With the advent of DVD, whose image quality was far superior to VHS, many film festivals have been using this format not only for pre-selection but also for screenings. Currently, with the widespread adoption of HD and digital files, the use of discs (whether DVD or Blu-ray) for screenings is no longer necessary; and the alternative of projecting with digital files presents a great opportunity to reduce costs and improve screening quality. Despite this, some festivals continue to use DVD discs as a backup for screenings…
But… how do we make the transition? How do we go from projecting with DVD discs to using digital files?
First, we need to understand that a DVD is a medium that stores image and sound files, as well as subtitles and a menu. The video file is in mpeg2 format, with the .mpeg extension, which is saved along with the rest of the information in a .VOB container. Therefore, if we project these files outside the disc, whether .VOB or .mpeg, we are projecting with the same quality as the DVD; it’s the same as projecting the disc itself. The .mpeg2 format for DVD has a screen size of 576×720 (576p) in SD (standard definition).
We have two quality options: maintain SD or switch to HD (1080p and 720p). This will depend on the projector we have available; the rest of the equipment will be practically the same. For both HD and SD, I need a media player, and we would have several options:
- A computer with about 8GB of RAM to handle heavier files, and VLC software, which is the best player on the market. It’s free and cross-platform, meaning it can be used with Mac, Windows, and Linux. With this player, I can play from a directory or create playlists, and it plays any type of file. It is no longer necessary to make DVD copies for each session.
- Media player. There are two types of players: those with a hard drive, where files can be saved in folders, or those without a hard drive, where a USB can be connected with the files. The second option, without a hard drive, is preferable for transporting sessions, as these players are lightweight and take up little space. Both types of players can be found in any electronics store and have gradually replaced DVD and Blu-ray players. The price of these players ranges from €69 to €150.
With these options, any format can be played, meaning the days when multiple players were needed, one for each format, are over. Now, with just one player, any type of format can be used.
To connect the player to the projector, an HDMI cable is usually used, which transmits both image and sound. At this point, all we have done is replace the DVD player with a media player (either a computer or a hard drive).
Now, all that remains is to copy the files we have been sent to the hard drive, create a playlist, and press play. If we want to extract files from a DVD disc, we just need to navigate the DVD content from the computer and copy the .VOB files – both VLC and multimedia hard drives can read .VOB files without problems – and copy them to our player, but in this case, the quality will be the same as projecting from the DVD disc.