Adobe Media Encoder dynamic link fail just missed deadline...

[buzz_ky]

Hello - I just missed a tight deadline as Media Encoder dynamic link failed. In this instance AE Failed to add to encoder queue so I rebooted both apps. Then it finally after what seemed eternity added to the queue but the render then failed (could not read from the source).

We were shown a work around using a watch folder however that is not conducive to great workflow for our situation as it is so convoluted and when encoder is working, its great. But encoder has slowed considerably adding to the queue since we have upgraded to v12.0.

Does anyone know if there is a fix on the horizon? or a better workaround than a watch folder setup...?

ME CC V12.0 build 202

AE CC V15.0.0 build 180

Mac OS Sierra 10.12.6

[Dave Merchant]

News of a 'fix' won't be forthcoming, not least because it's not clear what went wrong and on which side of the link.

Rendering is increasingly unstable in CC, due to a mix of bugs in the code and bugs in the OS (for example the memory changes introduced with Meltdown/Spectre). If a project takes a long time to render then it's always sensible to render from AE into a frame sequence format (PNG/TIFF/etc), then transcode to the final codecs in a second step. Because there's no effect processing in the transcode stage it runs very fast. If the render to frames fails, you can simply restart it from wherever it left off.

This method also greatly speeds up client change requests, as you only have to re-render the affected section then run the fast transcode.

[buzz_ky]

Frame sequence is not an option really I work in Tv news I had 10 mins to get my graphic out tonight before on air. I need to render to specific formats to get to our editors to drop into stories prior to on air - needless to say tonight the editor had to fill my gap : )

[Rick Gerard]

The kind of render failure you are describing can be avoided by babysitting the project a little better. There will be failures caused by human errors, problems in the comp, background processes and bugs in the app or in 3rd party effects you use in your projects. No matter what you are doing, you owe it to yourself to set up a workflow that includes checking on renders. There are other steps you can take to protect yourself and keep the project on schedule.

Here's some advice from somebody that has been rendering projects with After Effects for 25 years.

1. If your render is going to take more than a few minutes render an image sequence as a production master
   • If the render fails at any point you can pick it up again on the failed frame and continue from there
   • Image sequences can be loaded in Premiere Pro or directly in the AME and they render very quickly
   • Image sequences can be visually lossless and high bit depth so there is no quality loss when you have to do more processing or render another copy.
   • An Example: recently I had a 6-second effects shot with about 40 layers that involved camera tracking, motion stabilizing, warp stabilizing, a 3D model (Element 3D) and a ton of color matching, blurs, shadows, lights, and blend modes. There was also some roto involved. After rendering the image sequence the director insisted we shift a key effect element in the scene by 9 frames. A total of 26 frames needed to be re-rendered. The comp was edited, the work area adjusted, and the frames were sent to the render cue/ Render Garden was used to render replacement frames in just under 10 minutes. The standard output module would have probably taken about 40 minutes. There were no changes required in Premiere Pro because the image sequence automatically updated and we saved about five hours of rendering time.
2. Make each shot a separate comp - don't edit a movie in After Effects
   • The more shots you put in a comp the more layers you need, the more likely it is you will have a rendering problem
   • Complex visual effects can require dozens or even hundreds of layers - the more complex a comp becomes the more likely it is to run into problems
   • Editing shots together and mixing sound for final output is much easier to do in an NLE like Premiere Pro, the render takes less time and the work of the final polish takes a lot less time than trying to combine all of those elements in a single AE comp
3. Use a background render like Render Garden or at least render your effects and motion graphics shots using the Adobe Media

Encoder so you can keep working on the other comps while you are rendering the pieces of your movie. More than 90% of my comps are one shot under seven seconds because more than 90% of the shots in any narrative film are under seven seconds. There is a vicious virus that infects filmmakers that did not grow up shooting film and sending shots to the lab for printing. It causes them to believe that the most efficient way to work is to put everything in one timeline so that they can see what they have got before they render it. Most of the time it takes several missed deadlines and rendering failures to affect a cure. Keep it simple. As soon as you get effects shot nailed down, render it. Edit your scenes in Premiere (or your favorite NLE) and stop painting yourself into a corner. Visual Effects comps that are only one shot, motion graphics that are short sequences and image sequence renders are life and career savers.

