Checklist Tech Check VFX
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Zero checks. The supe is already frowning.
Saved locally so you remember what you’re checking
Mode
Timing & cut
0/2
Frame range
Output matches the cut + handles?
Scrub first/last write frames. No frozen tails, missing handles, or 1-frame offsets.
Editorial context
Works next to adjacent shots?
View in Hiero, RV, or ShotGrid/ftrack. Continuity of exposure, blacks, grain, and motion across the cut.
Levels & color
0/3
Black levels
Blacks match the plate?
Compare under the same viewer transform. Use lift/offset on a Grade. Expose up to catch floating greys.
Exposure & highlights
Brightest areas make sense?
Expose the shot up and down. No highlight brighter than the sun for no reason; match plate energy.
Hue & saturation
Color within reason for plate + view?
Isolate chroma (divide by luma). Catch over-sat CG and dead keys without the brightness story masking them.
Integration
0/3
Tracking
No bump or slip on 2D/3D tracks?
Check full range, edges of frame, horizons. Stabilize to isolate residual error before building on a soft track.
Focus / defocus
Defocus size & shape match the plate?
Match filter size, bokeh shape, and any rack focus. Sharp CG on a soft plate fails immediately.
Clarity & micro-contrast
CG clarity matches plate character?
Match contrast and lens texture. Pro-mist / diffusion when the plate has it — not clinical-sharp CG.
Edges & keys
0/2
Edges
Edges 1:1 with the plate?
Softness, despill, no boil/halos, motion blur matching shutter. Flip FG vs plate on the edge.
Despill
Despill didn’t wreck luma or real blues/greens?
Before/after on freeze + over range. Wardrobe and eyes that should be blue/green must survive.
Data integrity
0/3
Plate integrity
Plate & metadata intact aside from VFX?
No accidental reformat, baked viewer LUT, wrong take, or damaged metadata.
Inf / NaN
No corrupt pixels in the output?
Expression-flag isnan/isinf and scrub. Usually div-by-zero or render errors.
Negative values
Negatives understood / clamped where needed?
Input negatives can be OK. Clamp where math breaks. Exponential notation in float EXR is normal.
Finish
0/1
Grain
Grain matches plate (amount, size, channels)?
High-pass grain check. CG shouldn’t sit in a different noise field than the plate.
Progress is stored in localStorage on this device only — nothing is uploaded. Use this alongside the Tech Check lesson.