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Digital Asset Management Digital Media Video

What Should I Look for in a Video Archive Storage Solution?

In today’s digitally driven landscape, video content reigns supreme. Whether it’s a corporation’s promotional videos, a filmmaker’s raw footage, or a broadcaster’s extensive library, the secure and efficient storage of digital assets has never been more critical. Choosing the right video archive storage solution becomes crucial.

With many options available, what should you prioritize when seeking an archive system for your video content? Let’s explore.

 

Understanding the Core of Video Archive Storage

Video archive storage is not just about keeping your media files safe; it’s about ensuring they’re accessible, manageable, and preserved for the long haul. Beyond just storage solutions, the comprehensive ecosystem supports collaboration, facilitates quick retrieval when needed, and archives and preserves media assets. Essential capabilities and functions include:

 

Compatibility with Multiple File Formats

Given the diverse range of video and media files today, your chosen solution should seamlessly support many formats, including still images, video files, audio files, and editorial in-process project files. Your team will also need access to other branding and project management files, including decision lists, text files, and style guides. The archive system should handle them without hitches, whether it’s 4K footage, vintage film scans, or the latest virtual reality (VR) experiences.

Your Solution Must Be Compatible with Hardware and Software from Multiple Vendors

Modern video production can include footage from multiple cameras, drones, and even content from viewers and fans. Raw files come in from many different sources and are edited with a wide range of apps. Interoperability is essential to integrate your video archive solution effectively. Your new video archive solution must match existing media systems and workflows well. Many media asset management systems are accessible through panels in popular editing software applications like Adobe Premiere Pro. Whether it’s editing software, media management tools, or content distribution networks, seamless integration ensures a smooth and efficient workflow.

Powerful Search and Retrieval Capabilities

A video archive is as effective as its asset management capabilities. Beyond just storing, the system should provide tools to categorize, tag, and annotate your media assets. These features ensure that searching and accessing specific video content is swift and hassle-free, saving you time in the long run.

Automation

Intelligent systems that automate repetitive, labor-intensive tasks like ingesting, enriching metadata, and transcoding ensure consistency and save valuable time. Many solutions include AI and machine learning to automate metadata enrichment. By eliminating redundant tasks and ensuring that editors can quickly find and access the assets they need, creatives can do what they do best – produce compelling videos.

Scalability for Future Needs

The number of digital video viewers worldwide is expected to increase to 3.5 Billion this year. More and more videos are being produced to meet the growing demand, and viewers expect quality production. If you are creating videos, you can expect growing demand. Your archive storage should be scalable to accommodate future growth in video files and other media. Whether adding more videos monthly or experiencing seasonal spikes, the storage solution must grow with your needs.

Integration with Cloud Storage

While traditional on-prem file video archival systems played a pivotal role, cloud storage has revolutionized media asset storage. Cloud-based solutions ensure that remote and hybrid workers can access everything they need from wherever they are working. But not all studios can move to 100% cloud-based. For some studios, a comprehensive video archive solution should seamlessly integrate with cloud platforms and on-premises storage solutions, allowing for easy backups, greater accessibility, and flexibility in managing digital assets.

Robust Data Protection

The safety of your video content is paramount. From accidental deletions to unforeseen disasters, the storage solution should provide multiple layers of protection. This protection includes encryption for security, redundancy to prevent data loss, and disaster recovery protocols.

Long-Term Preservation

Media archives are not just for the short term. You’re preserving valuable content, historical records, and memories that might be needed years, if not decades, down the line. Ensuring that the video archive storage system is built for longevity is vital, with provisions to migrate data when technology evolves.

Accessibility and User-Friendliness

While the backend of an archive system might be complex, accessing and managing your media files should be intuitive. A user-friendly interface, coupled with powerful search tools, ensures that even non-technical users can easily retrieve and manage video content.

Cost-Effectiveness

While going for the most robust and advanced storage solutions is tempting, overbuying is not recommended. First, identify your team’s needs. Then, evaluate the total cost of ownership, which includes not just the initial setup but maintenance, scaling, and potential upgrades in the future.

Support and Upgrades

Lastly, consider the level of support provided by the solution provider. Are they staffed with experts in media workflow integration? Do they understand the needs of creative teams and the industry-leading technologies that are used in video production and postproduction? Do they have a commitment to the industry, and will they be available to continue to support the solution after implementation? As technology evolves, your system should receive regular updates to stay current. A reliable support system ensures that any hitches are addressed promptly, minimizing potential downtime.

Video archive storage is more than just a digital cupboard for your media assets; it’s the foundation upon which your video content’s longevity and accessibility rest. As you venture into choosing a video archive solution, prioritize flexibility, security, scalability, and efficiency. In this digital age, where content is invaluable, a robust video archival system isn’t just a good-to-have—it’s a necessity.

Contact Us Today

CHESA has a passion for the nuances of media workflow integration. We have strong partnerships with the best-of-breed technology providers in the creative IT industry. We take a holistic approach in recommending solutions that bring real value and benefits to your organization, rather than selling technology for technology’s sake. Our team comes to the table with deep knowledge of the tools and vendors and is ready to address the demands and requirements of your environment and advance your business goals. Contact us today to find out more about how automating workflows in the Adobe ecosystem can bring greater efficiency and free up your creatives for their very best work.

