Beauty in Simplicity: Net One Opts for DVD Workshop 2

"People say that you have to think outside the box," says Rob Feiner. "At Net One we ask, where is the box?"

With this brazen attitude, it's no surprise that Feiner, owner of Net One, an innovative video/film production and post production studio in Cross River, New York, chose DVD Workshop for his company's DVD authoring needs. While many production studios grapple with complex, brand-name DVD authoring programs, Feiner knows that going with the flow isn't always best.

"The beauty of DVD Workshop is in its simplicity," says Feiner, who has 20 years of experience in broadcasting and post-production, including technical engineering at CBS and NBC. Holding five Emmy Awards, Feiner has no problem pleasing high-profile clients, including Nike, Federal Express, and United Airlines.

Quest for Quality & Accessibility
Feiner needed to deliver high-quality DVDs quickly to his clients. He also wanted a solution that was easy to learn. He researched and tried several DVD authoring programs but found them convoluted and time-consuming.

"What do I need? Time! I don't have any," exclaims Feiner, who started Net One in 1996. "After buying software, I briefly look at the manual but don't have time to read the full text. I just jump into the alligator pit hoping not to get bit."

He finally downloaded DVD Workshop and was surprised to find it straightforward and intuitive-eliminating the steep learning curve often found in professional DVD authoring programs. A year later, Feiner now has DVD Workshop 2. This new version combines the same accessible workflow with more high-end authoring features. These features include multiple audio and subtitle tracks for multi-language projects, playlist creation for sophisticated menu navigations, output to DLT and DVD-9 for replication, and support for Dolby Digital AC-3 for high-quality sound.

Straightforward, Design-Oriented
To design his DVD menus, Feiner utilizes elements found in Workshop or he creates them with external graphics programs. To access these elements conveniently he imports them into Workshop's media library.

"It's sort of like Wok cooking where preparation and planning are everything. Once we have everything cut up into little bowls, we're ready to go. In Workshop, it's the same thing. I have all my video, graphics, elements, buttons, and overlays ready to go in the library. And then it's just drag-and-drop city."

Feiner has the choice of creating DVD menus from scratch or using one of Workshop's modifiable menu templates. Regardless of which method he chooses, he can customize his menu by compositing video, images, menu overlays, text, buttons, and frames directly within Workshop. Using the software's design controls, he can further tweak these elements to change color, transparency, rotate, add shadows, as well as specify default and hidden buttons.

"DVD Workshop offers a great amount of latitude for fine-tuning my DVDs without having to go into another application. Using the templates gives me a real good head start on how the program works. I recommend that everyone start with a template at first. After that you'll quickly become comfortable enough with the process to venture out and experiment."

Pro DVD Tools
Feiner plans to use DVD Workshop 2 to author Chazz'n , an indie film about the legacy of the Cantors' Art. Its support for AC-3 is critical to preserve the quality of the film's music and singing files. Producing Chazz'n in both Spanish and Hebrew, Feiner will use Workshop's multiple audio tracks to add both language options to the final DVD. With playlists, he will be able to link and loop a sequence of audio, subtitles, and other assets to his menu buttons without increasing the project size. To distribute Chazz'n to film festivals nationwide, Feiner plans to use Workshop 2 to output the film to DLT for replication and DVD-9 to maintain the quality of the film.

"With DVD Workshop 2 I still have the straightforward, drag-and-drop workflow that I'm used to. But now it includes the high-level DVD authoring technology and features I need to effectively author productions like Chazz'n," affirms Feiner.

Time is Money
As a result of switching to DVD Workshop, Feiner can confidently produce high-quality, compelling DVDs without outsourcing. For example, he recently shot and edited a complex training video for a large client and authored the 45-minute video within a day, a task which he would have thought impossible before using Workshop.

"DVD Workshop lets us author in-house which is a tremendous cost savings. We don't have to waste days going back and forth making aesthetic decisions with a DVD production house. Our work goes together so seamlessly and fast that we can turn around a project in hours."

To sum up his experience with DVD Workshop, Feiner puts his cost savings in perspective: "12 days on location: $120,000. 15 days in post production: $45,000. 10 days in graphics production: $22,000. Five hours in DVD authoring: $495. That's just good economics."