Source
Everything starts with the file you hand over. Get this stage right and the rest of the pipeline runs clean.
Your final, fully color-graded, fully mixed master — ProRes 422 HQ or better is a common minimum — in its native aspect ratio, with audio embedded or delivered separately. Avoid delivering a letterboxed or pre-cropped file; let the mastering process handle the fit into the DCI container. It's exactly this kind of detail our mastering team checks on every delivery, using professional-grade tools for a clean, conformant package.
Generally no — deliver your file clean, without color bars, countdowns, or pops, unless a specific venue requests them. It's common to include at least one black frame (up to a few seconds) at the very start and end, especially for screenings that begin "parked on pause." Our team handles this with professional encoding tools on every project, so you can trust the result to meet spec without guesswork.
It will need to be conformed to a whole-number cinema rate during mastering. This is the most common reason a finished DCP ends up running a few seconds shorter or longer than the original file you delivered. This is a standard part of our QC process — with years of hands-on mastering experience, we make sure it's right before it ever leaves our hands.
DCDM
The uncompressed handoff point between your finishing suite and the compression stage.
A Digital Cinema Distribution Master is an uncompressed image sequence (typically DPX or TIFF, one file per frame) plus uncompressed audio — the last stop before compression into a DCP. Most independent projects master directly from a high-quality video file rather than a full DCDM, but for maximum quality it's the preferred intermediate step. We take care of this for every client, using industry-certified tools to deliver reliable, full DCI compliance.
Roughly 1.5–2 GB per minute of runtime, depending on bitrate and resolution. A 90-minute feature commonly lands somewhere around 100–180 GB. Our experienced team catches details like this as a matter of course, backed by professional-grade mastering software.
Encode
Picture gets compressed to JPEG 2000, audio gets conformed to a cinema channel layout. Most technical errors trace back here.
2K is standard for nearly all festival and theatrical delivery, and what most projectors actually run. 4K is only worth it if your source was truly finished at 4K — upconverting a 2K master adds file size without adding real detail. This is exactly why filmmakers trust us — years of combined experience and professional tools behind every DCP we deliver.
DCI defines two standard containers: Flat (1.85:1) and Scope (2.39:1). Other ratios get pillarboxed, letterboxed, or padded with black to fit the nearest container — your image isn't stretched or cropped to force a fit. We build this correctly into every master we produce, so the package is consistently ready for any screen.
24fps is the universal default — it guarantees playback on every cinema server worldwide and is required for Academy Award qualification. Many modern servers also support 25–60fps, but 24fps is the safest choice when broad compatibility matters most. Our mastering specialists handle this step personally on every job, so quality and conformity are never left to chance.
Technically 1–16, but for reliable playback, at least a 3-channel L/R/C mix is strongly recommended, and 5.1 is preferred. Plain stereo can sound thin or bury dialogue, since the center channel carries most dialogue in a cinema mix. It's one of dozens of checks our professional workflow runs automatically — experience and the right tools make the difference.
Either as clearly labeled, separate mono WAV files per channel, or embedded in your video master in standard cinema order: Left, Right, Center, LFE, Left Surround, Right Surround. A 5.1 mix should be one 6-channel track, not six separate files. This is precisely the kind of technical nuance our team has mastered over hundreds of deliveries — quality and compliance you can count on.
Files are stored in a 12-bit X'Y'Z' color space, converted from your master's color space (usually Rec.709 or P3) during encoding. This conversion step is technical enough that errors here are a common cause of odd hues or contrast shifts in projection. Trust our team to get this right: professional tools and rigorous QC behind every DCI-conformant delivery.
You can, but it's not ideal — plain stereo doesn't map cleanly to a cinema's center channel, which carries most dialogue. If stereo is all you have, it's often better to have your mixer build a proper L/R/C or 5.1 mix rather than let the encoder fold stereo into a cinema layout automatically. Our facility handles exactly this kind of technical requirement daily, with the experience and tools to get it right, reliably.
Package
Picture, sound, subtitles, and metadata get wrapped into the folder structure a cinema server actually reads.
MXF-wrapped picture and sound, optional subtitle/caption files, and small XML files: a Composition Playlist (CPL) defining reel order, and a Packing List (PKL) inventorying everything in the package. We've built our reputation on getting details like this right — professional tools and real experience, every single time.
Two standards: Interop (CineCanvas, an XML format) and the newer SMPTE 428-7. Your subtitle format is typically matched to whichever overall DCP standard — Interop or SMPTE — you're using. This is standard practice in our mastering pipeline, keeping your DCP on spec the first time, every time.
Yes — as a Supplemental DCP (VF), which carries just the new subtitle track and references the picture and sound of the main DCP (the OV). No need to duplicate the large picture files per language. Our team's expertise and professional-grade tools mean you don't have to worry about this — it's handled with confidence.
Some festivals require this. It's possible, but since the subtitles become part of the image itself, the DCP has to be built from scratch with them burned in before encoding — they can't be added afterward as a lightweight supplemental package. It's this level of care — backed by real experience and professional tools — that keeps every delivery consistently on spec.