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Digital Asset Management Digital Media MAM Technology

Media Workflow Management in a Remote Editing Era

The digital landscape is continuously evolving. With recent shifts towards remote work, the industry has entered the remote editing era in which short turnaround times and access to a global talent pool are the norm. The traditional studio environment has been reimagined. But this transformation is not without its challenges. Managing media assets and orchestrating efficient workflows is essential, or productions can get bogged down with inefficiencies and reworks. Effective media workflow management is critical in the remote editing era to compete in an industry expecting quick turnaround and high-quality content.

At its core, media workflow management involves overseeing the entire lifecycle of a media asset from ingest to final distribution. Effective media workflow management requires that each step be meticulously mapped. The objective? To streamline processes, ensure consistent quality, and deliver media content efficiently, regardless of where editing team members are located.

 

The Role of Media Assets in Workflow Management

The building blocks of any finished video are comprised of the many assets that go into creating the content. These blocks include raw footage, audio, in-process editing files, special effects files, graphic and branding elements, and polished videos ready for distribution on a wide range of platforms and formats. These files are precious, yet too often, they are underutilized. Effective asset management ensures that these media files are cataloged, retrievable, and ready for processing.

In a remote editing setting, this becomes even more critical. When creative teams work in an inefficient and fragmented asset management and storage system, efficiency and quality take a hit. Teams need real-time access to assets without the latency or bottlenecks that can hamper creativity.

 

Dissecting the Media Workflow Process

Your media assets have a project lifecycle from pre- and post-production to transcode, QC, distribution, and beyond. A comprehensive media workflow process is a roadmap that guides a media asset through its lifecycle. Critical points in the workflow include:

 

Acquisition and Ingest

Every project begins with acquisition and media ingest, where raw content is imported into the system. This phase requires tools that can handle vast amounts of data swiftly and seamlessly, especially when dealing with high-definition or even 8K content. The best systems will enhance metadata at ingest, adding information about location, format, film dates, and even looking inside for faces, objects, speech-to-text, and other attributes.

 

Editorial

Once ingested, the editorial phase kicks in. This phase is a dynamic and creative workflow stage from video editing, visual effects, animation, and motion graphics to photography, audio editing, color-grading, and finishing. Different creatives may be working with different apps. They need to be able to collaborate effectively and share files seamlessly. In today’s remote era, cloud-based tools and platforms allow editors to collaborate in real-time, annotate, and share feedback without being in the same physical space. Bottlenecks in this phase result in lost time and expensive reworks and can pull creators out of the flow.

Media management steps into the limelight at this critical content creation stage, ensuring that the processed assets are organized, backed up, and stored with metadata tagging. This optimization is crucial for easy retrieval, version control, and updates. In remote editing, it’s not just about storage but accessibility. Cloud-based asset management solutions allow teams to pull or push content irrespective of their geographical location.

 

Transcoding and Distribution

Finally, the media distribution phase takes center stage. Once content is polished and ready, it’s dispatched to various platforms – be it streaming services, broadcast channels, or digital platforms. Ensuring content reaches the right platform in the correct format in a fragmented media consumption world is paramount. The sheer number of broadcast outlets, OTT, and social media platforms are as numerous as they are diverse. Viewers are accessing content on every conceivable device. Gone are the days when media distribution was linear. Today, it’s multi-directional and multi-platform. As media is edited and refined remotely, it must also be distributed to a global audience. Media workflow management ensures that distribution is timely, format-compliant, and aligned with the target audience’s consumption habits.

 

Archiving and Repurposing

The value of your assets shouldn’t disappear after distribution. An effective media management system will support extending the life of your media files and allow you to repurpose valuable content.

 

Integrating Workflow Management in the Remote Era

With teams now dispersed, robust workflow management is the glue that holds the process together. It’s not just about individual tasks but orchestrating them to work harmoniously. Whether it’s ensuring that media assets are easily accessible to editors across the globe or streamlining feedback loops, workflow management tools must be agile, cloud-native, and intuitive.

The remote editing era has redefined the boundaries of media creation and distribution. It’s dismantled geographical barriers but introduced new challenges in collaboration and accessibility. Amidst these shifts, media workflow management stands as the backbone, ensuring that from media ingest to distribution, every step is executed flawlessly.

Organizations can thrive in this new landscape by integrating tools and solutions that cater to media asset management, processing, and distribution. As the adage goes, ‘change is the only constant.’ The key to navigating this change in the media world is a robust, flexible, and efficient media workflow management system.

 

Contact Us Today

CHESA has a passion for the nuances of media workflow integration. We have strong partnerships with the best-of-breed technology providers in the creative IT industry. We take a holistic approach in recommending solutions that bring real value and benefits to your organization rather than selling technology for technology’s sake. Our team comes to the table with deep knowledge of the tools and vendors. It is ready to address the demands and requirements of your environment and advance your business goals. Contact us today to find out more about how automating workflows in the Adobe ecosystem can bring greater efficiency and free up your creatives for their very best work.

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Digital Asset Management Digital Media MAM Technology

Multi-Faceted Media Systems Integration

On the journey from inspiration to a finished video, your creative team will have their hands on quite a bit of technology. There are many specialized, robust software solutions for every step, from production to postproduction to transcoding and distribution. You may have several capture devices and may have unique ingest needs. Everyone on your team works with media files, so a good Media Asset Management (MAM) solution is essential. Team members may be spread all over the globe. Some are on location, others in on-prem studios, and others work from home.

