Aspect Ratio Question

[rlabarge]

Hi Everyone:

There is a little-known provision in the DVD-Video specification that allows pan-scan information to be included on a widescreen DVD title so that the end user can select one of three viewing modes. These are:

(1) 16:9 display on a 16:9 monitor
(2) 4:3 letterbox display on a 4:3 monitor
(3) 4:3 pan scan display on a 4:3 monitor

I am working on a 16:9 DVD title right now and I have figured out how to add the required pan scan information to support all three of the display modes listed above (this is not a very easy thing to do!).

I have a few questions that I was hoping some HTGuide members could help me with.

(1) Do most consumers understand that their DVD-Video player can be set up for one of the three display modes I mentioned above?

(2) If a consumer has their DVD-Video player set up for 4:3 pan scan, will they feel "cheated" if a title that says "widescreen" on the box actually displays as 4:3 full screen? The title may actually have widescreen support, but since their player is set for 4:3 pan scan the consumer will never see the video in widescreen mode unless they change their player settings.

(3) Assuming that I release a title with widescreen video (16:9 anamorphic) that also includes the option to be displayed in 4:3 letterbox and 4:3 pan scan, is there some preferred method for me to identify this on the DVD pacakage so that consumers know what they are getting?

(4) Last, but not least, is it worthwhile to include a 4:3 pan scan option on a 16:9 title? The only consumers who would watch the title in this manner are those who have 4:3 monitors and dont like black bars (there seem to be a fair number of people in this category).

Thanks in advance for your answers. If I have not explained this well enough please let me know and I will try again.




Ralph LaBarge
Managing Partner, Alpha DVD
Author, "DVD Authoring & Production"
rlabarge@alphadvd.com

[Andrew Pratt]

good questions raplh..I'm not sure how to answer them though given that I've never seen a title before that offered it so its uncharted water. Is it a cool feature..yup, is it worth the effort...not sure. If it weren't for the fact some people might get confused if it automatically did the pan scam on the fly I'd say sure add it as a feature.

[George Bellefontaine]

It certainly wouldn't hurt to add it. I do believe that the majority of consumers know they have to set up the dvd player according to the kind of display device they own. But then there are always those who don't bother to read a manual.




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[Andrew Pratt]

George you'd be surprised at how many aren't set up right..esp if its not the factory defualt settings. I can't count the number of times I've had to adjust store demo models..but granted those were running on widescreen sets and not set to output 16:9...

[rlabarge]

That is my biggest concern, a player that is simply not setup correctly. If for some reason the player is set to 4:3 pan scan and the user actually wants to see a letterbox version of the title, then they might feel that the DVD was falsely advertised since it says widescreen on the cover and they are seeing full frame pan scan.

I would prefer that consumers watch the title in widescreen on a 16:9 display, or letterbox on a 4:3 display. I can actually author the title so that these are the only two options.

However there is a segment of the DVD population that have their players connected to 4:3 displays and dont particularly like letterboxed content. I dont want to get into a debate on the merits of this preference, the fact is there are people who prefer this method of display and as a title developer I would like to deliver a title that makes everyone happy.

I suppose I will have to add a written disclaimer of sorts on the package, and possibly even a menu screen. On the Disney Dinosaur package they list this:

Choice Of Viewing Presentation
Widescreen (1.85:1) - Enhanced for 16:9 televisions
Fullscreen (1.33:1)




Ralph LaBarge
Managing Partner, Alpha DVD
Author, "DVD Authoring & Production"
rlabarge@alphadvd.com

[Andrew Pratt]

ralph if you can do via menu's thats the way I'd go about it.

[rlabarge]

One problem with the "menu" approach is you then have to include two distinct versions of the MPEG-2 video on the disc, thus doubling the amount of storage you need. I could do it this way, but I was planning on having about 2 GBytes of DVD-ROM data on the disc, and I would not have room for that if the video is on the disc twice.

Good idea though.




Ralph LaBarge
Managing Partner, Alpha DVD
Author, "DVD Authoring & Production"
rlabarge@alphadvd.com

[KennyG]

This is going to be tuff to implement, simply because of the masses that know absolutely nothing about their players.
Most want to plug it in and be done with it at that point...alot of people can't even set up a basic receiver based system.
Perhaps you could include a simple piece of paper, placed in the "booklet" tabs that instructs people, in a general way, how to get in and change their DVD player to the mode they wish to view.

[rlabarge]

Another good idea. I always have a printed insert inside the DVD package. I could add a brief descritpion of how to correctly set up the DVD player for each display method.

I think I am also going to add a screen to the Special Features section of the menus describing the different display methods, giving them my "recommended" display methods, and telling them how to set up their player.

This title is a little different for me since I have actually created the content, as well as authored the disc. So I have to think like both the director and the DVD author. I really want people to watch it in 16:9 or 4:3 letterbox, cause if they dont they are going to miss quite a bit of good stuff that gets cropped out in the 4:3 pan scan.




Ralph LaBarge
Managing Partner, Alpha DVD
Author, "DVD Authoring & Production"
rlabarge@alphadvd.com

[P-Dub]

Ralph,

To answer your questions:

(1) I would say the majority of consumers do not understand that their player has three display modes. In fact, they may not do any initial setup, as I'm guessing that newer players just come defaulted to 4:3.

