Movie Sources

First up, ma apologies for not posting for such a long time. Been busy !!
Hopefully shall keep posting more often from now on.... Plus the net's back up at home so that always helps....

The reason why i chose this topic is that i felt its something that is interesting......

I am sure that you all have either downloaded and/or seen a movie from the web.... Ever wondered what the filenames actually mean?? Hopefully after reading this you shall find some clarity.....

Here's a normal file/folder name that you may find on the web...
The.Darjeeling.Limited.DVDRip.XviD-DMT
So... what does this name mean in terms of quality, in terms of size, etc??

The name of the movie is obviously The Darjeeling Limited
Its a DVDRip... meaning ripped/copied/converted into .avi from a DVD
Xvid here refers to the codec used to rip the movie.
DMT here is the releasers/uploader/ripper's name

DMT here may be an individual or a group of dudes/dudettes who do this stuff!!

Ok so now you know what the name means... Lets move on to other movie sources...
Now movie sources are basically the format from which a movie is shaped up so that it can be uploaded and viewed by others.

Here are the Various Sources.

CAM
Now a CAM rip is what we call a "theatre print". Its usually shot using a Digital Video Camera in the theatre. A mini tripod is sometimes used, but a lot of the time this wont be possible, so the camera may shake. Also since its dependant on a camera, there may be an agle involved. Cropping which means cutting a part of the picture out is used a lot in this kind of source because one may not always get the exact frame of the screen. Sound in this case is taken using the on board mic. Obviously, its not gr8 plus you might hear people laughing or screaming depending on the film. However, becasue this source is normally shot in an empty or close to empty hall to avoid detection, sound isn't always bad.

TELESYNC (TS)

A telesync is the same thing as a CAM except it uses an external audio source (most likely an audio jack in the chair for hard of hearing people). A direct audio source does not ensure a good quality audio source, as a lot of background noise can interfere. A lot of the times a telesync is filmed in an empty cinema or from the projection booth with a professional camera, giving a better picture quality. The quality ranges from drastic to pristine. Its always advisable to check out samples before going in for this kind of source. It happens a lot that CAM rips are mislabelled at Telesync's.

TELECINE (TC)

A telecine machine copies the film digitally from the reels. Sound and picture should be very good, but due to the equipment involved and cost telecines are fairly uncommon. TC should not be confused with TimeCode, which is a visible counter on screen throughout the film. If done well, the TC is a big jump up in terms of quality from CAM for sure and most likely a TS as well.

SCR (VHS)

A pre VHS tape, sent to rental stores, and various other places for promotional use. A screener is supplied on a VHS tape, and is usually in a full screen resolution, although letterboxed screeners are sometimes found. The main draw back is a “ticker” (a message that scrolls past at the bottom of the screen, with the copyright and anti-copy telephone number). Also, if the tape contains any serial numbers, or any other markings that could lead to the source of the tape, these will have to be blocked, usually with a black mark over the section. This is sometimes only for a few seconds, but unfortunately on some copies this will last for the entire film, and some can be quite big. Depending on the equipment used, screener quality can range from excellent if done from a MASTER copy, to very poor if done on an old VHS recorder thru poor capture equipment on a copied tape. Most screeners are transferred to VCD, but a few attempts at SVCD have occurred, some looking better than others. This type of thing is old school and not many are found these days.

DVD-SCREENER (DVDscr)

Same premise as a screener, but transferred off a DVD. Usually letterbox or widescreen (black bars top and bottom) , but without the extras that a DVD retail would contain. The ticker is not usually in the black bars, and will disrupt the viewing. If the ripper has any skill, a DVDscr should be very good. Usually transferred to SVCD or DivX/XviD. These show up a lot around award times because they are sent to award juries and end up getting leaked from there. Even otherwise DVDscr have become quite common. I remember the DVDscr for a certain ridley scott film about a "firangi gunda" was leaked online around 2 weeks prior to theatrical release.

WORKPRINT (WP)

A workprint is a copy of the film that has not been finished. It can be missing scenes, music, and quality can range from excellent to very poor. Some WPs are very different from the final print and others can contain extra scenes. WPs can be nice additions to the collection once a good quality final has been obtained. Sometimes the special effects have not been added so its quite funny. Same is when sound has not been added and people are firing shots onscreen without any sound.

R5

This is fairly new movie format. Basically the same as DVD Screener - this kind of release is legal DVD released in Russia to decrease the level of pirated movies in this country. Retail is rushed out by the studio, so there is little to no cleanup of the film after the telecine process. As a result, you can see some scratches, hairs or other mess on the picture, but you will hardly notice it while watching. External English audio is often used, as these are supplied with Russian sound by default. These are quite popular because they give nice flawless DVDlike prints, however because the audio used is not the original, sometimes it can be a lil weird. However, if the audio quality from another source is good, its almost as good as a DVDRip

DVDRip

A copy of the final released DVD. If possible this is released PRE retail. Again, should be excellent quality. DVDrips are released in SVCD and DivX/XviD. This is the definitive print for sure (unless its fake of course) These are normally on the web a good week or so before the actual retail release. These may come in 5.1 surround.

Each of these may come in either 1cd (700mb) or 2cd (1.36gb) sizes, depending on quality and length of the movie. The really good groups are great at getting the sources and releasing these before others. People also tend to re-encode other people's uploads and try and pass it on as theirs.

These wars are sometimes good and sometimes bad for people who await releases.