[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”||||false|false” da_disable_devices=”off|off|off” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” da_is_popup=”off” da_exit_intent=”off” da_has_close=”on” da_alt_close=”off” da_dark_close=”off” da_not_modal=”on” da_is_singular=”off” da_with_loader=”off” da_has_shadow=”on”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”0px||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” pac_dcm_carousel_specific_module_num=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n
The script provides the narrative of a movie \u2013 its characters, plot, locations, necessary props, and more \u2013 but it doesn\u2019t tell you how to turn it into a finished product, which is both a creative process and a logistical and organizational project. Getting to the things you need to organize and run a complex production process is currently a mostly manual undertaking developed through years of experience, aided and abetted by spreadsheets, emails, and many conversations to resolve any discrepancies between the various organizations and departments involved. This blog series is a guide to using the MovieLabs Ontology for Media Creation (OMC<\/a>) in the production process to support automation and reduce miscommunication among the people and organizations involved. It starts with the script breakdown and goes through pre-production and planning phases, filming, and a bit of the editorial process. OMC has other uses too, for example in distribution and analytics.<\/p>\n The OMC provides a common data model with clear meanings and common data formats. This makes it easier for applications to exchange data with less effort and fewer errors, which in turn simplifies integration and automation. If each piece of the common data is managed consistently, e.g., in a common data store, there is much less chance of data drifting; many common data errors are easy for humans to understand, but hard for automation. Just as importantly, an ontology also provides relationships, which are well-defined connections between one thing and another. Relationships make it easy to understand dependencies, see the potential consequences of changes, and discover connections that may not have been obvious.<\/p>\n We expect the initial uses for the OMC to revolve around data exchange, but over time we expect applications will be available that use OMC to transform the script into data and information for department production plans and provide intuitive user interfaces for creation and visualization of the concepts described here. In fact, this blog series can be thought of as a roadmap for organizations interested in building those services.<\/p>\n Part 1 of this 3-part blog series describes how to use the Ontology for Media Creation to do a script breakdown and assumes some familiarity with the concepts in OMC<\/a>. Since we\u2019ll be discussing the breakdown processes at the conceptual level, we make no assumptions about the implementation mechanism (OMC is available as both RDF and JSON).<\/p>\n To ground this process in reality we wanted to use an actual production and script so during our series we\u2019ll illustrate the examples using \u201cHyperSpace Madness\u201d (available here<\/a><\/span>). HyperSpace Madness (HSM) was written as a fully animated short film, but here it\u2019s treated as a live-action short to illustrate various aspects of using OMC. We focus on how components come into being and the connections between components, so some of the detailed data for individual items will be glossed over.<\/p>\n Producing a narrative work, whether film or television, starts from the script. There will be many iterations on the script, but eventually parts of it will be stable enough to start production of some or all of the creative work. The production process is built out of lots and lots of components \u2013 some large, some small, but all important \u2013 and all of these eventually tie back to the script. There are many ways to turn a script into a finished production. This blog shows one way of doing it and doesn\u2019t attempt to cover all of the complexity and possibilities.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text ul_item_indent=”50px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text ul_item_indent=”50px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text ul_item_indent=”50px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Ezekiel cried dem dry bones<\/em> [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n The script provides the bones of the movie. It is about the narrative world: the action is in outer space or an exoplanetary jungle, even if it is filmed someplace else; the characters Sven and Keira are romantically inclined, even if the actors portraying them have never met each other. The production process brings it to life and needs to draw the viewer in — something that provokes Coleridge\u2019s “suspension of disbelief.”<\/p>\n There is a lot of freedom in the narrative world. You can change the names of characters, add scenes, change props from metal to plastic, all with little apparent cost. However, every one of those changes will make its way through to the rest of the production, requiring new dialog, new locations, and new physical or computer-generated props. The connection between the narrative world and the production world underpins many of the relationships in OMC.