FAQs

We are not a post house.

We are a studio that specialises in the art of colour grading.  Upload us your edited media, we’ll work our magic and then send it back, transformed.  Easy peachy.

We love working with our favourite post houses and production companies, who often outsource their grades to us.  Sometimes we even ‘ghost grade’, meaning the post house keeps the credit of doing all of the post production, we grade it, but Peachy does not get a physical credit.  Whatever works!

On occasion we do collaborate “in-house” with an online editor on jobs, and in other instances we can recommend one of our favourite, trusted freelance collaborators or post houses to hand your completed graded project over to – please get in touch if this is something you’re interested in.

One of the reasons is that we have a colour producer who is available when you need them – to provide you a quote, book in a grade, answer your questions, talk you through things, keep you updated, offer solutions, invoice promptly and leave you stress-free and worry-free.

Our studio producer Jenna provides excellent communication and service with a smile.

We strive to be Grading Made Easy.

Our advertising packages will be colour graded by a senior colourist – Angela, Tom or Edel.

On a long form job, one of our colourists (like Alex) will often grade the job before the senior colourist internally reviews or jumps on and goes through each shot with a fine tooth comb.  Our founder, Angela Cerasi, strongly believes there should be a place for emerging colourists to be mentored and given the opportunity to learn on the job.

We are super proud of our communication and transparency so if you have any queries, touch base with us, we love a chat!

Peachy embraces a good work/life balance!

We offer flexibility with our working hours – give a creative brief in the evening or review your grade on Sunday morning.  Split up your session, stop if you need to (school pick up time?) and continue on another time that suits you.

We offer flexibility with our location – upload your work to us from wherever you are , give a brief and then receive it back, transformed.

We also offer flexibility with our Peachy Packages – different pricing depending on the duration of your project.

What if the colourist doesn’t understand what I want?  Don’t I need to be in the suite to see what the colourist is doing? How do I revise the grade?

Peachy has thought long and hard about this, and we agree… There are definitely times when it is favourable to be in the suite with the colourist, watching your grade in real time.

BUT what about all the other times?

Sometimes the budget doesn’t allow this luxury.  Sometimes commuting to a facility in an urban centre is not feasible.

No. We are a remote colour grading studio and that is how we are able to offer benefits such as cost savings and extra flexibility.  We have an excellent creative brief and review process and are absolutely confident that filmmakers will achieve the same results as in-person sessions.

Tell us how you want the story to feel.

Inspiring, ominous, exciting, youthful, fun, soothing, modern, relaxing, clean, nostalgic, ominous, warm, romantic, clean?

Is it to feel like a film you would watch at the cinema (i.e. ‘cinematic’, ‘filmic’) or more like a factual program?

This often tells us more than being given specific colour direction like crushing the blacks, desaturating or popping the highlights.

To see an explanation and examples of the most common “feels” click here.

Visual references are always appreciated – are there any images or mood boards you can supply which can help our colourist understand what it is that you were going for?

If you would like further details, check out our blog post on this topic, which includes a free link to a handy creative brief checklist!

 You can also listen to this 11min podcast episode from Senior Colourist Angela Cerasi: The Art of Colour Grading – Creative Briefs

OOooo the million dollar question!  This question has traditionally deterred colour grades being completed outside of a post production facility.  These days, when our primary viewing platform for advertising and branded content is phones, laptops and devices… reviewing in a large, dark theatrette can be unnecessary and also – out of budget.

Most filmmakers have a current laptop and we believe that your content needs to look amazing on it, as well as on your phone, on your mac, on your pc and any other modern day device you can check it on.

Peachy also has a couple of other measures in place to ensure your content is being checked as accurately as possible – we can talk you through this during the session.

Times have changed.  Content has changed.  Audiences have changed and the way they view content has changed.  It makes sense that the way we create it has changed too.

We can sometimes accomodate live grading sessions, depending on the grade package you choose, colourist/client availability and schedules.  Please get in touch with our studio producer Jenna for more information.

We love to use Frame.io which is a cloud-based collaboration platform.  This is a very simple tool that is used globally by remote video production teams.  It has excellent security infrastructure and support.  You do not need to download anything, we just send a review link straight to your inbox.  We can of course accommodate alternative feedback methods if you prefer.

Your clients will LOVE YOUR WORK and keep coming back for more!

