Timecode for Multiple Cameras | Filmmaking Tips & Tutorials

A simple rule for film sets, the more cameras and recorders you have on set, the more important it is to keep them in sync and organized. In this episode, we'll show how to use timecode on a multi-camera production. Today, we're on the set of an improvisational D&D show called The Dice Decide. We thought it would be a great opportunity to meet their sound mixer and go over all of the different ways they achieved quality sound and sync during the production. That way, you guys can learn from it. Please welcome our guest, Blake Christian. Hey everyone, and welcome to the set of The Dice Decide. My name is Blake, and I'm the production sound mixer. Multi-camera productions offer unique challenges. Primarily, there are just a lot more things to keep track of. More cameras, more audio tracks, more data. All of it starting and stopping independently of each other. It's imperative that your devices, regardless of brand, are on the same page. In this case, the same clock. My first responsibility on the set is getting every device that is needed Wait, what is timecode? We've explained this a bazillion times, and you can bet we'll keep explaining. It's that important. Timecode is frame-accurate metadata embedded into a file. This metadata is generated by a special type of clock and serves as the language all of your devices use to stay in sync, no matter how out of whack their start and stop points are throughout the day. Fun fact, timecode can also be recorded as audio. It sounds like this. And it's awful. What that practically means is that your editor presses one button to sync all the devices using this clock instead of lining everything up manually. In multi-camera edits, that translates to hours or days of saved time. Most professional devices have their own internal clocks, but again, the clocks are isolated to the device. Worse yet, camera clocks can drift over time, making them useless for sync. You will need an external timecode generator that stays attached to the camera and recorder, and that will feed the device timecode you can reliably use. Sadly, you can't plug in a generator to update the device's clock and then unplug it. It will need to stay connected to avoid drift. So how many devices will be used on the day? There are six cameras and one audio recorder, getting six signals from six different body packs. One of my pre-production responsibilities is to ask what cameras are being used on the day. This way I know how many timecode boxes to bring and which cables I'll be needing. It's also important to know what type of timecode those devices can use. Professional cameras use metadata timecode, while mirrorless cameras need to use LTC audio timecode. This is information to put in your sound report so the editor knows what to look for. When the timecode generator is ready to be given to the camera operator, watch the camera LCD over their shoulder. If you did your research beforehand, you'll know where to look to confirm that the camera is receiving the timecode. Don't assume that just because the generator is connected that it's working. Also, don't touch the camera. They really don't like that. Be open to walking the operator through the menus though if they don't have any experience with setting up timecode. We always say communication is key on set, and that holds true here. We have a bunch of timecode tutorials for different cameras, and they're all like a minute long, so research will be easy. Once all the cameras have been properly connected, I can focus on getting my recorder up and running. I want to make sure my recorder also has a generator attached because this will serve as my master clock. Then I can double check my frame rate and that everything is synced. If you're on a set without a centralized recorder and would rather record on a body pack locally, you don't have to forego using timecode. The Deity Theos offers wireless timecode sync and records internally. This setup would be ideal for a show like Netflix's Physical 100, where they had dozens of contestants wearing recorders. Some people like the timecode signal to come from their recorder and feed the rest of their devices. This means the generator is receiving the timecode from the recorder and then sending it to all the other generators. With the TC-1, you don't need to do this. It adds a level of menu hopping and time to setup. It's often easier and less failure prone to feed timecode from the generator into the recorder, just like all our other devices. Every sound mixer has a preference on this. Make a decision based on what you are comfortable with. Now that our timecode is set up, it's good to have some redundancies in place when dealing with multi-camera setups. This is where a smart slate comes in. We're using the Deity TC-SL1, which has the same timecode clock as our generators. The first redundancy is that it displays the timecode on the faceplate. This way every camera can visually see what frame the footage is on at the start of every shot. Scene 2 alpha, take 3, mark. Additionally, when we mark it, the loud sound it makes is our last resort sync point if the timecode isn't set up properly. If you look at the front of the plate, there is also a bunch of information relating to what take we're on, what scene we're shooting, and what media card all that footage is on. It's important to know that multi-camera productions require the slate to be marked differently than normal to accommodate the multiple cameras and their media cards. Our second AC, Ryan Hasegawa, is here to tell you more. Handling the slate and the information on it is done by the second AC, but often the slate itself is brought by the sound department because that has to fit in their timecode system. Deity has a whole video dedicated to slating in the link below. I'm going to walk you through how slating for multi-cam shoots is a little different. Firstly, if you're shooting with three or more cameras, you might need more than one slate. In an ideal world, each camera would get its own. That way we could track the information relevant to each camera. Memory card A from camera A is not going to have camera B's footage on it. When all the cameras start rolling, each slate should already be in the shot of their assigned camera. One by one, the second ACs call out the camera they're slating for and then mark it. We call out the camera that's being slated so the editor doesn't confuse one sync point for another. Camera A, scene one alpha, take one, marker. Camera B, scene one alpha, take one, marker. Camera C, scene one alpha, take one, marker. Not every budget allows for that many slates though. So second ACs have developed a clever workaround to do this with only one slate and operator. If all the cameras are looking at the same subject, have the slate at the beginning of all those recordings. This is called common sticks. When it comes to tracking memory cards, you normally only list one memory card a camera is using. But in common sticks, we display all the cards being used. The second AC doesn't say that though when they're marking because it can be kind of a mouthful. Common sticks, scene two alpha, take one, marker. This system might require the camera operators to temporarily reframe so they can see the slate. But that's not always possible. But in situations like that, use common sticks for the ones that can't be grouped. Can't be grouped. And then the individual camera name after you reposition the slate. Camera A and B common sticks, scene three alpha, take one, marker. Camera C, scene three alpha, take one, marker. This may seem like a lot of work, but those extra 30 seconds of redundancy can save you hours later. Not you specifically, but the editor who will then yell at you less on set. After the shoot is complete, and if everything goes according to plan, your editor will be very happy with you because you did your due diligence with timecode. And if somehow timecode failed, well, you still have slate marks in place to ensure the editor can still find the sync. If you're an editor and would like to find out how to best utilize that timecode in your software, we have a few videos on that below. If you recorded timecode to your audio track, we now make software just for you. Check out the link for Sidus TC Sync in the description below. Timecode is just one of the many responsibilities we have as sound mixers, but you must master your gear and know how to tackle any timecode setup, especially when there are multiple cameras and recorders involved. Do your research and communicate with the camera department and know each audio file should be labeled properly for the editor. A huge thank you to the Dice to Side team for letting us stop by and work with them. If you want to know more about the show, we have it linked in the description. Until next time, subscribe and happy shooting.