<\/p>\n All of the necessary production information has to be extracted from the script and shared with the people and organizations involved in the production. The process is called \u2018breakdown\u2019 and each department handles it differently with each needing different information. This information is usually shared in spreadsheets, for which there is no standard format, and no standard naming of things. OMC provides a common model for both structure and terms as well as the means to represent the elements from each departmental breakdown and their relationships with each other.<\/p>\n In this post we\u2019ll turn a portion of the script into its components. In the ontology, these are called “narrative elements.”<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text ul_item_indent=”50px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n Which narrative elements do we get out of the script?<\/p>\n It sounds simple enough. What follows, however, shows mistakes that can happen when these elements are extracted manually.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider show_divider=”off” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text ul_item_indent=”50px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n For HSM, we\u2019ll deal with Narrative Scenes 2 and 3. (The narrative scene number is in the left margin of the script, following usual practice.) These narrative scenes don\u2019t have names in the script, so we will provide some:<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][dvmd_table_maker tbl_row_header_count=”0″ tbl_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” tbl_tcell_cell_align_vert=”center” tbl_chead_cell_color=”#56A1D5″ tbl_chead_cell_align_horz=”center” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Narrative Scene Number” col_content=”Narrative Scene Number What Characters are in these Narrative Scenes?<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][dvmd_table_maker tbl_row_header_count=”0″ tbl_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” tbl_tcell_cell_align_vert=”center” tbl_chead_cell_color=”#56A1D5″ tbl_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Character” col_content=”Character Voiceover” col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][\/dvmd_table_maker][dvmd_table_maker tbl_row_header_count=”0″ tbl_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” tbl_tcell_cell_align_vert=”center” tbl_chead_cell_color=”#56A1D5″ tbl_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Prop Name” col_content=”Prop Name There are two Narrative Locations.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][dvmd_table_maker tbl_row_header_count=”0″ tbl_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” tbl_tcell_cell_align_vert=”center” tbl_chead_cell_color=”#56A1D5″ tbl_chead_cell_align_horz=”center” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Narrative Location” col_content=”Narrative Location And one Wardrobe item.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][dvmd_table_maker tbl_row_header_count=”0″ tbl_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” tbl_tcell_cell_align_vert=”center” tbl_chead_cell_color=”#56A1D5″ tbl_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Wardrobe” col_content=”Wardrobe There are several things to notice here:<\/p>\n All of this could be managed by standard conventions, iron discipline, and pivot tables, but the first two are hard to enforce and the last is hard to maintain \u2013 what if different departments do pivot tables differently?<\/p>\n What we need is a representation that has one data object per narrative element (character, wardrobe, narrative scene, etc.) and shows the connections between them. With that, things like a Character\u2019s name only need to be done in one place and it is easy to see what is connected to what. This also deals with the problem of how to reference things: narrative elements connect to narrative elements, without having to worry about whether to use a scene number or a scene name.<\/p>\n A partial diagram for what we\u2019ve been looking at is:<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider show_divider=”off” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/movielabs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/omc_diagram.png” alt=”example diagram” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_divider show_divider=”off” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text ul_item_indent=”50px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n For simplicity, the diagram doesn\u2019t show that Sven is wearing his space suit in a particular scene, but the ontology can express that. For showing “Sven uses the prop in narrative scene 2\u2019, the prop is connected to both Sven and the scene, but the underlying ontology allows stating that as one fact, which is useful if someone else uses it in another scene (or even the same scene.)<\/p>\n The end goal is to get a first pass of this automatically from the Script. As a starting point, an application that allows a user to construct an editable, extendable graphical diagram of the elements and their relationships can be built with existing technology. The application can automatically provide the necessary identifiers and provide access to the elements in a common format. Such an application still requires a person to break down the script, but the results are more consistent and easier to share than breakdown done by spreadsheet and email. Scripts often adhere to one of a set of standard conventions (for spacing, character names, scene boundaries, and so on.) Because of this, a bare-bones structure can be produced using simple text processing, which is a possible next evolutionary stage. In the longer term, AI and machine learning have the potential to automate this even further.