Best way to integrate deleted scenes within a movie on DVD?

[mythkiller]

I would like to copy my DVD of Attack of the Clones, and integrate some of the deleted scenes (from the bonus disk) within the film itself. Has anyone here done anything similar with any other films? If so, I would kindly appreciate any advice you could offer.

I'm not looking to spend too much on software, but I'd like to do this the right way. I would like a program that would edit VOBs directly (no converting if possible) and allow me to do some special effects transitions, such as fades & wipes. I have scoured these forums, and see similar questions asked more than a year ago, but the answers all seem a bit complicated. I'm hoping things have gotten simpler since 2003-2004. Is there an easier and affordable way for me to accomplish my project? Much thanks in advance!!!

[steveryan]

You could use DVD Shrink in re-author mode and join all the parts together, it would cost you zero £$, give it a whirl.

[ZippyP.]

I'm not looking to spend too much on software, but I'd like to do this the right way. I would like a program that would edit VOBs directly (no converting if possible) and allow me to do some special effects transitions, such as fades & wipes.

DVDshrink is a great solution, unfortunately it will not do any affects...only simple cut and splice.

Womble Mpeg2-VCR will edit vobs without re-encoding (does encode the transitions by necessity) and will output an mpeg ready for authoring.

[yoda313]

Hello,

Just a note here - I believe the deleted scenes are pro logic not dolby digital. If so there may be compatibility problems with switching back and forth in the same video.

If they are pro logic you may have to reencode the whole audio from the main movie to pro logic so that the dvd will play properly.

Kevin

[hrlslcbr]

Or reencode the Pro Logic parts.
There's a guide in Doom9 to upmix from a 2-channel source to 5.1 channels using pro logic II.

[yoda313]

Hello,

Just checked the bonus disc - they actually are in 5.1 dolby digital.

Though each one starts with a title card. So you will want editing software to start at the right point. Be careful to not include the explanatory openings - just the deleted scene themselves.

Kevin

[Gurm]

Then make a macro that'll do the whole thing, write it up, and let all of us benefit from your trial and error! (No, I'm not kidding - I wanna watch it that way!)

[mythkiller]

Thank you steveryan and ZippyP. for the suggestions. I think I'll give Womble a whirl. And thanks Kevin for checking on the audio issue.

Gurm, you sound skeptical. Have you tried this before without good results? I know I'd feel more optimistic about this undertaking if someone out there had an actual success story...

[mythkiller]

Two more questions...

The main DVD has 3 "angles" of the feature film. I don't fully understand why they call 'em angles, since each of the three is identical. In the interest of saving space, can I eliminate two of the angles, or are all three absolutely necessary?

And is there a trick to preserving subtitles (not the ones for the hearing inpaired, but the subtitles that occasionally show up when an alien is speaking another language)?

[Gurm]

Thank you steveryan and ZippyP. for the suggestions. I think I'll give Womble a whirl. And thanks Kevin for checking on the audio issue.

Gurm, you sound skeptical. Have you tried this before without good results? I know I'd feel more optimistic about this undertaking if someone out there had an actual success story...

I believe it's entirely feasible. But nobody around here has actually DONE it yet, it is a LOT of work. I'm not skeptical, just lazy.

[Gurm]

Two more questions...

The main DVD has 3 "angles" of the feature film. I don't fully understand why they call 'em angles, since each of the three is identical. In the interest of saving space, can I eliminate two of the angles, or are all three absolutely necessary?

And is there a trick to preserving subtitles (not the ones for the hearing inpaired, but the subtitles that occasionally show up when an alien is speaking another language)?

The "angles" on Star Wars films make it so that text on the screen shows up in alternate languages. Mostly they're for the opening credit roll, if you switch to the second or third angle during that you'll see french/spanish "There is a trade embargo. Lucas has jumped the shark. Midichlorians are crap." scrolling up your screen.

[mythkiller]

Thanks Gurm. I must've skipped right over the opening scroll and missed that. Whoops.

Since I haven't gotten Womble yet, I did a test run with DVD Shrink just for the fun of it. The whole film copied fairly well. The quality was a little degraded, and of course I don't have the smooth transitions between scenes. But hopefully Womble can help with that. The main thing that was missing, as I mentioned above, were the alien subtitles. Does anyone know where those are located, and how I can keep them in the film? Will this even be an issue when I author with Womble? Thanks.

[Gurm]

Why exactly would you use DVD Shrink? As for degrading quality, that's because you're transcoding.

You want to rip the entire movie, then work with it UNCOMPRESSED. When you're DONE, you want to use a proper re-encoder (such as CCE or Procoder) to make it as high-quality as possible.

If _I_ were doing this, I'd rip (pick a program), snip (again, pick a program), get the video exactly how I wanted it... and only THEN would I reauthor. Once it was reauthored, with the menus the way I wanted them, I'd run DVD-Rebuilder to get the size to where I wanted it.

Well, I _might_ just run multipass CCE or Procoder BEFORE remuxing during the editing phase, but even then I might end up having to squeeze it at the end if the menus and whatnot ended up being too big.

[mythkiller]

Why exactly would you use DVD Shrink?

I did it just for the hell of it. Don't be hatin'. It was an easy rough draft you could say -- just to gage the flow of the scenes, and see if all this headache is worth it. Trust me, I'm pretty nitpicky, and I want top notch quality out of this damn movie.

Thanks again for the tips. I'll take all your advice into consideration. I don't really care about the menus though. I just want to pop the disc in my player and watch the film. I'm guessing there shouldn't be a problem fitting a simple (menuless) 2 1/2 hour film on one disc?