.. -*- coding: utf-8 -*-

.. |->| replace:: →

======================
 Making movies in VMD
======================

Given a trajectory with maybe hundreds of frame, we can render each
frame and then use a movie encoder to combine all frames into a
movie. VMD_ has facilities to render and directly pass all the images
to a movie encoder of your choice --- here we use the free FFmpeg_ encoder.

.. _VMD: http://www.ks.uiuc.edu/Research/vmd/
.. _FFmpeg: https://www.ffmpeg.org


Movie encoder: FFmpeg
=====================

Install ``ffmpeg`` from https://ffmpeg.org

Linux
-----

Try installing with your package manager, e.g., on Ubuntu and Debian::

   sudo aptitude install ffmpeg

or get static build from https://www.ffmpeg.org/download.html and
install it in your ``~/bin`` directory. Then make sure that ``ffmpeg``
is found on your :envvar:`PATH`::

  echo "export PATH=$HOME/bin:$PATH" >> ~/.profile

(You might have to log out and log in for this to have full effect
later on.)


Mac OS X
--------

Get the dmg installer package from
https://www.ffmpeg.org/download.html and make sure that ``ffmpeg`` can
be found on your :envvar:`PATH`.


Windows
-------

Get the installer package from https://www.ffmpeg.org/download.html
--- make sure you know where the ``ffmpeg.exe`` ended up.



AdK transition movie
====================

We use the standard VMD plugin MovieMaker_.

1. Load the AdK transition trajectory from :doc:`dynamics/index`.

2. Use a nice representation, e.g. color the CORE, LID, and NMP
   domains. You can also find a number of salt bridges (pairs of
   basic/positively charged and acidic/negatively charge residues)
   that "zip up" AdK (see the `AdK zipping movie`_ from `Beckstein et
   al`_ [Beckstein2009]_).

3. Open :menuselection:`Extension --> Visualization --> Movie Maker`

4. Settings

   * *Renderer:* Snapshot (for "Hollywood"-style movies, use one of the
     ray tracers such as tachyon + AO)

   * *Movie Settings:* Trajectory

   * Set *Format* to MPEG-1 (ffmpeg). (MPEG-2 is better but support
     for MPEG-2 is not always present and then you cannot display
     it — but try it!).

   * Set your *working directory* to e.g. ``~/USERNAME/movies``
     (so that you can easily find the finished movie)

   * *Name* your movie, e.g. ``adk_transition``.

5. *Make Movie*: should step through your trajectory, write out
   frames, and finally run ``ffmpeg``.

6. Go to your movie directory and play it (e.g., by double clicking or
   opening from the shell).


.. _MovieMaker: http://www.ks.uiuc.edu/Research/vmd/plugins/vmdmovie/

.. _`AdK zipping movie`:
   http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/MiamiMultiMediaURL/1-s2.0-S0022283609011164/1-s2.0-S0022283609011164-mmc3.avi/272582/FULL/S0022283609011164/7884013894b4ebe37e40973d85374ae3/mmc3.avi

.. _`Beckstein et al`:
   http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022283609011164


Advanced movie making
=====================

In order to rotate and zoom a movie during a trajectory we can use the
VMD ViewChangeRender_ plugin together with MovieMaker_.

Open ViewChangeRender_:  :menuselection:`Extensions --> Visualization
--> ViewChangeRender`. 

Generate "viewpoints" of your movie:

1. Adjust position in trajectory, rotate, zoom.
2. Save Viewpoint
3. Repeat for as many viewpoints as you want to include. 

*Add all viewpoints to movie*: The final movie will smoothly
interpolate between these points. You can check with *Preview
Movie*. (Note that this plugin has a few bugs so you might have to
quit and restart when it stops working.)

Once you are ready to render the movie:

1. In ViewChangeRender: *Enable*
2. In MovieMaker:

   1. *Movie Settings*: **User defined procedure**
   2. Adjust other settings as needed...
   3. *Make movie*

.. _ViewChangeRender: http://www.ks.uiuc.edu/Research/vmd/plugins/viewchangerender/