<\/p>\n Even so, sometimes spreadsheets are useful for sharing information. The information in the ontology can be turned into tabular data as needed.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider show_divider=”off” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text ul_item_indent=”50px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n This blog has shown how to use OMC to turn a script into data representing narrative elements. These data elements can improve communication, reduce errors, and encourage better collaboration and automation. In Part 2 we\u2019ll look at the transition from narrative elements to production elements, and in Part 3 we\u2019ll take those production elements from filming through post-production.<\/p>\n If you found this blog series useful then let us know, and if you\u2019re interested in additional blogs or how-to-guides let us know a specific use case and we can address it (email: info@movielabs.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n There\u2019s also a wealth of useful information at mc.movielabs.com<\/a> and movielabs.com\/production-technology\/ontology-for-media-creation\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Using the Ontology for Media Creation to breakdown Scripts<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11434,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"[et_pb_section fb_built=\"1\" _builder_version=\"4.11.4\" _module_preset=\"default\" da_disable_devices=\"off|off|off\" global_colors_info=\"{}\" da_is_popup=\"off\" da_exit_intent=\"off\" da_has_close=\"on\" da_alt_close=\"off\" da_dark_close=\"off\" da_not_modal=\"on\" da_is_singular=\"off\" da_with_loader=\"off\" da_has_shadow=\"on\"][et_pb_row _builder_version=\"4.11.4\" _module_preset=\"default\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"][et_pb_column type=\"4_4\" _builder_version=\"4.11.4\" _module_preset=\"default\" pac_dcm_carousel_specific_module_num=\"0\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"][et_pb_text _builder_version=\"4.11.4\" _module_preset=\"default\" background_size=\"initial\" background_position=\"top_left\" background_repeat=\"repeat\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"]Clear communication is critical to the content creation process. And while today\u2019s productions somehow manage to compensate for inefficient communication mechanisms, there is a growing and urgent need to streamline the way we communicate and exchange information as we continue to scale up to meet the increasing demand for content. \u00a0In our blog \"Cloud. Work. Flows\"<\/a>, we identified some missing components that are required to enable software defined workflows. We highlighted that a more efficient messaging system will be critical to improve communication between participants (which could be people or machines) in a complex workflow system.\u00a0 We\u2019ve addressed communication elements in the Ontology for Media Creation<\/a> which covers some aspects on what<\/em> needs to be communicated. Recently we\u2019ve been turning our attention to the how<\/em>\u00a0to express that communication in the most efficient manner.\u00a0 For example, in the 2030 Vision<\/a> our first principle states that content goes straight to the cloud and does not need to be moved. Once ingestion to the cloud has completed, the first participants in the chain will need to be notified that the content is now in the cloud and ready to be worked on and ideally including a location for that content.\u00a0 A similar workflow notification message is required when a task has been finished and the work is ready for review by another team member.\u00a0 In this post we\u2019ll discuss the benefits of a common approach to communicating these repeating types of workflow messages. In a subsequent post we\u2019ll get into the technicalities of how we think such a system could be built including considerations to enable it to span cloud infrastructures and tools.\r\n\r\n Synchronous Real-Time Messages between two known participants.<\/em><\/p>\r\n And more complex messages, especially as we move to more automated systems, where the participants may not know who will pick up the messages and may not receive replies for hours or even days. Take for an example:<\/p>[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=\"https:\/\/movielabs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/render.gif\" alt=\"Render\" title_text=\"Render\" _builder_version=\"4.11.4\" _module_preset=\"default\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=\"4.11.4\" _module_preset=\"default\" background_size=\"initial\" background_position=\"top_left\" background_repeat=\"repeat\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"] Asynchronous Messages between one sender and multiple potential recipients.<\/em><\/p>\r\nIn this example the Render Manager (the message sender) doesn\u2019t know which nodes may respond or when they may respond. There are thousands of such nuanced examples in production workflows that we need to consider when thinking about the sorts of messages that could be sent between systems. We need a messaging approach that can accommodate all of these message types, and also the complexity of multi-cloud infrastructure when messages may be flowing between systems that are not all owned\/leased or operated by the same organization and on the same infrastructure.\r\nStart With the Script<\/h2>\n
