Thank you for your effort, but this doesn't answer to my question. I know what is a proxy system and how it works in general. I want to overwrite my source files and recreate proxies. It is a very common task in production pipeline - when new version of video clip is coming, I want to see that it updates in MEP+.
I am not working on final video clips - they need to be updated every time I make new render in After Effect. I found that I can ovewrite source files only when MEP+ is closed, but then I need to regenerate proxies to be able to see changes.

I think, perhaps, there may be a confusion of language here! Grzgorz, do you really mean you want to "overwrite", and hence lose permanently, your original files or rather that you want MEP to be able to use, and make proxies from, any "updated" version(s) you render in After Effects?

Because I can see no method of directly linking AE and MEP I think your only solution is to replace any video file currently on the timeline with its newly-rendered-from-AE version, and then allow MEP to create a new proxy from this file.

And yes, this will, inevitably, mean a rather slow workflow, I think.

Just as a matter of interest, you say you are working in an "animation pipeline". What is the format of your video files that necessitates the use of proxies? Unless you are working with a rather low-powered computer, often MEP can handle and playback even quite complex video formats by the simple expedient of activating "low resolution playback", the lightning symbol (with various right-click options) below the preview monitor. This lowers the resolution ONLY for playback in MEP; any final render and export will always use the full resolution original files.

Jeff

Hi,

I want to overwrite original files permanently with new render from After Effects.
So example scenario is:

1. I made a render of Clip1 in AE and output it as Clip1.avi
2. I create new project in MEP and use this clip in timeline (I use proxies for display). for instance I cut it into two separate clips and put some other clip in between. I save it as MEP project.
3. I continue to work on my project in MEP, but then I realize that I need to make correction in Clip1.avi in After Effects
4. I come back to After Effects and make changes and render Clip1 as Clip1.avi, of course total time length of video is not changed
5. I open MEP and want to see changes in my project without importing once again and cutting, editing etc.
   
   OK. So i I will have to use low res preview for this ? Why there is no option to regenerate proxies after source updates, or even as manually triggered event ?

I have to say I would never want to overwrite (i.e. destroy/erase) any original file, for fear that I might at some point further down the line discover that I need to revert to an earlier version in order to "correct" a previous "mistake". Once an earlier version is deleted such a reversion becomes impossible.

However, given your workflow as detailed in your latest post I think there is no alternative method to what you are currently doing; there is no way that MEP can accept a rendered file automatically from After Effects.

The only way I can think of that might reduce your overall work time would be to render and export from MEP your already edited "Clip1.avi" to a format which AE can handle, work on it in AE and then return the new version to MEP, replacing the former "Clip1.avi" with this new version, thus removing the necessity to undertake any additional "cutting, editing etc.".

I notice you say you are exporting the newly-rendered files from AE as avi. Does AE offer any other export format? I ask this because avi is a container format and some types of avi can be very large and can cause playback problems for MEP; hence, I presume, your need to use proxies?

Jeff

Those are not camera video footage but cartoon created from scratch in AE so no problem of rewrite it. This is normal workflow.

OK I see that nobody has solution so I will have to find my own workflow. If you are interested in solution please follow thread.

Hi,

I tried this using VPX (Magix Video Pro X). I created 2 clips of approximately the same length and called them both Clip1, which I'll call A and B, and put them in separate folders. I then imported and edited A by splitting it and removing a section from the middle. Saved, closed. I exchange the clips in the folders so that B replaces A but has the file name Clip1. Note that VPX creates HDP and H0 files that contain the information of the clip and that information will now be wrong.

Reopened VPX. Here is the message:

I had to hit Continue a few times, but it worked. My clip 1 had become video B with the cut at the correct location and the piece trimmed out.

I did another test but this time I erased the HDP and H0 files. Here is the message:

Then this message appeared:

But, clip A was replaced by B with the trim as before.

I presume that MEP will give you the same messages and result. So it is doable, but like Jeff says, not a good way to do things - renaming clips.

Unfortunately, using the Exchange command does not keep the cuts.

I did a third test and this is only available in VPX.

I put a photo on track 1, movie 1. I put clip 1 (A) on movie 2. I imported movie 2 onto movie 1, trimmed a section out, gave each of the 2 pieces different effects. Then I replaced Clip1 on movie 2 with Clip2 - I used different names. Then I went  back to move 1 and the nested clips were still intact with the trim and the effects, same length as I had left it.

So, this looks to be the best way, using VPX, not MEP, and using nested clips. You can give each revision a revision number and just replace it in movie 2 each time. The edited version will show up in movie 1 as you left it and you will know which version that you are using. Just make sure that each revision has the same length, unless the end of the Clip1 nested movie in Movie 1 has been trimmed.

This may sound complicated but it is quite simple. Here is the setup:

OK, I found very simply solution. I just turned off proxies, and now I use Avid Codecs LE to make files smaller, it works smoothly on my PC without proxies, and to update files I simply shutdown Magix. Then remove file I want update, and generate new one. I open project with replaced files in MEP and it works like a charm. It was easier than I thought, thanks too all and to Avid for great codecs. Of course it is not lossless, but merely noticable and instead 4GB file I work on 600MB now (30 seconds of 2D animation). You can see my compression settings if you are interested in:

.
Link to codecs page Avid Codecs LE

Anyway It would be very nice to have a proxy regenerate button in Movie Edit Pro, or even replace/swap files option. Or even better, that it could be possible to rewrite source file, and MEP would ask: new version of file is detected do you want to update it ? But I guess this is not aimed for consumer range software like MEP.

Do you guys know how I can tell MEP Premium 2018 to make proxies in a chosen path? I bought a fast M.2 disk and have a partition there devoted to stuff like fast caches and I'd like proxies to be created there. Is that possible? Thanks!

Hi @OutdatedTV

I can not see a way to specify although I thought I had seen a way many versions ago. They are created in the folder with the original footage files although they do not show up in the Media Pool window. Personally I would not see any gain from putting them on a fast disk as they are fairly compact being lower resolution (albeit less compressed) and would not tax a standard hard disk's throughput.

BTW it's preferable to start a new thread for your somewhat different question rather than add to one over a year old.

Ha.......anyway now that I am here:- @Grzegorz The original discussion got me thinking about the question of replacing clips and recreating proxies and I want to suggest that if you have "automatically create proxies" turned on and substitute new clips for ones existing in the timeline, then deselecting and reselecting "automatically create proxies" in the "Movie Settings" (E) will create a prompt asking if you would like to create proxies for the replaced clips.

This of course would mean giving the new render from AE a new name prior to import and the new clip would be simple to substitute in the TL (if the original was not significantly edited) by using the exchange (4) or Overwrite (5) command and rejigging slightly if needed. Probably I would drag the clip to the track under the existing one and trim it to fit, then drag it into the space after deleting the original.

Another possibility for recreating proxies is to not create them at all on import and then just run the "Preview Rendering" command which essentially creates the same "processor friendly" .MXV proxy files where it feels they are necessary for smooth preview. As you update clips you run the command again and a new proxy file is created behind the scenes in the oddly named C:\XXXX\Documents\MagixProjects\MEPXXXX\Perfbounce folder.

HTH someone.

Peter