Many small and medium-sized video production teams find that they have loosely connected a hodgepodge of software, hardware, and media storage solutions into a fragile and overly complex system. A system that has evolved may be inefficient and easily broken.

The organic and haphazard adoption of tools may have left your team with ineffective, poorly documented workflows. These workflows may have evolved without ever being designed for efficiency, creativity, or high performance. With so many innovations on the market promising to transform your editing process, you may wonder how to get the greatest efficiency and quality. It may be time to take a good look at multifaceted systems integration.

When properly engineered, these disparate solutions can work seamlessly as one. Multifaceted media system integration is the process of combining all these tools into one system. The result is a powerful single-source content supply chain.

When you commit to multifaceted media systems integration, the first step will be to get a picture of the current hardware and software, all the locations where files are needed, what team members require access, what software applications are used in their work, and the related hardware at each step of preproduction, production, postproduction, and file distribution.

A system integrator will partner with you to dig deep into an analysis of the system architecture and assess how the components work together. While many new innovations are available, there is often the need to continue preserving and using valuable legacy systems. A customized and personalized system integration strategy will allow you to implement new technologies while benefiting from legacy systems.

Workflow analysis is also essential. Once workflow issues have been identified, the workflow engineer can design fresh solutions that will bring your team the greatest efficiencies and free up time and energy for creative work. Once the needs have been assessed, the next step is architecting and deploying systems that incorporate all essential aspects. The result is a reliable, properly integrated system.

Investing in a media system and single-source content supply chain integration brings operational efficiencies to your team, including automation, streamlined workflows, improved access to assets, powerful search capabilities, and better collaboration and sharing.

 

Advantages of Single Source Content Supply Chain Integration

A content supply chain is the system to plan, produce, and deliver content. Integration into a single source brings tangible value and benefits to any organization. When your infrastructure aligns with the content your customers want, your team will create high-quality videos efficiently.

  • Single-source content supply chain integration improves efficiency by reducing the time it takes to produce and distribute content.
  • Your creative team will spend less time searching for assets and are freed up to create content.
  • Having a single source of content makes it easier to manage workflows.
  • Versioning control ensures that everyone is working on the same version of the media files, reducing delays and improving content production speed.
  • Single-source content supply chains can reduce storage needs by eliminating the need for multiple copies of the same content.

Effective multifaceted media systems link the tools so that these many different components function and act as a single coordinated solution. Creative applications can be set up to interact with other software, hardware, network, storage, and media asset management systems to facilitate and streamline workflows.

 

Contact Us Today

CHESA can evaluate your current setup and ensure the proper infrastructure is in place to meet your needs and deliver your product with quality, speed, and efficiency.

CHESA has a passion for the nuances of media workflow integration. We have strong partnerships with the best-of-breed technology providers in the creative IT industry. We take a holistic approach in recommending solutions that bring real value and benefits to your organization rather than selling technology for technology’s sake. Our team comes to the table with deep knowledge of the tools and vendors. It is ready to address the demands and requirements of your environment and advance your business goals. Contact us today to learn more about how a multifaceted media systems integration can enable your creative team to create high-quality videos efficiently.

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Digital Asset Management Digital Media

Media Workflow Automation in Adobe

A workflow is a sequence of tasks or steps that take a video project from inception to completion. There are workflows for every stage of the project, from ingest to distribution, and for every type of activity, including editorial work and review and approvals. Every project has workflows, whether they are documented or not. Media workflow automation is an effective strategy to enhance productivity, improve quality, and ensure consistency.

Adobe’s video applications are designed for workflow automation. Adobe Premier Pro has built-in workflow orchestration, but it is also designed to integrate with other apps and workflow orchestration tools. Helmut by MoovIt Software Products (MSP is an incredibly powerful orchestration tool). MSP is a German-based product developer and an Adobe Video Solution Partner.

We’ve been impressed with the power of Helmut right from the beginning. Helmut’s Streamdesigner is a powerful and flexible low-code workflow builder that allows creatives to design workflows that are tailored to their exact needs. In October 2021, we invited David Merzenich of MSP, one of the creators of Helmut, to CHESA’s workflow show. Our conversation with David is worth checking out if you would like to explore more about the power of Helmut.

 

Striving for Consistency and Flexibility in Post-Production

Sometimes, editorial teams are racing towards completion without stepping back first and taking a hard look at workflows. Ensuring consistency can be challenging, with so many players having a role in video production and post-production. Well-defined workflows provide a framework for editorial work that ensures consistency.

When automating workflows, you should explore automating repeatable tasks, especially if they are labor-intensive. This automation will have a measurable impact on streamlining your project. For example, ingest and tagging are labor-intensive processes that lend well to automation.

Another area to look at is multistep processes with significant variability. By streamlining and standardizing multistep processes, you can ensure that all team members use the most efficient approach. When the whole team uses the same process, coordination and collaboration can be enhanced, and handoffs are more predictable and easy to schedule.

