editor can effortlessly drag and drop clips or chunks of
sequences from one timeline to another. The added benet of this technique is that its
non-destructive. Whatever you drag or copy/paste remains in its original, pristine state
in both original timelines. The duplication occurs and the source timeline remains intact.
This is the core technique I use for pulling selects and building my edits. I nd it both
intuitive and simple. Since I cut feature lms with hundreds of hours of raw footage, its
important to note that a Premiere Pro timeline has an impressive maximum length of 24
hours. Thats an incredible amount of footage and just like in previous versions,
Premiere Pro chewed through these immense timelines with no glitches, stuttering or
problems during post of my last 4 feature lms.

3.
Organization is paramount to me as a professional editor. If I cant instantaneously nd
a specic shot for myself or the director or producerthan Im wasting everyones time.
Any new option that allows me to locate what I need at warp speed make me more
valuable to the project. Its a great feeling to effortlessly locate and run a shot for a
roomful of anxious people that assumed hundreds of clips would be scrolled through
before it was found. With Search Bins and Movable Colored Markers, I can harness the
power of metadata and visual cues to expedite the editorial process. All clips have
specic, searchable metadata once they are imported. Codec, frame rate, name, size,
time and others are already ingrained into the raw footage. If you choose to add more
specic tags during the ingest and logging portion of editorialthat new metadata can
now be used to create Search Bins that will house only those clips that contain the
parameters you requested. By typing a criteria into the Find Box and clicking the
Create new Search Bin from query icon, a stand alone bin is placed into the project
panel. The Search Bin contains an alias to the original le and no duplication of assets
occurs. The Search Bin automatically updates if new assets are imported and any
changes are reected in real time throughout all Search Bins in your project. This is an
intuitive way to utilize the power of metadata within the structured, organizational layout
that editors have become so comfortable with. Its the best of both the worlds.

The new Colored and Movable Markers give every editor the ability to highlight
moments in both the source panel and timeline with visual distinction and ease. The 8
customizable Colored Markers are now movable so they follow your edit in the timeline
as you make adjustments. The Marker Panel is one of the most powerful organizational
tools in Premiere Pro CC 2014. It is the cornerstone of my logging process. Once I
dump sequential raw footage into a timeline, I drop markers on the rst shot of every
scene and label that marker with the scene number. Since the Marker Panel is
searchable, if I want to go to a certain scene, I simply type the scene number into the
search eld and the Marker Panel shows me just that scene. I click on the Marker
thumbnail and it takes me to that section of the timeline. Simple, Easy and Fast. I also
assign keyboard shortcuts to Next Marker and Previous Marker so I can quickly
navigate through my massive timelines scene by scene. On feature lms with hundreds
of hours of footage, this saves incalculable amounts of time.

4.
The lm editor is more and more being tasked with additional responsibilities during
post production. It is normal to apply color correction, visual effects and solid audio work
at the earliest stages. The lm editor has these tools and more available to them in the
latest version of Premiere Pro CC 2014. Without resorting to 3rd party plugins, these
tasks can be handled deftly inside Premiere Pro or if needed, dynamically linked to
Adobe After Effects. The new Masking and Tracking Enhancements allow the editor
extremely targeted control of effects that previously were only available inside After
Effects. By staying inside the Premiere Pro timeline, editors can now create Free Draw
Bezier masks that can be applied to almost every effect in the Premiere Pro arsenal.
The Ellipse and 4-point polygon mask options are there for rudimentary masking, but
their individual points can also be changed into a bezier point by ALT-clicking. All of
these masks can then be tracked by simply clicking the track selected mask forward or
backward button. Your color correction, vignette, gradient or any other numerous effect
are now locked to the video for a seamless effect that was not previously possible. The
unparalleled ease is what makes it so remarkableall within the native application with
real-time results. The new interactive GUI in the Program Monitor gives the editor
instantaneous feedback with responsive controls to ne tune: the Position, Expansion
and Feather parameters of all the controls. Once again, the time saved by doing these
processes inside Premiere Pro allows you to work faster and smarter. Thats a big win-
win for me.

5.
With new cameras, resolutions and codecs emerging on the lmmaking scene every
day, Premiere Pro remains the most comprehensive and agnostic platform to handle
whatever is thrown at it. Knowing you can ingest and start editing natively and in real-
time with almost every format on the planet, puts Premiere Pro at the forefront of my
post production workow. Recently, I edited the feature length documentary That Which
I Love Destroys Me which deals with PTSD and the US Military. It premiered at the U.S.
Capitol in Washington D.C. in front of Congress last month. I cut no less than 9 different
codecs on a single 75-minute timeline with mixed frame rates and various native sizes
yet had no issues of real-time playback during the 12-month edit. With 4K, 5K, 6K and
beyond now the new normal in post production, Premiere Pro has been and continues
to be the best solution I have used to remove the worries about codec compatibility and
just lets me do my creative task of editing. That said, its important to know that theyve
added native support for: GoPro Cineform, AJA RAW, Phantom CINE and Canon RAW.
The newly optimized GPU performance has unleashed even better playback of RED 6K
and CinemaDNG, so no matter what you shoot onit will be putty in your hands.


Ive edited feature lms, documentaries, commercials, documentaries and short lms on
Adobe Premiere Pro, Avid Media Composer and Final Cut Pro. They all have their
strengths and weaknesses just as one would expect. The post production world is a
uid environment that updates overnight with the most amazing advancements. To stay
current with the latest technological progresses is a Herculean task. This newest
version of Adobe Premiere Pro CC 2014 (8.1) has proven itself to be the best solution to
my technical and creative challenges as a lmmaker. It is hands down the best NLE Ive
ever used. To be completely transparent, I would like to clearly state that I have not paid
any money or received any compensation for this review. It is just my honest
assessment of a tool that I nd to be the best for me.

For more about myself or my workfeel free to visit me at:

VashiVisuals.com/blog
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Vashi-Visuals/411765715598288
@vashikoo