Editors Are Bringing Media Back From Home. Now They Need a Place to Put It.
A Letter To Post Production Engineers About Post-COVID Data Repatriation
The return is inevitable. Editors, Assistants, and Colorists- hard drives in hand- will be coming back to the office soon. There’s work to be done- shows to deliver. There has been so much media sent home over the last few months, and when Editors return to the facility, the copied media, graphics, and project files will most likely not fit on your current network storage environment.
The sheer volume of media in a duplicated distributed workflow is exactly why TV and Film production abandoned it in favor of centralized shared storage decades ago. It doesn’t matter if it is Avid, Adobe, or DaVinci that you use- You will need to be able to quickly analyze just what is coming back in the door- and create a process for what gets integrated, and what does not.
In some of these cases- there has been too much new media created over the last few months, and you’ll need new additional shared storage. Another chassis of spinning disks to add to the new file system. Perhaps, you’ll need a Tier 1 or Tier 2. That’s the simple piece to figure out right now- contact Key Code Media for help.
But not everyone is coming back right away. We’re potentially entering a new hybrid workforce for post production. We’re going to go from Work-From-Home (WFM) to Work-From-Anywhere (WFA). That’s going to need special tools to get us there- media management on a much larger scale than anyone has really had to get into. What is where, and when is critical in continuing to feed the machine of Post, in the new WFA paradigm. There’s a level of media analytics that most organizations don’t have right now. You also might need a hand getting all that gear- workstations, monitors, and networks- coming back in the door all put the pieces back together.
Data Repatriation For Media Facilities
What isn’t easy to determine is the wheat from the chaff. Data repatriation is the process of moving data back to a self-managed infrastructure. What data do we bring back? What data do we not bring back? How do I quickly determine what’s worth keeping? When things rapidly shift, it’s usually best to err on the side of too much- and that’s what we all did when it left the building. Now, here they are – about to bring it back!
One software company, storageDNA, developed a tool that can index, track, and move data across multiple storage devices, across multiple locations. DNAfabric can index and move data on any type of open storage. This includes removable HDDs, camera cards, SAN, NAS, Nearline or online storage. It can show you what data exists at the office, and also at home- and what data is truly unique- you only need the missing puzzle pieces.
That pares it all down quite a bit- you don’t bring back what was just copies in the first place. Analyze what media and files should be saved, and evaluate your true needs.
Learn More: DNAfabric and Media Re-Integration
Editors Will Continue To Work From Home
There will be some of your coworkers that aren’t coming back right away. They will continue to work from home. These coworkers are still going to need to collaborate on video and audio projects, with access to new and existing media at the facility.
Shared projects AND Bins are possible now between the facility and the work-from-home user. Remote shared projects give you a truly shared work-from-anywhere environment. Regardless off editorial software, (Adobe, Avid, DaVinci) you can have your teamwork from anywhere- together.
What Do I Do Next?
There is a path forward, but it gets complicated in the details. That’s why Key Code Media is here to help. Over the last few months, we’ve helped hundreds of post production customers navigate working during the stay-at-home order. Now, we are prepared to help you bring it all back and plan for the unknown future. Contact us.
PS- It was easy to take it apart and send it away. Putting it all back together at once can be a challenge. If you find you need more hands to rewire, set up, and reintegrate all that equipment- we’ve got the trained folks to help.