Automated workflows can expedite the review and approval process, ensuring that feedback and approvals are provided promptly at each critical point and that work does not proceed until review and approval have been completed. This optimization can prevent costly reworks when unapproved assets are used in a project.

Sometimes, there’s a worry that consistency will be adverse to creativity. The opposite can be true. When workflows tackle the pieces that need to be consistent in an efficient manner, they carve out time for the creative aspects of the project.

There are many places where consistency is essential in a video project. Brand consistency is one example. Workflows, branding, and templates can ensure that all branding guidelines are in place.

When designing workflows, the importance of flexibility should not be overlooked. When workflows are too rigid, you force creators into a one-size-fits-all approach, which can backfire. Systems Integrators and workflow engineers should consider the creatives’ needs, skills, styles, expertise, and preferred ways of working. When editors are empowered to adjust workflows to match their creative style and needs, they can gain the efficiency and consistency they seek while still having workflow solutions that enhance creativity.

Consistency and automation are keys to production efficiency, yet flexibility is often essential for creativity. Striking a balance requires a deep understanding of the creative process, the tools, and the systems. Integration and workflow development within Adobe Premiere Pro keeps editors focused on editing. Helmut by MSP further enhances the ability to create powerful, automated workflows that balance consistency and flexibility within the Adobe ecosystem.

 

Contact Us Today

CHESA has a passion for the nuances of media workflow automation and integration. We have strong partnerships with the best-of-breed technology providers in the creative IT industry. We take a holistic approach in recommending solutions that bring real value and benefits to your organization rather than selling technology for technology’s sake. Our team comes to the table with deep knowledge of the tools and vendors. It is ready to address the demands and requirements of your environment and advance your business goals. Contact us today to learn more about how automating workflows in the Adobe ecosystem can bring greater efficiency and free up your creatives for their best work.

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Digital Asset Management

The Media Supply Chain: A Content Supply Chain Evaluation Guide

Just like a manufacturing supply chain has all the resources needed for production, your media supply chain includes all the raw materials necessary to complete a finished video for distribution. At one time, the supply chain for film included physical media like film and tape, but today it is far more common to have digital content. Digital files are well suited for cloud-based systems, and an effective cloud-based media supply chain solution will enhance operations across the project. Use our content supply chain evaluation guide to optimize your chain.

Media supply chain components will include:

  • Powerful Media Asset Management.
  • Cloud-based Acquire and Ingest workflows.
  • Full support of the most popular editing and postproduction tools, including Adobe Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut Pro X, Avid Media Composer, Avid Pro Tools, and more.
  • Automated transcode capabilities for distribution.
  • Cloud-based archiving and storage to secure valuable content and allow repurposing to keep assets working for you.

A well-managed media supply chain ensures that everyone has access to the content they need when needed. Effective media supply chain management is more than managing the raw files; it is about orchestrating workflows, people, and processes. When there are issues in your media supply chain, your production may experience delays in distribution, or you may have a mismatch between the team members and the required work.

How do you know if an ineffective media supply chain is bogging down your production?

  1. Does your media supply chain ensure all team members have access to the files and raw materials needed to work efficiently? If you find team members waiting for the assets they need for their job, you may have a media supply chain issue.
  2. Does the software you use to manage your media supply chain manage assets from raw files at ingest, through finished videos, and finally archive and repurpose?
  3. Do your software tools provide metrics that allow you to evaluate your media supply chain (e.g., digital rights, media usage across projects, etc.)?
  4. Are workflow processes built into your media asset management system to help with automation?
  5. Is your media supply chain managed in the Cloud so team members can quickly access the resources they need from any location? More and more editors are working remotely. If your media supply chain is managed on-prem, you may miss out on the benefits of remote and hybrid teams.
  6. Can you identify your production bottlenecks? Every production has them. Consider how you could optimize and streamline processes and evaluate the impact of resources, time, and productivity.
  7. Can your media supply chain adapt to emerging needs, new clients, and changes in volume? A good media supply chain system should increase your organization’s agility.

Once you have completed your content supply chain evaluation, you may find it is the right time to modernize and move operations to the Cloud.

Building and Managing Operations in the Cloud

There is an abundance of options in the market to manage your media supply chain. The right partner can help make your move to the Cloud a success. Some studios are best served with a turn-key Software as a Service (SaaS) system, while others have legacy systems, special hardware and equipment, or specialized production requirements that benefit from the expertise of a systems integrator who truly understands the needs of the video industry.

CHESA recognizes the wealth of options available to you. We aim to advise you on the most efficient way to move forward. We get to the root of your specific needs through a Discovery Engagement that includes the following:

  • Getting to know your organization.
  • Listening to your unique challenges.
  • Spending time with users and observing them at work.
  • Working to understand your future-minded wishes.
  • Developing a document detailing your current system, including technical requirements and identified bottlenecks.
  • Sharing our recommendations for moving forward.

There is no one size fits all solution. The best solution for your company will be the one that matches your workflows and tools, leverages your strengths, and introduces new efficiencies. Perhaps you already have your own cloud provider, but you need support. At CHESA, we call that “Bring Your Own Cloud” or BYOC. When you already have a cloud provider, CHESA can manage and maintain your computer, storage, and MAM so your team can focus on the creative aspects of their job, knowing that their media supply pipeline won’t let them down. We also offer hybrid managed solutions where customers leverage their own infrastructure but also want to take advantage of the security of having computers, storage, and MAM at a CHESA co-location facility. And last but not least, we offer Acorn Cloud, a turn-key CHESA-managed and hosted solution that has been designed from the ground up for small and medium-sized teams.

