How do I stabilize a very long single take?

Mocha Pro
#1

I have multiple long single-take shots that I am working on and each last around 20 minutes. The shots consist of multiple characters walking around an apartment and it involves lots of pans. There are no planes that stay visible throughout the shot due to its length of it.

I know I need to track multiple planes and basically stitch them together but I couldn’t find any Mocha Tutorial that explains this kind of process. For example, if I have a layer that I am stabilizing and the plane is completely off-screen, should that be my cutting point and how should I cut the footage (in the AE Timeline or inside Mocha)? Or is it possible for me to continue on that layer by creating new splines?

It would be really great if someone can explain the workflow for long takes.

I am using the latest Mocha Pro 2022 for Adobe Suite. I can also send the shot privately if necessary.

Thanks a lot for your help already.

#2

Hi there,

For this type of shot specifically, you are really only going to be able to correct for (at most), translation, scale, and rotation. And honestly, translation will probably give you best results. You will need to use the “add to x-spline” tool to avoid occlusions and keep making new shapes as tracks go offscreen or start to OR if the information moves in a linear way you can draw one shape and use the option in layer properties where it says “link to track” and select none.

You also might enjoy the Mocha Essentials training, which you can stream for free here: Boris FX | Training Series

I highly recommend using “reference frames” to pick which frames you want to be full frame for long panning shots in the Stabilize Module.

Please let me know if you have any more questions and I will be happy to help you.

Cheers,
Mary