**Notes Detailing the Video Copilot Method**

Within After Effects:

When building a DVD intro, we need to design at the appropriate widescreen resolution. Create a new comp in PAL D1/DV Widescreen Square Pixel. 

Once you're done editing, export using standatd PAL widescreen. Create a new comp PAL D1/DV Widescreen (!!note that we're NOT using the square pixel resolution!!). Place your edited comp into this new comp. Render the new comp.

Render your comp as MPEG 2 DVD footage.
i) Set Quality to highest
ii) PAL
iii) Progressive Field Order
iv) Pixel aspect to widescreen
v) Bitrate to encoding to CBR, Bitrate set to around 6 or 6.5
vi) Set any audio to PCM, 16 bit sample size, 48kHz frequency

Output should register that this is an m2v file.

Once this render has been completed, you'll be presented with an m2v file and a wav file (if you exported audio).

Within Encore:

Create a new project.
i) Project Settings set to DVD
ii) Television Standard set to PAL
ii) Click OK, and then import the render items, and drop them into the Project tab (Just like in AE- defaults to top LHS of the UI)

Create a new menu.
i) Menu/New Menu
ii) Select this new Menu and edit its' properties within the Properties tab (defaults to top rhs of the UI)

Edit properties.
i) Aspect Ratio to 16:9 for widescreen
ii) Under the Motion tab draw pickwhip relationships to assets within the Project tab. Nominate a video file and an audio file (if used) for the menu.
iii) Set the loop point.

Create buttons.
i) Right-click on your Menu, select [Edit Menu in Photoshop]
ii) Ignore pixel aspect warning
iii) Create folders and new layers within Photoshop- layer naming is critical!
iv) On top of the default photoshop layer, create a folder named 

(+) yournamehereanythingyouwant

v) Create a shape layer to generate your button (using shape tools, etc), hide it (by clicking the eye icon within your layer tab), then name it

(=1)

vi) File/save within Photoshop and return to Encore.
vii) Proceed to the Menu's Layers tab (defaults to lower rhs on screen) and confirm that these layers are also available within Encore.
viii) Click on 'show selected' state for the Movie Viewer/Stage)
ix) Feel free to select and edit this new button.

To Duplicate this button.
i) Drag your button from the Movie Viewer/Stage to the Library tab.
ii) Name this button.
iii) You can now use this asset multiple times on this project- use [Edit Menu in Photoshop] link at any time to edit subsequent buttons at any time.
iv) Duplictae at any time within Encore by holding Alt and click/dragging the asset.
v) Buttons can't overlap.

Create a Timeline.
i) Select Timeline/New Timeline, add assets as per menu above (pickwhip to nominate which footage/ audio you're using).
ii) Note Encore features a market system near-identical to AE's. Here they also act as scene markers/ chapters within the dvd itself.
iii) Note that the Properties tab for a timeline features an [End Action] pickwhip- use this to instruct the dvd to return to another asset once this asset has ended (ie- once movie ends, go back to main menu).

Determine File Sequence and Timeline Relationship.
i) Select the Project Tab (ie- make sure this tab is highlighted) and observe the Properties tab. Make sure that yoru project is named correctly while you're here.
ii) Note that the [First Play] pickwhip is used to nominate which file will play when the dvd is played. This can be used for FBI warnings, adds etc, or it can be used to play your menu immediately.
iii) Note that each asset has an [End Action] pickwip which is similarly used to direct the dvd to navigate somewhere else once a given asset has been played.

Link Buttons.
i) Select each button and edit the Properties tab for each of these assets. Use the [Link] pickwhip to link each button to a destination file (ie- "play movie" button will play the movie).

To Preview within Encore.
i) Select Edit/ Preferences, make sure Preview set to correct aspect ratio.
ii) Click the preview button (it looks like a golden disk, 12 o'clock on default UI).

To Burn/Render from Encore.
i) Click on the Build tab, located beneath the Project tab.
ii) Click [Build] once your burn/ render options have been established.

Random AE tip:
To freeze on a particular video frame, Layer/Time/Enable Time Remapping. 
Set two keyframes to denote beginning & end of this video-pause.