[buzz_ky]

Hi Rick, Appreciate the thorough response, and as an aside do I recognize your name from the COW, we are of the same vintage : )

A great deal of your answer is not applicable to a network news environment, usually I would output a few stills to cover the proverbial but this was one of four radio grab/audio boards so in a package story it would have looked like an error. If I was back working in a post environment or my graphic was completed earlier in the day, then yes a seq etc is possible but when it gets down to crunch time we just need encoder to work. Thanks for the suggestion of render garden I will run it past my engineers - we are on a broadcast LAN and rightly so they like to lock us down...but I will look into it.

Cheers

Kylie

[Roland Kahlenberg]

Are you able to reproduce this issue?

DL occasionally fails but not often. In the future, I suggest you reboot prior to initiating a render for a tight deadline.

[buzz_ky]

It's not reproducible extremely intermittent, which is most annoying. I had rendered 10 mins prior to this one and it worked fine...on this deadline if I had to do a full reboot I should have just said no to the graphic from the start.. it would have taken to long to get back up and running. Usually we switch to another computer but I had let my staff leave a bit earlier than usual and realised too late they were all shut down. Live and learn, will check next time to make sure at least one other is running...

[Roland Kahlenberg]

I used to have more outages with DL failing. It's been a long while since it's happened - I can't even recall the last time - probably more than a couple of years. I do however recall having to engage Task Manager (PC) to check if an unwanted instance DL Manager was running the background. If no Adobe DVA app was running but DL Manager was in the background, it would interfere with the startup of one of the DVA apps. Perhaps you can check if this is a similar issue on your end. So, in essence, the trick was to exit this transcendental instance of DL Manager to close it, before starting a DVA.

[Dave_LaRonde]

buzz_ky  wrote

Frame sequence is not an option really I work in Tv news I had 10 mins to get my graphic out tonight before on air. I need to render to specific formats to get to our editors to drop into stories prior to on air

I produce topical promos for a CBS affiliate.  I often have to animate mug shots with names over a standard animated background.  10-second animations that I cut into the spots.  I don't fart around with watch folders, I just add the comp to the AE Render Queue... and the project is set up to render to the same folder day in and day out.  When complete, it's a simple matter of dragging to Avid for import, or to another folder for use by someone else.

I see you're on 15.0 and PP 12.0.  You might want to consider updating Creative Cloud -- there are bug fixes.

But here is a dire warning:  DO NOT UPDATE TO THE MOST CURRENT ONE!  ADOBE DROPPED SUPPORT FOR MANY QUICKTIME CODECS!  THIS IS THE UPDATE ISSUED IN APRIL!  DO NOT TOUCH IT!  GO FOR THE PREVIOUS UPDATE!

As you and I both know, stations tend to use what still works in terms of codecs, and that doesn't change until the engineers or the Home Office say you have to change. So heed that warning about the update -- and don't update your OS, either.

The other guys in this forum say they're under deadline pressure... they've got what, 2-3 days?   We have to have stuff ready 10-15 minutes from the word "go".  THAT'S deadline pressure.

[buzz_ky]

Thanks Dave I will get that CC update on and yes we already got broke with the last update, our Grass Valley mixer does now not like the QT and we have to open previous AE and ME just to get stuff into the desk! so appreciate the warning as we do not need more workarounds... our stuff mainly goes to Quantel or Viz hence the need to use certain codecs, which as of a few years ago now are not supported in the AE render but we may have to find a diff workable codec that can AE render queue. And an oldie but a goodie - deadline what deadline as they hear it whooshing by.

[buzz_ky]

Just a quick note in the forum there is supposedly a fix;

This problem happens when the following conditions are both met.

- AE Preferences > General > "Show Start Screen at Startup" is disabled

- AE Preferences > New Project > "New Project loads template" is enabled

But I checked my prefs and they do not meet this criteria!

The next suggested fix was;

Add AME and AAE to the allowed list in the firewall on your mac. but I have no firewall enabled due to work site configuration.

Just in case, I did check box the annoying startup in my prefs - if that fixes the issue I will put up with it...lets see how we go..