Like so many things in video production, there isn’t a one size fits all workflow for every editor and project. Carefully choosing the right workflow can help reduce the amount of revisions, and yield a better end product. It’s important to note that audio workflow will be discussed in a separate lesson. In general, most video workflows contain the following elements in this order. pre-edit tasks, assembling a rough cut, creating a fine cut, and finishing. In the fourth step there are a whole number of substeps, including fixing video issues, color correction, effects, color grading, and titles. This simple list encompasses all the tasks you’ll need to accomplish to create your video, no matter which workflow you ultimately choose. planning your workflow video workflows can vary wildly for different projects. From the number of people on a team to the type of files and software you’ll use, many factors contribute to making the right choice. In general you have three workflow options to choose from. Single program, linear, or round-tripping. A single program workflow uses your primary editing software to handle all aspects of the editing process. This means everything from transcoding your footage to exporting deliverables is accomplished within one program. Of course this is the simplest of all workflows, but may not give you the most powerful tools for color correction, effects, audio, and more. A linear workflow uses a series of programs to move through a video workflow. This may begin with one program for transcoding to an intermediate codec or proxies, moving to your primary editor for the cut, then onto a color correction program to create your deliverables. This method can take advantage of software designed to perform specific tasks, while avoiding the need for more complex exporting and importing to complete your workflow. Finally we have the option of roundtripping. roundtripping is the process of sending information from one piece of software to another to perform specific tasks, then bringing the results back into your original program for further modifications. There are really two types of roundtripping. Single vendor, and multiple vendor. Single vendor roundtripping refers to the process of using two or more programs from a single vendor that doesn’t require rendering, or exporting and edl, aaf, or xml file. One such example is dynamic link in Adobe Creative Cloud. Let’s take a look at an example using Premiere Pro and after effects premier and afx dynamic link While it may be convenient, you might not want to perform all of your tasks in software designed by the same vendor. That’s where multiple vendor roundtripping comes in. Multiple vendor roundtripping uses data files such as edl, aaf, or xml to allow two programs from different vendors to work together. You use one piece of software for the primary edit and export your timeline “instructions”. You then import these instructions and perform specific tasks such as color correction. Once completed, you export the results for use in the original editing software to complete the final steps of your workflow. Let’s take a look at an example premiere timeline, color correct in resolve, export results The right workflow may be different for each project. The general idea is to have your final output being exported from the closest thing to an original file you can manage while still being able to edit efficiently, meet your deadlines, and use the ideal tools for the job.