There are so many options. The wrong fit will waste time and money. We can help you navigate through the options and avoid implementing an ill-suited media supply chain solution. By tailoring your cloud-based media workflow operations to your needs, your company will gain efficiency and have a great return on investment.

Contact Us Today

CHESA has helped many organizations complete their content supply chain evaluation and move their media operations to the Cloud. Our approach is to listen to our customers’ needs, learn about them, and then present them with solutions that will meet their needs.

We have strong partnerships with the best-of-breed technology providers in the creative IT industry. We take a holistic approach in recommending solutions that bring real value and benefits to your organization rather than selling technology for technology’s sake. Our team comes to the table with deep knowledge of the tools and vendors and is ready to address the demands and requirements of your environment and advance your business goals. Contact us today to find out more about how taking your media supply chain to the Cloud can make your organization more agile and efficient.

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Digital Asset Management

Work Smarter with a Video Asset Management System

A video asset management system can help creative teams work smarter and gain efficiency. These systems can shorten the time to distribution without sacrificing quality. There is increasing pressure to deliver high-quality video on tight timelines across the industry—but success isn’t about working harder and grinding away at mundane tasks; it’s about working smarter.

Video editors can harness the power of video asset management systems to organize their assets and streamline their workflows. These systems address key pain points in the video production and postproduction process by providing a centralized location for all assets, ensuring they are readily available, and enabling collaboration with other team members. These systems often allow editors to automate repetitive tasks.

But getting more done in less time isn’t the only goal. The right system will also support high-quality creative work. Certain types of stress hurt creativity and the ability to initiate action. A video production project’s sheer volume of assets is a form of mental clutter that can stall progress and push editors out of the creative zone. The relationship between stress and creativity is an interesting one. Challenge stressors fuel innovation, while hindrance stressors thwart creativity. Poor organization and ineffective workflows are a form of operational “red tape” that forces editors to spend excess time searching and retrieving assets and to focus on seemingly repetitive tasks. Other hindrance stressors include a lack of clarity about roles. The right video asset management system not only brings efficiency to the management of assets but also eliminates hindrance stressors to ensure that editors remain in the creative zone.

How can Video Editors Optimize their Time?

There’s a lot that video editors can do to optimize their time. Here are ten practices to increase your productivity and enhance your creativity.

  1. Manage assets well. Staying organized ensures editors can access approved assets and are ready to work unimpeded. Video asset management systems and carefully designed and practical workflows cut through the chaos and help creators jump into their work.
  2. Ensure that your technology is properly configured. Correctly setting up the video management system is essential. The last thing that video editors want to do is spend lots of time troubleshooting technology. When properly configured, your video asset management software can help editors optimize their workflows, but poorly integrated solutions can cause delays.
  3. Ensure that everyone who touches assets throughout the process knows how to get the most out of your media asset management solution. It’s the key to ensuring everyone has access to the assets they need, and it is a big win for all team members.
  4. Editors should know their editing style and their strengths. Professional self-awareness helps editors optimize their time.
  5. Another way video editors can optimize their time is to increase their proficiency with their video editing software. The software that is available on the market is compelling. Most creatives only take advantage of a fraction of the power of their tools, many times leaning on manual and time-consuming processes. The pressure to be efficient can make editors feel like they don’t have time to invest in mastering the advanced features of their video editing software. For instance, keyboard shortcuts have a dramatic impact on productivity. Learning the software’s advanced features offers a fantastic ROI, allowing editors to work more efficiently.
  6. Adopt effective project management practices. Project management streamlines video production operations. Define roles, responsibilities, and timelines. Keep other team members informed of delays and obstacles to optimize their time.
  7. Effective communication and collaboration are essential. Use your MAM’s embedded review, approval, and commenting functions to ensure the crucial information is linked to the assets and in-process files rather than in a separate, disjointed system like email or messaging.
  8. Use automation. Simplify the nonessential so that editors can focus on the creative aspect of their work. Nothing puts creativity to a screeching halt, like being overwhelmed by numerous repetitive tasks. A good media asset management system will automate these tasks. This efficiency clears the mental space and will position editors for their most creative work.
  9. Integrate. One system rarely meets all your needs. Integration is a powerful way to design a system for efficiency and creativity. Connecting tools like your media asset management solution directly to your editing software through panel extensions allows for greater efficiency.
  10. Don’t wing it. Working with professionals who can advise your team on the best solutions and workflows gives a great return on investment. When editors are free to edit, they do their absolute best work.

Contact Us Today

CHESA partners with best-of-breed technology providers in the creative IT industry. We continually evaluate and test our solutions offerings, with CHESA engineers and Solutions Architects validating every technology we place into real-world integrations. No one system fits everyone. We take a comprehensive approach and recommend the best fit for each client’s situation.

CHESA has a passion for the nuances of media workflow integration. We take a holistic approach in recommending solutions that bring real value and benefits to your organization rather than selling technology for technology’s sake. Our team comes to the table ready to address the demands and requirements of your environment and advance your business goals. Contact us today to find out more about how your editors can optimize their time with powerful workflows and effective asset management.

