Adobe’s Creative Cloud for video 2015 updates aren’t just about the apps. There’s news around Adobe Anywhere as well. The biggest is that the video content management platform Aframe has announced “True Cloud Editing in Collaboration with Adobe Anywhere.” That would be Adobe Anywhere in the Cloud Delivered by Aframe. I read over some of the press materials and didn’t quite understand exactly what they were doing so I posed some questions to David Peto, Founder & CEO, Aframe about what they are doing.

Adobe’s Creative Cloud for video 2015 updates aren’t just about the apps. There’s news around Adobe Anywhere as well. The biggest is that the video content management platform Aframe has announced “True Cloud Editing in Collaboration with Adobe Anywhere.” I read over some of the press materials and didn’t quite understand exactly what they were doing so I posed some questions to David Peto, Founder & CEO, Aframe about what they are doing.

ProVideo Coalition: I’ve seen a couple of Adobe Anywhere demos which looked amazing. Before Aframe using Adobe Anywhere required someone in the workflow path to have made a sizable investment in Adobe Anywhere “blessed” hardware. How does what Aframe is doing differ from what Adobe Anywhere’s previous requirements were?

David Peto: Our collaboration with Adobe means that you now need absolutely no hardware at all to do a full resolution streamed edit using Premiere on you laptop. All you now need is a 10MB or so internet connection and you are good to go. The Anywhere servers reside in Aframe’s cloud infrastructure and are talking directly to Aframe’s platform – so the media straight from our servers. Result – nothing to install, nothing to buy, just log into Aframe, fire up Premiere and and go!

When you say this Aframe implementation is Adobe Anywhere “in the cloud” what does that mean beyond the buzzwords of “cloud”? Describe what Aframe is doing without using the word “cloud.”

We are running Anywhere’s servers inside our infrastructure, including virtualizing elements of them. This removes all need for local hardware. We are then also using Aframe’s powerful security and authentication systems to control and manage access, including eliminating the need for VPN’s which has always been a block to true remote editing.

Hopefully there’s no mention of the word cloud there!

This is the illustration of Aframe infastructure. Adobe Mercury Streaming and the hardware needed to make Adobe Anywhere will be added into this infastructure to make it all work.

How would a production load media into Aframe’s Adobe Anywhere option?

A customer uploads media into Aframe using Aframe’s file accelerated desktop app that handles all major video formats including native camera cards. This will maximize all your available bandwidth. It’s then available inside Aframe’s UI via your web browser for you to roughcut, organize, add metadata, share, review – basically everything you need to do around your edit. Then you simply press one button, fire up Premiere on your laptop – and hey Presto! – you can now do a full edit. Hit export – and your finished renders out back onto Aframe – at the full original resolution of your video – ready for you to deliver.

Would an edit working for a production using this implementation just log in via Adobe Premiere Pro CC with login credentials provided and go to work? Is there some other software or hardware that has to go on the machine of an editor working this way?

And here’s the Aframe setup with the Adobe Anywhere hardware.

That’s correct – no hardware at all. Aframe’s desktop app which you run on your laptop as part of your ability to upload into us manages all of the security etc for you.

It sounds like a production is “renting” space on Aframe’s Adobe Anywhere installation. Is that a simplified way of saying it? Is the production then at liberty to hire editors anywhere in the world to work via Anywhere off of that “rented” setup?

We don’t typically offer our services by “production” although sometimes we do. A customer normally takes Aframe on a yearly basis as their central platform for video. Other than this however, what you describe is exactly what they could do. They could enable 10 of their Aframe users to be Adobe Anywhere users – and those users could be based in any location (within reason – I wouldn’t try and do a full edit in the middle of Tibet!)

What is the cost of utilizing this going to be? If there are no hard costs yet do you see this are more of an option for a large production or reality show-type workflow? Will there be tiers for smaller production companies like those involved in corporate or event production?

To begin with, it’s going to be for our and Adobe’s enterprise customers, but in the future we see anyone being able to access it. We have rough costs, and it will be done on a per user basis.

Aframe also has their own digital asset management software that adds a level of media management beyond just Adobe Premiere.

Is only Premiere Pro supported?

Technically any Adobe product that’s compatible with Anywhere will work (eg Prelude) but we haven’t tested those yet.

Does a customer who buys into and uses the Aframe pipeline get the Adobe Anywhere integration as an option or is that a separate package or tier on top of their Aframe package? I’m guessing it would be separate as not all customers use Adobe I’m guessing.

You are correct that seats of Anywhere editing within Aframe would incur an additional charge per seat. Part of the appeal of the cloud is to move away from large capital expenditures in favor of operational expenses, which is why SaaS is so popular and we see Adobe, Avid, and others going to that type of model. Businesses prefer operational costs on their books too, so everyone wins.

Thanks to Dave for answering these questions right in the middle of this launch!