Notes on Flow and Format in the Blog<\/h2>\n
\n
2 The Script and Narrative Elements<\/h1>\n
Ezekiel cried dem dry bones<\/em>
Ezekiel cried dem dry bones<\/em>
Now I hear the word of the Lord<\/em><\/p>\n\n
Character: A sentient entity (usually a person, but not always) in the Script whose specific identity is consequential to the narrative. A Character is generally identified by a specific name.<\/li>\n
It sounds simple enough. What follows, however, shows mistakes that can happen when these elements are extracted manually.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
\n2
\n3″ col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” col_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font=”||||||||” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Narrative Scene Name” col_content=”Narrative Scene Name
\nSpace
\nSpace \u2013 moments later” col_column_max_width=”2.2fr” col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” col_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” col_column_max_width_tablet=”2.2fr” col_column_max_width_phone=”2.2fr” col_column_max_width_last_edited=”on|phone” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font=”||||||||” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][\/dvmd_table_maker][et_pb_divider show_divider=”off” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text ul_item_indent=”50px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n
\nSven
\nsven
\nKeira” col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” col_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font=”||||||||” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Narrative Scene” col_content=”Narrative Scene
\n2
\n3
\n2″ col_column_max_width=”2.2fr” col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” col_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” col_column_max_width_tablet=”2.2fr” col_column_max_width_phone=”2.2fr” col_column_max_width_last_edited=”on|phone” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font=”||||||||” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Notes” col_content=”Notes<\/p>\n
\nSatellite Repair Tool” col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” col_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font=”||||||||” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Narrative Scene” col_content=”Narrative Scene
\n2″ col_column_max_width=”2.2fr” col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” col_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” col_column_max_width_tablet=”2.2fr” col_column_max_width_phone=”2.2fr” col_column_max_width_last_edited=”on|phone” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font=”||||||||” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Character Using” col_content=”Character Using
\nSven” col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][\/dvmd_table_maker][et_pb_divider show_divider=”off” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text ul_item_indent=”50px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n
\nAround the Satellite
\nInside Sven\u2019s Ship” col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” col_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font=”||||||||” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Narrative Scene” col_content=”Narrative Scene
\nSpace
\nSpace \u2013 moments later” col_column_max_width=”2.2fr” col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” col_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” col_column_max_width_tablet=”2.2fr” col_column_max_width_phone=”2.2fr” col_column_max_width_last_edited=”on|phone” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font=”||||||||” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][\/dvmd_table_maker][et_pb_divider show_divider=”off” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text ul_item_indent=”50px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n
\nSven\u2019s Spacesuit” col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” col_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font=”||||||||” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Worn By” col_content=”Worn By
\nSvenn” col_column_max_width=”2.2fr” col_tcell_cell_align_horz=”left” col_chead_cell_align_horz=”left” col_column_max_width_tablet=”2.2fr” col_column_max_width_phone=”2.2fr” col_column_max_width_last_edited=”on|phone” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font=”||||||||” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][dvmd_table_maker_item col_label=”Narrative Scene” col_content=”Narrative Scene
\n2, 3″ _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” col_tcell_text_font_size=”16px” col_chead_text_font=”|700|||||||” col_chead_text_font_size=”18px” col_chead_text_letter_spacing=”-0.45px” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/dvmd_table_maker_item][\/dvmd_table_maker][et_pb_divider show_divider=”off” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text ul_item_indent=”50px” _builder_version=”4.16″ _module_preset=”default” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” custom_margin=”||||false|false” custom_padding=”||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n\n
Conclusion<\/h1>\n