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Digital Asset Management

DAM vs. MAM vs. the Coexistence of Both

Digital asset management applies to files and media stored in a digital format. Digital assets include raw and original video and audio files, in-process project files, and finished files ready for distribution. The assets include branding elements, graphics, slide decks, text, music, and marketing files.

Digital assets for a single project can easily number in the thousands in any video production. Many of these files have multiple versions. Content is also coming in from many sources: production teams may upload raw footage, and your team may create new assets. Sometimes content is even produced by fans and customers.

There can be confusion between Digital Asset Management (DAM) and Media Asset Management (MAM). They both manage digital assets, but what differentiates them is where they are in the process and who uses them. An easy way to remember the distinction is that MAMs are upstream during the editing process, and DAMs are more downstream to share finished content with other creative teams, like marketing. MAM versus DAM is not an either/or. They should coexist in the asset management strategy for any production.

Without an effective Media Asset Management system, chaos can bog down production. An effective media asset management solution will handle the many formats used in video production, including video files, audio files, graphics files, text files, project files, color correction, VFX files, and audio mixing files. Your MAM software should be built for collaboration, allowing you to share with team members securely with permissions. It should feature enhanced metadata automation to maximize search capabilities with minimal downtime.

When the two systems coexist effectively, your DAM solution brings assets to the teams responsible for marketing and distribution. Your DAM solution should integrate well with marketing asset creation tools. There are many benefits when your MAMs and DAMs integrate effectively, including:

  • Better asset sharing. With a central location for all assets, team members can find, retrieve, and share assets from any location.
  • Improved efficiency. Team members can quickly get their hands on the assets they need; they can automate mundane, repetitive, yet essential tasks like asset tagging and metadata extraction so team members can focus on the creative and more rewarding parts of their work.
  • Better control of branding with the most up-to-date assets readily available.
  • Security. Access control and encryption features safeguard media assets.
  • Improved communication and collaboration.
  • Effective integration with various software applications allows creatives to find, retrieve, and edit without leaving their pane.

Fostering Collaboration with the Right Asset Management Tools

Video production can be a collaborative process that brings together the talents of many creatives. Often these team members work from different geographic locations. Media Asset Management Systems and Digital Asset Management Systems support collaboration with team members wherever they are. The benefits to production team members extend beyond the file storage capabilities, including:

  • MAMs help streamline ingesting and tagging. This efficiency can make a significant difference when on-demand production is essential, such as during news or sports events, where delays impact getting the video out on a tight timeline.
  • Nonlinear editing is supported.
  • The MAM enhances review and approval processes. Reviewers can comment, request changes, and approve assets. And nothing falls through the cracks because review and approval processes are managed within the MAM system rather than through other methods such as email.
  • Workflows are optimized and automated, allowing users to move through the process efficiently.

While we often think of video collaboration at the production team level, there is much to gain from choosing a digital asset management platform that allows collaboration with various team members outside the production team.

Increasingly, organizations are looking to feature teasers on social media channels and engage with influencers to get customers excited. Your marketing team members are using digital assets, creating new content, and sharing them with stakeholders through blog posts and videos for TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and other social media platforms.

Contemporary marketing requires a steady stream of high-value creative assets to excite people about your project. Visuals are essential to getting the message out and ensuring memorable campaigns. When your marketing team has access to high-quality assets for marketing campaigns, excitement builds.

A DAM system also benefits your campaigns by facilitating internal collaboration in this area:

  • When your marketing and sales teams can access brand assets and clips through your DAM platform, marketing can get to work early in production. This readiness shortens the timeline for the launch of campaigns.
  • A powerful DAM will help ensure brand consistency and allow other departments to access the suitable library of assets for slide decks, internal presentations, and external marketing campaigns. Consistent branding builds trust.
  • The marketing team can use the DAM platform to quickly find video assets created for a specific product or campaign. An effective digital asset management system will identify high-performance assets and allow teams to repurpose these assets for existing or future campaigns. Since there is less generation of new assets, there is better branding control.

Selecting the most effective MAM and DAM solutions for your organization requires understanding your organization’s specific needs and requirements. Consider the size of your studio, the types of videos you produce, and the needs of your creative team, your sales and marketing teams, and your customers.

When your MAM and DAM platforms coexist effectively, your creative team can work efficiently without losing focus. These conditions enhance communication and collaboration for all stakeholders.

Contact Us Today

CHESA has a passion for the nuances of media workflow integration. We take a holistic approach in recommending solutions that bring real value and benefits to your organization rather than selling technology for technology’s sake. Our team comes to the table with deep knowledge of the tools and vendors and is ready to address the demands and requirements of your environment and advance your business goals.

Contact us today to learn more about how a Digital Asset Management or Media Asset Management Platform can foster collaboration at your organization.

Categories
Adobe Blog Digital Asset Management MAM Technology

JAVA EXPLOIT – vulnerability with Log4j

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On Friday, December 10, 2021, CHESA received notice that there is a vulnerability with Log4j. “Log4j is a Java-based logging audit framework within Apache. Apache Log4j2 2.14.1 and below are susceptible to a remote code execution vulnerability where a remote attacker can leverage this vulnerability to take full control of a vulnerable machine.” CHESA Support is evaluating all environments for any vulnerabilities related to the Log4j. We have reached out to our vendors to gather information on if their software presents this vulnerability.

