There is a very interesting, all be it, specialist thread on the Digidesign User Conference about getting audio out of Adobe Priemere Pro into Pro Tools. ‘jeremiahmoore’ asked……

I’m getting ready to start a documentary mix for a project that was cut in Adobe Premiere. (at 25fps, but that’s another matter.) There are mixed messages out there about whether OMF or AAF transfer works. For instance here.
So I’ve contacted the editor and am arranging some tests. I’ve no idea what version they’re on – and I see a new one (cs4/4.2.1) is out since 12/8/09. Does anyone have any recent wisdom or experience to share on this matter?

‘Craig F’ responded with this excellent workflow…

This is what we have our animation department do:

Export an OMF file for Pro Tools
1. In a Timeline panel, select a sequence.
2. Select File > Export > Export To OMF.
3. In the OMF Export Settings dialog box, type a title for the OMF file into the OMF Title field.
4. From the Sample Rate and Bits Per Sample menus, choose the settings needed for your sequence.
5. From the Files menu, choose one of the following:
Encapsulate
With this setting, Adobe Premiere Pro exports an OMF file containing the project metadata and all the audio for the selected sequence. Encapsulated OMF files typically are large.
Separate Audio
With this setting, Adobe Premiere Pro exports individual mono AIF files into an _omfiMediaFiles folder. The folder name contains the OMF filename. Using AIF files assures maximum compatibility with legacy audio systems.

Selecting the Separate Audio option in the OMF Export Settings dialog box

6. From the Render menu, choose one of the following:
Copy Complete Audio Files
With this setting, Adobe Premiere Pro exports audio for the entirety of each clip used in the sequence, no matter how many times the clip is used nor how many parts of the clip are used.
Trim Audio Files
With this setting, Adobe Premiere Pro exports only the portions of each clip that are used in the sequence: the clip instances. You can choose to export each clip instance with extra length, handles, added to the start and end of the file.
7. In the Handle Frames field, specify the length of the handles, in video frames. This amount of time is added to the start and end of the exported files when you choose Consolidate Media. The default setting is one second, in frames, at the sequence frame rate. If the length of the handles you specify exceeds the length of the clip instance, Adobe Premiere Pro exports the whole clip instance.
8. Launch Pro Tools, and import the OMF file. For more information on importing files into Pro Tools, see Pro Tools Help.

Tips for importing OMF files into Pro Tools
In the DigiTranslator dialog box:
• Deselect Pan Odd Tracks Left/Even Tracks Right.
• For automatic gain control, select Convert Clip Based Gain To Automation.
• Leave Sample Rate Conversion deselected, unless you need sample rate conversion.
In the Missing Files dialog box:
• Change the default setting to Manually Find And Relink, and press OK.
• Deselect all options.
• Navigate to the <projectName> ExternalMediaFiles folder and select it.

‘jeremiahmoore’ replied…

Just experienced a successful test transferring from Premiere Pro CS4 into Pro Tools using OMF. The key was to use OMF (not AAF) and External Media (not embedded).

Premiere Pro settings used:
Exported from Adobe Premiere Pro CS4 v4.2.1
OMF Title: prem-test3
Sample Rate: 48000
Bits per Sample: 16
Files: separate audio
Render: trim audio files
Handle Frames: 150
Successfully transferred:
- audio media with edits and handles
- crossfades were recreated by pro tools
- volume automation intact
Relink Note:
- Files did not autolink successfully. Instead, “Relink Offline” was used from PT’s Project Browser. I had to search for matches using “Filename Only” and Deselect “Duration” (or whatever it’s called, I’m not in front of the dialog box as I type this.)
Other Notes:
- PT crashed importing AAF. Soundtrack pro failed to import AAF as well.
- OMF with embedded media: region definitions came in, but media could not be linked. (PT could apparently not see the media inside the Premiere Pro OMF.)
We shall see in a few days if the whole hour-long project comes across successfully.

‘lode’ added….

Sounds encouraging. When I read the headline for this post before opening the thread I had already decided to answer that you should run as fast as you can in the opposite direction. We spent a week on importing a session from Premiere. You can find how we solved it here. This sounds like you are on the right track though. Good luck.

However it wasn’t the final answer ‘jeremiahmoore’ replied…..

I was just informed that the editor was unable to EXPORT the OMF from Premiere once they had the full project loaded. If anything develops worth sharing, I will post it here.

‘philiper’ asked….

2Gb file limit?

‘jeremiahmoore’ replied…..

Hi Phil – Maybe it was the 2GB thing, hard to say. I may give the editor a call and see if I can learn more.

Then ‘JWalkerPostAudio’ chipped in….

You may be experiencing difficulties because of the format your media is in. Last year I worked on a project with the same problem, and the media was all MXF. If I remember correctly, since the audio clips in the timeline were attached to the MXF and only referencing the audio, the OMF would not be correctly translated. What the editor had to do was go through every individual audio region on the timeline, manually pull out handles, then “render and replace” the audio to .wav or .aiff, then cut the handles off before the OMF could be correctly translated. A real major PITA. It took a couple months before we were able to do enough research/trial and error/work to get the OMF out. It might take your guy a week or two from here to do all the “render and replace” that needs to be done before the OMF can be made. Good luck and stay away from Adobe!

Noiz2 added…

A few years back I went through hell getting a project from PP into a usable OMF (they ended up going through Avid to do it). So the other week at the FCPU Super-meet in SF I talked to the presenter for Adobe about exactly this work flow. He admitted there were still some issues but that they have been working pretty hard at getting the back and forth with ProTools especially but also with Avid working smoothly. A few years ago it just wasn’t possible so that it works at all backs this up a bit. If they get this working that would be very good because I suspect we are going to start seeing a lot more PP projects. They have really improved the whole suite of apps and I can see it getting a decent piece of the FCP market.

Well it certainly seems to be how an easy process and not to be taken on lightly.