The Art of the Message<\/h2>\r\n\r\nWe need to deal with both simple messages, in near real-time, between two participants, like this:[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=\"https:\/\/movielabs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/messaging_system.gif\" alt=\"Simple Message System\" title_text=\"Simple Message System\" _builder_version=\"4.11.4\" _module_preset=\"default\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=\"4.11.4\" _module_preset=\"default\" background_size=\"initial\" background_position=\"top_left\" background_repeat=\"repeat\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"]
Software Messaging Systems<\/h2>\r\nAt MovieLabs we\u2019ve been thinking about approaches to these messaging problems. One approach is using point-to-point API calls between all these disparate systems and while appropriate for many use cases we don\u2019t believe this will scale to whole productions or studios \u2013 there would simply be too many custom integrations to get all the possible components of a workflow to work together.[1]<\/a> We see the best way to manage the highly asynchronous delivery of information to multiple (potentially unknown to the sender) destinations is to decouple the mechanics of the communication \u2013 the what<\/em> from the how<\/em>.\u00a0 In software systems this can be managed in a more automated way using Message Queues.[2]<\/a> A message queue allows a message to be sent blindly (the sender does not need to specifically know who will read it). Specific queues are typically associated with a particular topic, any other participant with an interest in that topic can then subscribe to the queue and receive its messages whenever they\u2019re ready.\r\n\r\nMessage queues \u2013 or, more broadly, message systems \u2013 are a natural fit for software-defined workflows: their raison d'\u00eatre<\/em> is to provide a communication mechanism where senders and receivers can operate without knowing anything about each other beyond how to communicate (the message queue) and some expectations about the contents of the communication (the messages.) This separation allows applications to run independently and, just as importantly, be developed independently.\r\n\r\nAs long as the sending and receiving applications can both access the message queue, it doesn\u2019t matter where the applications are running; they can be in the same cloud, in different clouds, on a workstation in a cloud, or even in two organizations. Agreeing on commonality of some aspects of message headers and message contents can enable interoperability especially in that cross-organizational use case. For example, if a message from an editorial department to a VFX house includes a commonly agreed upon place to put shot and sequence identifiers, a workflow management system at the VFX house can route that message to the appropriate recipients internally.\r\n\r\nThe use of messaging systems rather than point-to-point integrations also makes it easier to gather together operational data for logging, dashboards, and detecting\/acting on exceptions and errors.\r\n
Benefits<\/h2>\r\nAs we look to the 10 Principles of the 2030 Vision, we can see that messaging is key to enabling the \"publish\" function (where access to files is pushed through a workflow, as tasks are created) and enabling participants to \u201csubscribe\u201d to those files, tasks, or changes. Principles 1 and 2 of the 2030 Vision state that assets go to the cloud and do not need to move, which means sharing the location of those files<\/a> becomes a key message that will also need to be shared between systems. By enabling a robust multi-cloud ecosystem with broadly distributed and understandable messages, we hope to unlock the true flexibility of software-defined workflows But we do not need to wait for the entirety of the 2030 Vision ecosystem to be built before we can take advantage of messaging systems \u2013 there are many use cases that can be deployed now to enable a more interoperable and flexible workflow in 2022 and beyond.\r\n
Next Up...<\/h2>\r\nIn our next post we\u2019ll discuss the software elements of a messaging system, types of messages and the use cases we hope to enable with one.\u00a0 Make sure you stay tuned, so you get the message\u2026[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider show_divider=\"off\" _builder_version=\"4.11.4\" _module_preset=\"default\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"][\/et_pb_divider][et_pb_text _builder_version=\"4.11.4\" _module_preset=\"default\" background_size=\"initial\" background_position=\"top_left\" background_repeat=\"repeat\" global_colors_info=\"{}\"][1]<\/a> Not to say that API calls don\u2019t have their place in interoperability. We\u2019re very supportive of applications exposing APIs for system-to-system communication with small amounts of data or messages that need a guaranteed quickish response.\r\n\r\n[2]<\/a> Message queues are a familiar element of software engineering, suited to a wide a variety of inter-process communication problems. Operating systems use them internally, and business and process automation software make heavy use of them.\r\n\r\n[3]<\/a> We define \u201ccloud\u201d in the 2030 Vision as private, public and hybrid infrastructures connected to the internet and therefore envision productions that need to span across all of those.\u00a0 See the multi-cloud blog here [insert link] for more details.[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]","_et_gb_content_width":"","_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[77,84],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[56],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n