Peachy elevates your video into a professional, polished and stunning piece of work.  After all the blood, sweat and tears to get it made, why wouldn’t you give it to us to make sure you knock it out of the park?

This package is for colour grading TVCs, advertising & branded content.

The ‘Superior’ package will see your content professionally colour graded by a senior colourist (Angela, Tom or Edel).

We will interpret your creative brief and deliver an agreed ‘feel’ – elevating your imagery and giving deeper meaning to your pictures.

Attention to detail on each shot will provide a premium.

To see the price and inclusions, click here.

This is one of the packages you can pick – designed if you only have one 30 second commercial, but you want it to look fantastic!  You get the same experience as you would with our Superior Package but because it’s a shorter duration to grade, it’s turned around even more quickly and the price reflects that.

To see the price and inclusions, click here.

No problem! Get in touch with our studio producer Jenna to discuss a bespoke package.

We certainly do!  You can see our long form day rate and inclusions here.  If you have a certain budget to hit and have a package of ongoing work, please get in touch with our studio producer for a bespoke quote.

To view a selection of some of the episodic television series work and documentary/ drama feature film work Peachy has graded, click here.

Very quick!  If needs be.

Because we are a remote colour studio with a team of colourists, you can get in touch, upload your ungraded sequence, we can jump on it, and send it back to you.  ASAP.

Depending on your time frame, we will have a verbal brief, send you some key style frames (graded examples of the direction we might go) and then a WIP (work-in-progress of the grade so far).  We can take on your feedback, make some changes, send it back to you for approval.

Or… you can choose a feel – Moody, Natural, Light, Warm, Bold and/or Cinematic. – we will work our magic and send it back.  You can give us extra notes, whatever you like, we got this.

Peachy was created to be grading made easy and we can turn a grade around in an hour or two if necessary.

This varies wildly depending on a few factors.

It depends what you’re trying to achieve, who the intended audience is (ie. Instagram ad or Sydney Film Festival premiere?) and how much time and budget you have.

In Australia, the *general* industry standard is:

90min feature film drama – 10 days grade (big budget might get 3months!)
90min feature film documentary – 5-7 days grade
25min TV drama or doco – 1 day grade
45min TV drama or doco – 2 days grade

30sec TV commercial – 1/2 day grade
60sec TV commercial – 1/2 day to 1 day grade
3mins advertising content – 1 day grade

Of course, get in touch if your project is a different duration or you have multiple versions or formats.

Peachy works on a flat project fee.  We scrapped the traditional notion of an hourly fee.

Check out our pricing page for details on our Bite-Size and Superior Packages advertising packages and for our long form day rate.

We are 100% transparent with our packages, their inclusions and how much they cost.  This way you can easily provide a quote in pre-production.  You know what to expect, and there are no unexpected cost at the end.

Our goal is to be efficient and excellent.  We want to work hard, blow you away, and then go home.

Who’s got time for sitting around clocking up hours?

Our studio producer Jenna will email you an invoice when the job has commenced.  We  require electronic payment prior to releasing the high-resolution graded master files.   If this is not feasible please chat with us and we will try and accommodate an alternative arrangement.

There is no fee to cancel or move a booking until 48hrs before the job is scheduled.  Our studio producer will confirm the booking with you at least 48hrs before the commencement of the job to give you the opportunity to confirm, release or flag that the schedule looks uncertain.

Our trading terms are:

• Cancellation of a confirmed booking within 48hrs will incur a 50% cancellation fee for the session.
• Changes to schedule within 24hrs of a confirmed booking will incur a 50% cancellation fee for the session.

Usually an editor or an edit assistant will handle this part of the process.  Depending on what software was used to cut the project, this will dictate how it is prepared.  For step-by-step instructions, download our How to Prepare Your Media For a Peachy Grade.pdf

For a more in-depth read on how to supply media for your grade, check out our blog on the topic here.

You can send Peachy a link to your media via a transfer service such as WeTransfer, Dropbox, Google Drive, Hightail or an FTP site.  If you are using Dropbox please send a downloadable link rather than sharing folders or files.  If you’re having trouble uploading your media or are unfamiliar with media transfer options, please reach out to our studio producer Jenna for assistance and advice.

It depends. We believe you should supply what is best for your particular project. Determining factors include turnaround time, budget, the purpose of your video and final viewing platform.

