DCP in 2048x1080

Hi,

I usually deliver DCps in Flat and Scope and now i got an inquiry, where the footage is shot in 2048x1080.

From what i read it should be part of the SMPTE DCP Specification:
Does anybody have experience with a DCI DCP, i´m a bit hesitant, that i would play nicely on almost all DCP Servers, but in theory it should run smoothly....

Thank you...

Hello,

Yes it's 100% compliant.

I usually deliver DCps in Flat and Scope and now i got an inquiry, where the footage is shot in 2048x1080. From what i read it should be part of the SMPTE DCP Specification. Does anybody have experience with a DCI DCP, i´m a bit hesitant, that i would play nicely on almost all DCP Servers, but in theory it should run smoothly....

It's technically part of the DCI spec, but 2048x1080 is not widely accepted at "regular" movie theaters and festivals. Here are the theatrical DCP formats they expect:



1.85, 2.39, and (sometimes) 1.78 are the main theatrical release formats. I can remember a case where a "full container" 2048x1080 file resulted in a server crash. I think it's important for filmmakers to actually shoot in formats that can legitimately be shown in theaters.

Of course, there are optional formats like 2.00 and 2.66 that can be shown within a 2.39 container -- basically, scope with letterbox top and bottom.

You can crop 2048x1980 to 1920x1080 and just lose a little bit top and bottom (about 64 lines top and bottom), and that will work.

Thank you for your answers.
Yeah, that´s the dilemma, it should be part of the Specification and should work, but practically i read about servers crashing, festivals not accepting it, etc.

I guess i will call some projectionists and see, what they have experienced.
Worst case i will recommend cropping to the standard resolution, just to play it save.

...

1.85, 2.39, and (sometimes) 1.78 are the main theatrical release formats. I can remember a case where a "full container" 2048x1080 file resulted in a server crash. I think it's important for filmmakers to actually shoot in formats that can legitimately be shown in theaters.

Of course, there are optional formats like 2.00 and 2.66 that can be shown within a 2.39 container -- basically, scope with letterbox top and bottom.

You can crop 2048x1980 to 1920x1080 and just lose a little bit top and bottom (about 64 lines top and bottom), and that will work.

I'm sorry but what you are saying here is not quite correct.

2048x1080 (or 4096x2160 in the case of 4K) is what is called Full Raster (DCI). You are meant to be able to output any format within that, with the condition that you use EITHER the full height or the full width.

Its true the standard DCP formats are 1.85 (1998x1080) and 2.39 (2048x858), however HD (1920x1080) and DCI (2048x1080) are commonly used and accepted.

If you want to use another ratio, ie. 4:3, 1:1, etc. you should fill the rest of the image with black and use 1.85, if however you want to use a ratio wider that 2.39, then you should use that (scope 2.39) and fill the rest (top and bottom) with black, but always have one side be the full width or height of the DCI specs.

Lastly, if you crop 2048x1080 (not 2048x1980) to 1920x1080, you're cropping left and right, not top and bottom, and that would make no sense as 1920x1080 is no more a standard than 2048x1080, the standard being 1998x1080 ! However what you probably meant was reduce 2048x1080 to 1998x1080 by adding black at top and bottom. You could do that, but as I mentioned above, the DCI specs indicate your image should always use EITHER the full width or height, so you would not be respecting the specs.

Back to DCI full raster, if a server/projector crashes, they should update their server/projector as the DCI specs indicate that 2048x1080 and 4096x2160 are supported formats.

DCI specs as of Jan. 23rd 2024: https://documents.dcimovies.com/DCSS/42cfeb997ae72dd484f7b027547e6e0bfad43ecf/#sec-3-2