The following vendors have identified vulnerabilities or provided feedback. If there is a vulnerability in your environment CHESA support will open a case under your service contract to address the vulnerability.

Amazon Web ServicesAWS BlogUsing AWS security services to protect against, detect, and respond to the Log4j vulnerability | Amazon Web Services. December 20, 2021: The blog has been updated to include Amazon Route 53 Resolver DNS Firewall info.

ArchiwareP5 and Pure are not affected by the Java Log4j vulnerability. P5 and Pure do not use any Java code, that also excludes the use of the Java Log4j library. It is thus not affected be the Log4j vulnerability. Both products are based on the Naviserver that is written in the C programming language. 

AsperaAspera does not use log4jv2. The java applications use log4j-over-sl4j – which uses the same API interface as log4j but it is a different software component. There is one part of the java stack that does use log4jv1 – that is the trapd component when it is interfacing with the hdfs:// type storage. There are not many customers using HDFS. Since this is log4jv1 it is also not vulnerable.

Avid – December 20, 2021 Update: Avid is aware of the recently reported Apache Log4j RCE vulnerability.
CVE-2021-44228 – Please review the following document for more information, and follow Avid Best Practices for isolating your Avid systems from the internet.

Codemill
Accurate.Video:
None of the Docker images that we currently distribute as part of Accurateplayer or Accurate.Video includes any version of log4j. Our product, Accurate Player Vidispine Edition (APVE), did have an issue with one of its renditions but this has been fixed and rolled out.
Cantemo:
Cantemo, Vidispine, and any other components are not impacted directly by this vulnerability. In Cantemo we have the following components that use Java: Elasticsearch – no remote code execution issue. Rules Engine 3: Tomcat/Activiti – using an older log4j that is not affected Vidispine and its components like Solr – no remote code execution issue. We will still release upgrades for all Portal versions under maintenance with an upgraded Elasticsearch, and potential automatic configuration changes to other components. Vidispine’s analysis here

If you want an immediate fix you can apply configuration changes to Elasticsearch here– and Vidispine+Solr (see Vidispine support message above).

Dalet – Flex: Flex itself is not affected, however, two third-party services are. Flex Java services and apps use SLF4J with logback, not log4j2, read here -vulnerability-and-spring-boot not affected. Third-party services exposed to this vulnerability: Elasticsearch and Logstash. This documentation explains more about the log4shell vulnerability in the context of these two services. Entire Security Bulletin and Remediation Instructions here

File Catalyst – At this time, FileCatalyst products are not impacted by this vulnerability. For the latest guidance.

Iconik – We determined that we had internal components which were running the vulnerable version of log4j but with a configuration that most likely made them not vulnerable (a recent enough Java with default settings which made it not execute any malicious code). We did however proceed to patch the vulnerable software to be doubly sure. We have also investigated our logs and have not seen any indications that there have been any exploits though we do see active attempts at exploitation from various sources.

IPVPlease rest assured that the use of Solr (read more here) in Curator is not exposed publicly on Curator systems. However, we do understand that the vulnerability is concerning so we’re recommending a patch to further mitigate any risk. For more info
You will need to do the following: Edit the Solr command file found in [Curator Server InstallationPath]\Server\Solr\bin\solr.in.cmd by adding the following line: set SOLR_OPTS=%SOLR_OPTS% -Dlog4j2.formatMsgNoLookups=true
Following this, restart Curator Server. To confirm the setting has been changed successfully, check the Solr Admin page on your Curator Server machine (located at: http://localhost:8983/solr/#/ ) to find the following under the JVM Args heading: “-Dlog4j2.formatMsgNoLookups=true”

Levels Beyond On December 10, 2021 A Log4j Security Vulnerability known as CVE-2021-44228 was brought to the attention of our TechOps and SecOps engineers. After a full investigation of REACH ENGINE code, packages, systems, environments, completed shortly after notification, it was determined that all versions of Log4j libraries currently leveraged are not impacted by the reported vulnerability. We at REACH ENGINE take security very seriously and continually monitor the health of our code libraries and rapidly respond to any information of risk for our customer or their business. For now, all REACH ENGINE code packages are without impact however we will continue to be vigilant and follow the issue appropriately.

North Shore AutomationNSA Software – In addition, NSA does not use Log4j in any of our software. NSA VM deployments – A previous and unaffected version was installed as part of the base CentOS install on some older NSA VMs. It is an older version (1.2.x) and is not impacted by this vulnerability. This vulnerability was introduced in v2.x. The old version can safely be removed from the VMs without impacting any of the software running on them with the following command: sudo yum remove log4j

Open-E In order to ensure the highest levels of security for our users, both Open-E JovianDSS and Open-E DSS V7 have been checked for any possible vulnerabilities related to the Log4Shell exploit. Despite the fact that our products’ core systems don’t contain the affected Log4j Java library, we’ve conducted multiple tests to check if the 3rd party management tools (which are run in cases where the related hardware is installed on the server) have not been affected.

Prime Stream – PENDING

Quantum and CatDV – Read Bulletin here Quantum is aware of the recent Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) database entry regarding the open-source Apache Log4j utility and is actively monitoring the issue and evaluating its impact on Quantum products.