For a large portion of our jobs, supplying a high-res baked file is completely adequate.  This is a pre-conformed ungraded movie file (eg. ProRes 422 HD Quicktime of MXF) with LOG settings. We can download it quickly, start grading immediately and return it back in the same format and resolution (eg. HD, 9:16, 2K, 4K).

This would be our first preference for internet/social videos such as branded content.  It would also be preferable for projects with a complex edit (including multiple cameras, formats, sizing, speed changes, transitions) such as long form documentaries for broadcast/ streaming platforms.  The conform is rock solid (approved and checked by you before we get it) and we grade what we’re given.  Easy peachy!

If you need assistance with exporting a baked file from your edit software, see How to Prepare Your Media For a Peachy Grade.pdf

There are other instances where source media is preferable. These includes dramas, films for cinema release, projects shot on R3D or ones which may be under-exposed or include blow-ups/zoom-in’s. Also a commercial which has different versions/cutdowns and/or various aspect ratios or a project where the edit is not yet locked or is likely to change post-grade.

You will need to supply an XML or pre-conformed Da Vinci Resolve Project which has been shot checked by an editor/edit assist. Source media can be very large (especially if it was shot in 8K!) which means it takes a lot longer to upload/download. For efficiency, we only require the source clips which are used in your edit, plus handles. If you need assistance creating a “media managed” source package, see How to Prepare Your Media For a Peachy Grade.pdf

In summary, people may think that grading from source rushes is always best. But if your budget or turnaround time does not allow it, or your final viewing platform is online, a high-res LOG baked file is an excellent and efficient solution. We have graded many commercials and documentaries this way.

Get in touch with our studio producer Jenna if you would like to talk anything through further.

Peachy can receive whatever you send however we often advise that you split any large media packages up into 100GB or less.  Let us know if you would like to talk through this.

This depends on your internet connection and how much media is being sent.  We always schedule to receive the media at least a day in advance of the grade session.

You don’t!

BUT…

If you want your film and video content to look awesome so your clients are DELIGHTED, you should have it colour graded.

Colour grading will make it stand above the average, run-of-the-mill content. It will transform it into a professional looking piece that punches far above its weight (and budget).

At the end of the day, this means that your work looks super polished and higher quality.  You could potentially charge your clients more because they are receiving a premium product.  Your portfolio will also look amazing!

Colour correction is a technical process that fixes colour issues and makes footage appear as naturalistic as possible.  It means each image well-balanced and the project looks cohesive.  Whites will look white, blacks will look black and all the colours in between will look accurate.  There will be a good level of colour (ie. nice saturation) and no colour casts (ie. overall image looking too green or blue etc).  This is the first step in the colour grading process.

Colour grading is also technical, but hugely creative.  The colour grading process adds atmosphere and emotion to the shots by colouring footage in new ways.  Colour grading can evoke a feeling and a mood, and can be carried out creatively to add greater meaning to the work.  Colour grading is Peachy’s speciality.

We’ve put together a full breakdown of the differences between colour correction and colour grading here. 

Transforming the look of your video to give off a particular emotion or feeling.  At Peachy, we realised that most filmmakers want one (or more) of these feels: Moody, Natural, Light, Warm, Bold and/or Cinematic.

What “feel” do you want your video to have?

Our colourists can use this as a starting point during the creative brief process and from there start to work their magic.

Your video is also given a feel depending on cinematography choices, costume, music and editing to name a few.  Colour grading is a vital element which contributes to the feel of your video, and brings it all together.

There are some tricks that a good colourist might employ. One example is using vignettes (darkening the edges, often around the entire frame).

We don’t always want/need the audience to look at the centre of the frame. If you want the attention elsewhere, you could softly drop the brightness of the other parts of the image – people will always look at the brightest part of the image.

Another way would be to subtly desaturate (take colour out) of everything else, except the thing/person/product you want attention drawn to.  Again, people look at the brightest thing… and this could also be the brightest colour.

You could make it a unique part of the frame… so if everything else was light in contrast (soft contrast) and one part was heavy in contrast (hard blacks, pinging whites), then this sharp contrast would draw our eye. The audience will be drawn to the striking part of the frame.

This is often used to describe a style which is heavy on the blacks (dark blacks, deep shadows) and you will often see this look in an action film or in gritty, grungey work.

