Film quality explained

General Range of Film Quality:
R1 or R2 Retail > DVDSCR > R5 Retail > Telecine > Telesync > Cam

CAM -

A cam is a theater rip usually done with a digital video camera. A mini tripod is sometimes used, but a lot of the time this wont be possible, so the camera may shake. Also someone sitting there filming the movie might not sit straight the whole time, and then you have a angled picture. If cropped properly, this is hard to tell unless there's text on the screen, but a lot of times these are left with triangular borders on the top and bottom of the screen. Sound is taken from the onboard microphone of the camera. As an example, in comedies, laughter can often be heard during the film. These factors cause the picture and sound quality to usually come out quite poor, but sometimes we're lucky, and the theater will be fairly empty and a fairly clear signal will be heard.


TELESYNC (TS) -

A telesync is the same spec as a CAM except it uses an external audio source (most likely an audio jack in the chair for hard of hearing people). A direct audio source does not ensure a good quality audio source, as a lot of background noise can interfere. A lot of the times a telesync is filmed in an empty cinema or from the projection booth with a professional camera, giving a better picture quality. Quality ranges very, and you should check the sample before downloading the full release. A high percentage of Telesyncs are CAMs that have been mislabeled.


TELECINE (TC) -

A telecine machine copies the film digitally from the reels. Sound and picture should be very good, but due to the equipment involved and cost telecines are fairly uncommon. Generally the film will be in correct aspect ratio, although 4:3 telecines have existed. TC should not be confused with TimeCode , which is a visible counter on screen throughout the film.


R5 Retail (R5)- Added 11/06

Over the past six months, the major movie studios have been releasing retail DVD's early in Russia and the Ukraine. They did this to try and stop the widespread use of pirated telecines. Most telecines (TC) currently being released are R5 retail DVD's. An R5 retail DVD is most always rushed out by the studio; because they are basically competing with pirates, so there is little to no cleanup of the film after the telecine process. So the main difference between telecines put out by the pirates and R5 DVD's is that the R5's are done using pro equipment, professional studios, and professional people. The quality of R5 retail is very similar to a DVDSCR (DVD Screener), no time is usually spent cleaning up DVDSCR’s either.

Example:

Moviename.R5.format-group * <--- This means R5 retail with English audio

Moviename.R5.LINE.format-group <--- This means R5 retail which had no English audio and was therefore synced with a direct line of English audio


SCREENER (SCR) -

A pre VHS tape, sent to rental stores, and various other places for promotional use. A screener is supplied on a VHS tape, and is usually in a 4:3 screen format, although letterboxed screeners are sometimes found. The main draw back is a "ticker," (a message that scrolls at the bottom of the screen, with the copyright and anti-copy telephone number). Also, if the tape contains any serial numbers, or any other markings that could lead to the source of the tape, these will have to be blocked, usually with a black mark over the section. This is sometimes only for a few seconds, but unfortunately on some copies this will last for the entire film, and some can be quite big. Depending on the equipment used, screener quality can range from excellent if done from a MASTER copy, to very poor if done on an old VHS recorder. Most screeners are transferred to VCD, but a few attempts at SVCD have occurred, some looking better than others.


DVD-SCREENER (DVDscr) -

Same as a screener, but transferred off a DVD. Usually letterbox format, but without the extras that a DVD retail would contain. The ticker is usually not seen in the black bars. If the ripper has any skill, a DVDscr should be very good. These are usually transferred to SVCD or DivX/XviD.


DVDRip -

A copy of the final released DVD. If possible this is released PRE retail, (for example, Star Wars episode 2) and again, this format should be excellent quality. DVDrips are released in SVCD and DivX/XviD.


VHSRip -

Transferred off a retail VHS, mainly skating/sports videos and XXX releases.


TVRip -

TV episode that is either from Network (capped using digital cable/satellite boxes are preferable) or PRE-AIR from satellite feeds sending the program around to networks a few days earlier (do not contain "dogs" but sometimes have flickers etc) Some programs such as WWF Raw Is War contain extra parts, and the "dark matches" and camera/commentary tests are included on the rips. PDTV is capped from a digital TV PCI card, generally giving the best results, and groups tend to release in SVCD for these. VCD/SVCD/DivX/XviD rips are all supported by the TV scene.


WORKPRINT (WP) -

A workprint is a copy of the film that has not been finished. It can be missing scenes, music, and quality can range from excellent to very poor. Some WPs are very different from the final print, (Men In Black is missing all the aliens, and has actors in their places), and others can contain extra scenes (Jay and Silent Bob). WPs can be nice additions to the collection once a good quality final has been obtained.