Scale Logic – PENDING

Signiant – https://support.signiant.com/hc/en-us Please note that we have investigated the Apache Log4j security vulnerability (CVE-2021-44228) and confirmed that NONE of the Signiant products are exposed or impacted by this vulnerability.

Studio Network Solutions – At this time we have not discovered any versions of our products that are vulnerable to this exploit. Our Statement

Telestream – Telestream has determined that the following products are not affected: Vantage, ContentAgent, Aurora, Cerify, Vidchecker, CaptionMaker, MacCaption, GLIM, Switch, Wirecast, Wirecast Gear, ScreenFlow, WFM, PRISM, Signal Generators, MPEG Analyzers, DIVAView, MassStore, iVMS, iVMS ASM, InspectorLive, Cricket, Geminus, IQ Media Monitor, Surveyor TS, SurveyorABR Active, PLM, cVOC, cPAR, Sentry, Sentry Verify, Medius, Consul and our Telestream Cloud Services . For products DIVACore, DIVAConnect, Kumulate, SurveyorABR Passive and Inspect 2110, contact  for more information.

If you have any questions, please open a case at chesa.force.com or call the support line at 410-705-6286.

Respectfully,

Marina Tucker – Director of Support Services and Customer Success

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Categories
Adobe Blog Digital Asset Management MAM Technology

How and Why CHESA Became an Adobe Video Solution Partner

The primary purpose of a solution architect’s work is to help clients use technology to their advantage. Given the prevalence of Premiere Pro and After Effects in our industry, I was already very familiar with Adobe’s video editing software applications and regularly sought to stay informed regarding changes and advancements in their products. CHESA has been working closely with Adobe for years, and when the opportunity arose to learn more and help CHESA become certified as an Adobe Video Solution Partner (AVSP), I jumped at the chance.

The training Adobe put together to become an AVSP was explicitly designed for systems integrators who regularly help clients smoothly transition their creative content through the many software applications and platforms they use to do good work. A few quick examples include best practices for transitioning sequences between Premiere Pro and Black Magic Design’s Davinci Resolve. Or, transitioning audio tracks between Premiere Pro and Avid’s Pro Tools.

We also explored the best ways to fuse tools like Media Asset Management (MAM) and Digital Asset Management (DAM) systems with Adobe’s software to help companies organize and share their work. Always with the goal of keeping their creative teams focused on what they do best. Adobe’s mission in providing this training was to share the best of what they have learned working with their customers. This then allows Adobe Video Solution Partners to help more end users/creatives/editors/VFX artists, etc., to fully leverage their software’s capabilities. 

Adobe started us off with baseline training. I went through modules covering a wide range of Adobe’s best practices, including setting up project templates and custom workspaces in Premiere Pro, everyday working practices and common keyboard shortcuts, hardware performance guidelines, balancing sound in projects, and standard delivery methodologies, etc. Each class essentially made sure we understood the basics of the editorial process using Adobe’s software. 

When we progressed to the more complicated modules, which covered more advanced topics, such as proxy workflows, Adobe Team Projects, or Premiere Pro Productions, that baseline curriculum served as a solid foundation to build upon. Also, Adobe made sure there were no shortcuts to certification, by the way. Tests with proofs were all built-in, so Adobe knew “yes, they did the work”. And, because I’m a nerd, I created an Adobe knowledge base for our engineers at CHESA to utilize, organizing all of our notes from the certification training. Ultimately it is now a knowledge repository that will continue to grow, where our engineers can find information to support our customers readily.

As a solutions architect, part of my motivation to dive into the training, and a key part of Adobe’s plan, is to provide customers with more access to expert resources regarding the best ways to use and integrate their tools with other platforms. Now customers can work with certified Adobe Video Solution Partners who can provide a conduit for communication with Adobe’s experts and engineers to solve problems and create even better tools. Certified partners were a missing link between the brilliant teams at Adobe and the incredible creatives in our industry. But, not any longer. Now, teams like CHESA can act as a force multiplier for Adobe and continue to hone our workflow therapy skills. 

I think the industry as a whole is going to benefit markedly from this program as it leads to greater collaboration and innovation. Creatives, media IT, and engineers now have a partner to provide constant feedback directly to Adobe’s teams on what creatives want and need and help refine and fast-track better user experiences.

Adobe’s investment in our industry, via AVSPs like CHESA, shows the level of commitment on their part. It illustrates their awareness of their shortcomings and their desire to share their valuable experience and knowledge to bridge the gaps between them and their customers. They’ve done the work to find systems integrators they can entrust their customers’ workflows to, and have prepared these new partners to dig even deeper into the hard questions that inevitably will help the platforms become better. Adobe knows that sending a client to a consultant/system integrator without knowing how strong their knowledge of Adobe’s ecosystem is, is not helpful to the industry or the success of their platforms. This process has ensured Adobe can have confidence that their valued community is in good hands with partners who can help them get the most out of their software and put unique workflows together to refine and empower their work.

More on the Adobe Video Solution Partner Program:
How can CHESA help me with my Adobe workflow?
The Workflow Show podcast with Adobe regarding the program
CHESA’s Press Release
Adobe’s blog on the Adobe Video Solution Program