That sounds like quite a cool addition to what Aframe offers. Both the Aframe technology combined with what Adobe Anywhere offers could be very compelling for some of the large scale productions that are using Aframe.

My first thought when reading this announcement, hence the question about being able to “rent” Adobe Anywhere space, is how could it COULD be for a smaller product to be able to rent Adobe Anywhere space. And that isn’t a reality yet that I know of but let’s think about what a useful workflow that might be.

A large production with several terabytes of media could conceivably “rent” Adobe Anywhere space on some Adobe Anywhere system. They ship an organized hard drive of media to this Adobe Anywhere install and have it loaded onto that Anywhere system. In theory, the production could then hire any Adobe Premiere Pro CC editor anywhere with the proper bandwidth to edit right off that “rented” Adobe Anywhere space. The editor doesn’t care as long as it works. It’s the production that has to manage their budget for both the Anywhere “rental” and the editors they hire. It’s an intriguing idea and that’s what I thought maybe Aframe was offering with this announcement. To be clear I don’t think anyone is offering this just yet but maybe in the future.

But for those in the Aframe universe this Adobe Anywhere announcement offers up brand new possibilities and workflows. The full press release is below.

Aframe Unveils True Cloud Editing in Collaboration with Adobe Anywhere at NAB 2015

Combined technologies enable broadcasters and content producers to edit large-scale video projects remotely and securely and eliminate large capital outlay for infrastructure/equipment

Las Vegas, NV, April 9, 2015

Aframe is ushering in the era of true broadcast-grade cloud editing with a technology demonstration of Aframe’s cloud video platform hosting Adobe® Anywhere, the collaborative workflow platform that enables teams to work together and create productions from virtually any location where there is network connectivity.

The combined solution, ‘Adobe Anywhere in the Cloud delivered by Aframe,’ will enable broadcasters and content producers to edit large-scale video projects remotely and securely and eliminate large capital outlay for infrastructure and equipment. It is being unveiled at NAB 2015 in Aframe’s booth SL10210.

By running Adobe Anywhere within Aframe’s cloud platform, teams can collaborate without limits. The “one-to-many” model enabled by the cloud ensures universal access to the correct media by all team members. Access is easily controlled, disaster recovery is automatic and capital expenses are all but eliminated. With this model, productions can inherit the power of traditional broadcast infrastructure all via the browser, on a per-project basis, assured that assets are safe but also easily accessible to every team member based on roles and device preferences.

“With Adobe Anywhere, editors and other video professionals can use local or remote networks to simultaneously access, stream, and work with remotely stored media. It gives teams the flexibility to tap into talent wherever they might be,” said Simon Williams, senior director of business development at Adobe. “Aframe’s integration with Adobe Anywhere significantly reduces the investment for customers in infrastructure – a big plus for many organizations.”

How it works:

Visitors to Aframe’s booth will see how Aframe provides the central hub for the storage and management of original native video content, with Adobe Anywhere providing stream-based editing capabilities. The workflow enables content producers to browse cloud-hosted content stored in their Aframe projects and sync selected assets with an Adobe Anywhere Production, search across projects for clips with descriptive metadata matching specific keywords and preview media to pick out the best takes or pieces of footage.

Once clips are located, the Adobe Anywhere’s Mercury Streaming Engines generate a real-time adaptive bitrate stream of the high-resolution media to Adobe Premiere Pro CC, as if they were working off a connected drive or shared storage. Since the edit happens within Adobe Premiere Pro CC, there’s no new UI to learn or change of workflow. Editors can even pause/save work, and when they reconnect to the Internet, resume where they left off without having to duplicate media.

Work-in-progress is easily shared for approval via Aframe’s share link feature, which lets reviewers play back the latest cut on their mobile devices and provide feedback. Because sequences directly reference the high-res media on Aframe, to complete an edit users select and export them in the chosen resolution from Adobe Premiere Pro CC. There’s no need for a conform stage. Finished masters are stored in the Aframe project and can be delivered via Aframe’s automated, accelerated desktop application.

The fully integrated solution will require little or no setup and zero maintenance. Users need only to have the right version of Adobe Premiere Pro CC, a valid Adobe Anywhere license, and an Aframe account.

“Ever since we saw Adobe Anywhere, I have wanted to bring Aframe and Anywhere together. The dream has always been collaboration and editing in the cloud, with no download,” commented David Peto, Founder and CEO, Aframe. To finally see that dream a reality and the reaction we’ve had already, makes this one of the most exciting times in the history of the company – and we hope for the industry.”

About Aframe:

Aframe is a powerful and secure cloud platform for managing video content. Global teams and partners use Aframe to store large volumes of multi-format media in a central location and collaborate on projects in real-time. Aframe makes media management simple, efficient and cost effective. Headquartered in London with operations in Rainton, Boston and Los Angeles, Aframe’s secure infrastructure is trusted by broadcast, media and corporate organisations worldwide.