If the luminance (brightness) in your image is made up of whites through to black and all the colours in between, the bottom end of the luminance channel (the “toe” – the light shadows, the shadows, the dark shadows and the black) would all be crushed down to a black level.

Often some details in the shadows can be lost but perhaps those details aren’t important.

The overall effect of crushing the blacks is often a hard look. Sometimes it can feel cinematic because in the cinema there is the scope for the picture to be darker (dark environment means our eyes adjust and we can see more in the shadows).

The opposite of crushing the blacks would be to pull more detail out of the shadows and sit the shadows up (brighter). The image will feel lighter and not so heavy.

Examples of works which do not crush the blacks are commercials for baby related products like nappies, hygiene/cleaning products and romantic movies!

Examples of works which often crush the blacks are action films, horror and hard hitting drama.

A style frame is a graded still image from your footage.  It is used in the initial stages of the Peachy Process™ to show an example of the direction (or possible directions) for the grade. Often taken from key scenes or shots. When approved this look and feel can be applied across the entire scene or edit.

When you ask for a “light” look, our peachy colourists will transform and elevate your imagery to create a feel like this:

Bright, airy and dreamy.  Soft like tall grass blowing in the breeze.  Gentle colours like neutrals, pastels and warm whites.  Light can feel like freshness, cleanliness, pureness and freedom.

Using a term like this can be a great starting point for a colour grading brief.

To see a 60 sec mood reel of a “light” colour grading feel, click here.

Stands for Look Up Table, rhymes with nut!  A LUT is a reference file used by colourists, cinematographers and editors to convert images from one colour space to another.

Arguably, as a cinematographer, limiting your use of creative LUTs on set to one or two (eg. Day time and night time look) can be more effective.

This is because there is less chance of error with the incorrect LUT being put on a scene and then causing incorrect lighting choices.

Getting to know one or two LUTs really well means you can learn how they affect the image captured on the sensor across a variety of scenes, making better choices regarding lighting and exposure.

To read an easy-to-understand piece about the 4 different types of LUTS, see our blog on the topic here!

The artistic intent of a project should always be the guide book as to how a project is graded.

Even if your favourite visual style is a ‘cinematic look’ – slightly de-saturated, moody, dramatic, textural, soft and filmic highlights and shadows – this may not suit or serve the story.

Examples of when a cinematic look is not always best:
– Reality TV
– Lifestyle shows
– Advertising eg. beauty, automotive, hygiene products, food/beverage.

These type of projects often require a clean, crisp, vibrant and polished feel. This is the opposite of a cinematic feel. (For some examples of visual look & feel reels, click here)

Other examples of when a cinematic look is not always best:

– Factual programming
– Observational documentary

These type of projects often require an authentic, natural feel. They may not need to take the viewer into a filmic story world.

If the project does not require a cinematic look, it does not make sense to grade in a cinematic way.

If your source media is already in a linear colour space (eg. Rec709) keep it in a linear colour space. Pushing linear footage into a LOG colour space may be destructive to the image, increasing noise and other artefacts. It is also time-consuming to push it into a LOG colour grading space, have the wide and unnecessary gamut of colour options, only to transform it back again.

Colour grading in LOG often requires more time and resources due to the increased complexity of manipulating the extended dynamic range. In time-sensitive projects or situations where efficiency is crucial (eg. factual or documentary episodic TV), a more simple colour space is often best.

There are 3 balls on a colourist console, and they each have a spin-able ring around them. Moving the balls affects the colour. Spinning the rings affects the brightness.

The left ball is for “lift” (shadows/blacks), the middle ball is for “gamma” (midtones/middle of the road colours that are neither dark or bright) and the right ball is “gain” (highlights/whites/bright colours).

By moving a ball in a certain direction you can push one range of colours toward a different range of colours. For example moving the “lift” ball from left to right will push any yellowy shadows toward more bluey coloured shadows.

Moving the “gamma” ball from left to right will make yellow midtones move toward blue (ie. taking some yellow out of skin tones and cooling it off toward blue).

The left/right/up/down movement of the ball mirrors a vector scope, which is an electronic tool colourists use to measure colour.

The beautiful thing about a console is that you can use your hands to intuitively move the balls to get your desired effect.

When you change one parameter it effects another eg. Lifting the shadows will also slightly lift the midtones.

Everything flows and is connected. So by using your hands it becomes more like painting, very instinctive and intuitive.