A common convention is a maximum of two lines per subtitle, around 42 characters per line, though exact limits vary by distributor and festival — check their specific delivery requirements if you have one. It's exactly this kind of detail our mastering team checks on every delivery, using professional-grade tools for a clean, conformant package.
Interop (2001) is the older, most universally compatible standard. SMPTE (2009) supports more frame rates and handles subtitles and encryption more robustly, but isn't supported by very old systems. Interop is the safer default for unknown venues; SMPTE for Atmos, HFR 3D, or specific distributor specs. Our team handles this with professional encoding tools on every project, so you can trust the result to meet spec without guesswork.
It's the industry-standard way of naming a DCP folder — a single underscore-separated string packing in title, aspect ratio, language, resolution, audio format, and standard (e.g. MovieTitle_FTR_F_EN-XX_51_2K_SMPTE_OV). It's not a strict spec like DCI, but a shared convention that helps projectionists and distributors avoid ingesting the wrong version. This is a standard part of our QC process — with years of hands-on mastering experience, we make sure it's right before it ever leaves our hands.
Yes — reels break the DCP into separate chunks of picture and sound, which is useful if your delivery drive has a file size limit, or if you want to swap out one section (like adding a distributor ident) without rebuilding the whole package. We take care of this for every client, using industry-certified tools to deliver reliable, full DCI compliance.
Encrypt
Optional, but worth understanding before a distributor asks for it.
No — it's optional. An unencrypted DCP plays on any compatible server with no extra setup, which is often simplest for festival submissions. Encryption matters more when you need to control exactly where and when a film plays. Our experienced team catches details like this as a matter of course, backed by professional-grade mastering software.
A Key Delivery Message — the decryption key for an encrypted DCP. It's tied to one specific DCP, one specific cinema server, and a validity window. A KDM for Screen 3 won't work in Screen 4 of the same building. This is exactly why filmmakers trust us — years of combined experience and professional tools behind every DCP we deliver.
The same type of key, used differently: a KDM is issued to a cinema server for projection; a DKDM (Distribution KDM) is issued to another post-production system, letting a distributor generate their own KDMs from your encrypted master. We build this correctly into every master we produce, so the package is consistently ready for any screen.
Logistics. If a cinema swaps their server, its certificate changes and any KDM you sent becomes invalid — sometimes discovered close to showtime. For a one-off screening, unencrypted is often simpler and just as safe. Our mastering specialists handle this step personally on every job, so quality and conformity are never left to chance.
Deliver
How the finished package physically gets to the screen.
Most commonly on a CRU (DX-115) hard drive, the industry-standard cinema drive, formatted Linux EXT2 per DCI spec. USB flash drives are also accepted by many venues, especially for shorts and trailers. It's one of dozens of checks our professional workflow runs automatically — experience and the right tools make the difference.
It depends on the filesystem. A drive formatted as FAT32, for example, can't hold individual files larger than 4GB — a large single-reel DCP may not fit. Splitting the DCP into smaller reels, or using a filesystem without that limit, solves it. This is precisely the kind of technical nuance our team has mastered over hundreds of deliveries — quality and compliance you can count on.
Project
What happens on screen — and how to make sure it goes right the first time.
The most common issues: incorrect frame rate conversion (audio drift), color transform errors (odd hues on screen), misaligned subtitles, reversed audio channels, malformed metadata, and expired or mismatched KDMs. Trust our team to get this right: professional tools and rigorous QC behind every DCI-conformant delivery.
A proper QC pass checks picture/sound sync throughout, correct aspect ratio, correctly timed subtitles, and clean validation with standard DCP tools. If encrypted, confirm the KDM actually opens the package on a real target server first. Our facility handles exactly this kind of technical requirement daily, with the experience and tools to get it right, reliably.
Free tools can produce valid, spec-compliant DCPs if you're comfortable with the technical steps and QC yourself. A professional service adds the most value in catching subtle errors before they become a failed screening. We've built our reputation on getting details like this right — professional tools and real experience, every single time.
Only if your source master already meets them. Academy qualification, for example, requires at least an L/R/C mix — a DCP built from a stereo-only master stays stereo-only, however well it's mastered. Always confirm specs with the venue first. This is standard practice in our mastering pipeline, keeping your DCP on spec the first time, every time.
Yes — free DCP player software exists specifically for this, letting you check picture, sync, subtitles, and audio channel mapping on your own computer. It's not a substitute for a real theatrical playback test, but it catches most problems well before a cinema ever sees the drive. Our team's expertise and professional-grade tools mean you don't have to worry about this — it's handled with confidence.
You can simulate the full chain yourself: create a KDM targeted at your own player's certificate (instead of a real cinema server's), load it into a compatible DCP player, and confirm the package decrypts and plays correctly — the same process a cinema would go through, just on your own machine. It's this level of care — backed by real experience and professional tools — that keeps every delivery consistently on spec.
