Graphics

I'm sure this has been answered, but can't seem to find it anywhere.
I render movie files out to be used in Xpression with Adobe After Effects.
In order to get them to the Xpression they first have to be done as a .mov file (huge) and then transcoded through the xpression.
What settings should I use to be able to send it directly as an .avi file for the xpression to read correctly (including matte layer)

You have 2 options. First is to render out of After Effects with the XPression codec. If you have the latest version of AE and XPression, the codec would have installed when you installed XPression. Short of that, you can use the XPression Video Coder to get the file into the XPression Codec. For this scenario, you are rendering out of AE first, and the best bet here (true of all video compression pipelines) is to go full uncompressed until the last step, so yes render out of AE as either an uncompressed mov or avi before bringing it to the XPression Video Coder.
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I have the latest AE, but not on Xpression machine, as they are often on the road in our trucks. How can I get it on my AE machine I guess is my main question
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I would say install XPression on your AE machine (you'll need to borrow a dongle from one of the XPression Rigs). Once it's installed, the Codec for AE should install as well, and you won't need the dongle to export from AE with that Codec, so once done you can return the Dongle to it's rig.
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One note though... Someone correct me if I'm wrong. But the Xpression After Effects Plug-In does NOT work with Mac computers. So even if you did have it, it would not work. Does anyone know if this has changed? As far as I was told, the Xpression After Effects Plug-In would only work on Windows Computers (NOT MACS). If anyone knows if this has changed please reply to this post.

As for you using the animation codec. Xpression will read Apple Pro Res 422 (video only) files and it will also read Apple Pro Res 4444 (video + key) files. These formats are smaller file sizes than Animation and may make it easier to transfer. You may still need to convert with the Xpression Video Coder but should not take as long.

Hope this helps

Cheers

PS if you are on a windows computer with Xpression installed, Adobe Media Encoder is a great way to BULK convert clips into Xpression format.
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Yeah, he didn't indicate what platform he was using. I suppose the lac of Mac support has to do with the XPression Codec being AVI based.

To your Pro-Res note above, ALWAYS use 4444 even if there is no key, as the color space is perfectly maintained, whereas it does get compressed with 422 (an excellent choice for sending out approval renders, but NOT a dleivery codec), as you never want to compress on top of compression.
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I'm using PC for AE.... Is the codec not available anywhere other than installing on the offline computer?

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as far as I am aware, there is no separate installer for the Codec (though there probably should be for situations exactly like this). Maybe shoot tech support an e-mail, they are usually pretty on top getting back to you, as the Ross presence on the forums has been lighter than usual of late. I know they are super busy and spread pretty thin at the moment which likely explains that, but if there is a standalone installer for the codec and/or XPression Video Coder, they'll be able to get it to you.

Otherwise, no harm in installing it on the offline machine. The total install only eats about 1GB of space.
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The video coder also comes with Xpression Design. If you have that installed you can then do the encoding on your work station.
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There is a standalone installer for the xpression codec. Just ask ross support.
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