(2) No, to be blunt, a pan and scan 16:9 to 4:3, I don't think any 'regular' consumer will notice a difference or care. Now this really depends on the content of the DVD.

(3) This is tough as I think a 'regular' consumer will have a hard time discering the difference between a 16:9 and a 4:3 letterbox. The best way may be a graphic that shows the 16:9 and the 4:3 pan & scan box and note that you have the option via your players setup menu. I know I left out the 4:3 letter box, but I think that might need to be explained as a note in the inside, or even on the DVD itself. In fact, here's an idea. I think I saw this on the DVD Spectacluar DVD or was it in a THX optimode. What you can do is provide a one frame graphic that will show the consumer that he has selected the proper setup. I think this is done with a bunch of circles. One big one in the center and four on the corners. So when the consumer set's his player up, he can return to the graphic and check that he has his player setup properly.

(4) That depends on the content. A 16:9 title will have the least amount of black bars when shown letter boxed. But then I don't mind black bars, so I'm already biased. The only other way is to include a separate 4:3 and 16:9 format. But from what you have said, this doubles the content and take up valuable space.

I think that all will depend on the content of the DVD.

One thing that is confusing. You say 16:9, so anamorphic, and 4:3 letterbox. Um, what's the diff? If I select 4:3 letterbox, does the player then paint the black bars with the content? That's what I'm assuming happens. While a 16:9, my player will downconvert, and hence I will get jaggies. Then the player P&S, does it take the 4:3 letterbox, and then zoom to 4:3 and you code it so it knows when to P&S? Just the thought of that makes me sick. :P Okay, I'm trying to be a DVD snob.

What I'm thinking about is that NBC showed ER in 16:9 from Feb onward. I don't know what the end feedback was, but I sent in my kind words for the format. So people are being exposed to the format. It's just they may not be able to set their player properly. In fact, what's to stop you from just including a nice 16:9 transfer and leave it at that? Hence my question above about the diff between 16:9 and 4:3 letterbox.

I'd be interested in hearing more about your upcomming dvd.




Paul

There are three kinds of people in this world; those that can count, and those that can't.

[rlabarge]

Paul, thanks for the detailed response. Let me answer one of your questions. You said:

"One thing that is confusing. You say 16:9, so anamorphic, and 4:3 letterbox. Um, what's the diff? If I select 4:3 letterbox, does the player then paint the black bars with the content?"

For the title I am currently working on the original aspect ratio is 1.78:1, which is exactly 16:9. In order to fit a 1.78:1 aspect ratio video into the DVD-Video standard it is anamorphically squeezed to fit into a 1.33:1 ratio prior to video compression, and the the DVD player will unsqueeze it during playback.

So when this title is played back on a widescreen monitor (16:9) there wont be any black bars at all since the aspect ratio of the content exactly matches the aspect ratio of the display.

For a 4:3 letterbox display of this title the player does insert black bars at the top and botom of the display to "fill" the area of the screen that has no active information.

Aspect ratios and display modes for DVD can be a very difficult subject for the general consumer (the HTGuide members are much better informed on this subject than the general consumer), so I know I will need to provide some background information to "educate" the general user about the difference between the various display methods.

Your suggestion of using graphics to describe the difference is excellent. I have seen this done on some Hollywood feature films, such as Dinosaur, and it really helps communicate the differences between the display methods. I have some graphics that use a standard TV test pattern with circles to show what happens to widescreen content that is displayed in pan scan or letterbox. I might be able to use these, or perhaps just select a scene from the video that could be used to demonstrate the same concepts.

Thanks again for your comments.




Ralph LaBarge
Managing Partner, Alpha DVD
Author, "DVD Authoring & Production"
rlabarge@alphadvd.com

[George Bellefontaine]

Ralph,
The one thing I am pleased to see is there is a least one person out there, in the dvd authoring field, that actually cares about the average consumer.
Good luck with the dvd you are working on. And BTW,Kenny's idea of adding an insert to the dvd detailing the two possible formats seems to be an excellent idea.




My Homepage!

[P-Dub]

Okay, I think I understand. Essentially any dvd that has been anamorphically mastered, will display properly when the player output is is set to 16:9 and there is a 16:9 display.

When a player is set to 4:3 letter box, which is my setting, any anamorphic material is letter boxed and downconverted by the player to display propery on a 4:3 display.

The new feature, is whether people will use the 4:3 pan & scan setting. This is where the player, I guess through tags on the DVD, will do the panning and scanning. The result will be no downconversion artifacts, but the loss of material from the cropping.

Here's another small group, consumers that have sets that will do the automatic squeeze on anamorphic material. These would mostly be people with the 2000 and 2001 Sony Wega 4:3 sets and the Sony HS10 and XBR series RPTVs, 4:3 as well. These sets when fed a 16:9 signal, will automatically squeeze the material to 16:9 and insert the black bars. This maintains the resolution. The feature is selected from the set's setup menu, so the consumer must still be aware of it in the first place and its benefits. I'm not sure which other sets have this feature.

I think I got mixed up with anamorphic mastering and nonanamorphic in my original response.




Paul

There are three kinds of people in this world; those that can count, and those that can't.