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Import and composite

Create or open a composition

A .sim file is the source of truth for the application and CLI. It stores the canvas, frame range, output intent, ordered layers, stable layer/effect identifiers, color settings, animation, and export-related project metadata. Source media remains external and is never replaced.

The development application supports high-resolution scene-linear canvases. Choose dimensions that match the plate and intended delivery.

Import OpenEXR media

Use File → Import Folder (Command-I) to scan one or more folders, preview detected sequences, and import selected sources. Use File → Import Media (Shift-Command-I) when you already know the sequence, BRAW clip, or movie.

The scanner recognizes printf-style and hash sequence patterns. It detects the frame range and source dimensions, then assigns an initial blend mode:

  • The first imported source above the HDRI uses Over.
  • Later sources use Plus.
  • A newly imported 2:1 source is recognized as equirectangular when its media metadata or interpretation says so. Use the 360° viewer controls to choose the view; import does not apply a hidden composition pan.

Scanline EXRs decode at full resolution. Tiled EXRs can use a selective source window in the perspective 360° viewer.

Import movie media

File → Import Media accepts .mov, .mp4, and .m4v clips alongside EXR and BRAW. QuickTime .mov files may contain ProRes Proxy, LT, 422, HQ, 4444, or another codec supported by the installed macOS AVFoundation runtime; ProRes is a codec, not a separate filename extension.

Movie import probes the actual video track before creating a layer. The composition records its display dimensions, codec, frame count, frame rate, variable-frame-rate sample timing, orientation, audio metadata, and embedded start timecode when present. The first imported movie sets the composition dimensions, frame rate, and duration. Unsupported or damaged tracks produce an error rather than a blank layer.

Work with layers

The bottom timeline controls layer order, selection, enable state, frame position, and names. Drag layers to reorder them. Double-click a name or use Rename in the inspector to edit it. Delete and undo are supported.

Image and adjustment layers can carry:

  • Opacity and Over, Plus, Multiply, or Screen compositing
  • Spherical pan, tilt, and roll plus 2D transform controls
  • Exposure, Lift/Gamma/Gain, Kelvin, tint, saturation, and highlight rolloff
  • Photographic bloom and aperture glare
  • Optional Instance or Material Cryptomatte selection

An adjustment layer affects the accumulated composite below it. This is the explicit composition-wide grade workflow.

Color precision

Lift is signed around a neutral value of 0.00, so negative values lower the shadow/black region and positive values raise it. Contrast is displayed as a signed adjustment around 0.00; internally, documents retain the compatible multiplicative factor where 1.0 is exact identity. Entries such as 0.01, 0.02, 0.05, and 0.10 therefore make progressively stronger fine changes around the scene-linear Pivot (0.18 by default).

The normal sliders emphasize useful grading ranges, while numeric fields allow wider values without reducing internal precision. Shift-drag a slider for fine adjustment. Option- or Shift-drag a color wheel for fine adjustment. Double- click sliders or wheels to return to their exact defaults; numeric fields also accept expressions.

Inspect a 360° plate

Press the configured 360° shortcut (backtick by default) to switch between the flat infinite-wrap viewer and the perspective viewer. Full mode supports free-look navigation. Front, Right, Back, and Left presets request only the necessary tiled source area when the projection can be bounded safely.

Layers with spherical tilt or roll and views that touch a panorama pole fall back to a complete-frame read.

Cryptomatte

Import a compatible Instance ID or Material Node Name sequence through New Cryptomatte Adjustment…. Search or pick one or more manifest names, then grade the resulting purple adjustment layer. Matte and magenta overlay modes show the exact antialiased coverage used by the grade.

Denoise and upscale

The Denoise window can run an RGB-only temporal workflow or add albedo, normal, noise, depth, a sharp companion beauty, and an Octane Motion Vector AOV. Preflight and benchmark the guidance before committing a long 12K sequence. See Denoise companion renders.

The AI upscaler transfers only model-generated high-frequency luminance detail onto a conventional scene-linear HDR upscale. The low-frequency exposure and color—including values above 1.0—remain based on the source composite.

Camera RAW

The Camera RAW path opens Blackmagic RAW .braw and RED .R3D clips through the shared media-source boundary. Each format requires an application built with its qualified vendor SDK and packaged with the matching runtime. A build without one runtime leaves other formats available and reports an actionable format-unavailable message.

Select a BRAW clip through media import, then use the layer's Camera RAW section for:

  • Full, Half, Quarter, or Eighth preview decode quality
  • Camera/default or overridden exposure
  • Camera/default or custom white balance using Kelvin and tint
  • Camera/default or explicitly enabled/disabled highlight recovery
  • Reset to the clip's camera metadata

These are source-development controls applied before Layer Effects. The Color Grade exposure and white-balance controls remain a separate downstream creative grade.

For R3D, the same section provides Full, Half, Quarter, or Eighth preview quality; Camera Metadata or Custom mode; and ISO, exposure, Kelvin, and tint controls. Reset restores the RED SDK's effective clip metadata.

Preview quality affects interactive viewer resolution only. Exports decode Camera RAW at full resolution and reuse the layer's development settings. Lowering preview quality therefore improves scrubbing without lowering the delivered output.

The current bridge does not expose an independent ISO override, audio, sidecar writing, embedded LUT selection, or custom gamma. See the Camera RAW for controls, runtime availability, and format scope.

Temporal Denoise currently remains an EXR-sequence workflow. Export a developed Camera RAW clip to scene-linear EXR before using that tool.