DivX Re-Enc -

A DivX re-enc is a film that has been taken from its original VCD source, and re-encoded into a small DivX file. Common groups are releasing these are SMR and TND. These aren't really worth downloading, unless you're that unsure about a film, and you only want a 200mb copy of it. Generally I would avoid these.


Watermarks -

A lot of films come from Asian Silvers/PDVD (see below) and these are tagged by the people responsible. Usually with a letter/initials or a little logo, generally in one of the corners.


Asian Silvers / PDVD -

These are films put out by eastern bootleggers, and these are usually bought by some groups to put out as their own. Silvers are very cheap and easily available in a lot of countries, and its easy to put out a release, which is why there are so many in the scene at the moment, mainly from smaller groups who don't last more than a few releases. PDVDs are the same thing pressed onto a DVD. They have removable subtitles, and the quality is usually better than the silvers. These are ripped like a normal DVD, but usually released as VCD.


Scene Tags...


PROPER -

Due to scene rules, whoever releases the first Telesync has won that race (for example). But if the quality of that release is fairly poor, or if another group has another telesync (or the same source in higher quality), then the tag PROPER is added to the folder to avoid it being duped. PROPER is the most subjective tag in the scene, and a lot of people will generally argue whether the PROPER is better than the original release. A lot of groups release PROPERS just out of desperation due to losing the race. A reason for the PROPER should always be included in the NFO.


LIMITED -

A limited movie means it has had a limited theater run, generally opening in less than 250 theaters.


INTERNAL -

An internal release is done for several reasons. Classic DVD groups do a lot of INTERNAL releases, as they wont be dupe'd on it. Also, lower quality theater rips are done INTERNAL so not to lower the reputation of the group. Also, it can be labeled INTERNAL due to the amount of rips already released. An INTERNAL release is available as normal on the groups affiliate sites, but they can't be traded to other sites without request from the site ops. Some INTERNAL releases still trickle down to IRC/Newsgroups, it usually depends on the title and the popularity. Earlier in the year people referred to Centropy going "internal". This meant the group was only releasing the movies to their members and site ops. This is in a different context to the usual definition.


STV -

Straight To Video. Was never released in theaters, and therefore a lot of sites do not allow these.


ASPECT RATIO TAGS -

These are *WS* for widescreen (letterbox) and *FS* for Fullscreen.


REPACK -

If a group releases a bad rip, they will release a Repack which will fix the problems.


NUKED -

A film can be nuked for various reasons. Individual sites will nuke files for breaking their rules (such as "No Telesyncs", but if the film has something ex****ely wrong with it, (no soundtrack for 20mins, CD2 is incorrect film/game etc), then a global nuke will occur, and people trading it across sites will lose their credits. Nuked films can still reach other sources such as p2p/usenet, but it's a good idea to check why it was nuked in the first case. If a group relizes there is something wrong, they can request a nuke.


NUKE REASONS...

This is a list of common reasons a film can be nuked for...

BAD A/R = bad aspect ratio, i.e. people appear too fat/thin
BAD IVTC = bad inverse telecine...process of converting frame rates was incorrect.
INTERLACED = black lines on movement as the field order is incorrect.


DUPE -

Dupe basically means what it says. If something exists already, then theres no reason for it to exist again without proper reason. Usually the group releasing the DUPE will explain the reason for the release in the NFO.

I hope this info helps all you noobs out. I was a noob once, and I know how confusing stuff can be. I looked at a lot of forums to find all this data....so if you see something similar to what you have, just know you were smarter than the rest.


R5

In an effort to compete with movie piracy, the movie industry chose to create a new format for DVD releases that could be produced more quickly and less expensively than traditional DVD releases. R5 releases differ from normal releases in that they are usually a direct Telecine transfer of the film without any of the image processing common on DVD releases, and without any special features. This allows the film to be released for sale at the same time that DVD Screeners are released. Since DVD Screeners are the chief source of high-quality pre-DVD release pirated movies[citation needed], this allows the movie studios to beat the pirates to market. Bootlegged copies of these releases are often distributed on the Internet via torrent sites.



R9

DVD+R DL or called DVD+R9 is a Dual Layer writeable DVD+R. The dual layered discs can hold 7.95 computer GB* (called DVD-9) and dual layered double sides 15.9* computer GB (called dvd-18).

DVD-R DL or called DVD-R9 is a Dual Layer writeable DVD-R. The dual layered discs can hold 7.95 computer GB* (called DVD-9) and dual layered double sides 15.9* computer GB (called dvd-18).