If you export the section of video that you wish to title into AE and work on it as your bottom-most layer you can still have the flexibility that you need.

Once you have completed your AE work, turn off the Avid-supplied video and export your composition as QT Animations, millions+.  Import that into Avid with the alpha channel inverted and you'll be able to handle it as a matte in Avid, with all the flexibility that implies.

jwrl:

If you export the section of video that you wish to title into AE and work on it as your bottom-most layer you can still have the flexibility that you need.

Once you have completed your AE work, turn off the Avid-supplied video and export your composition as QT Animations, millions+.  Import that into Avid with the alpha channel inverted and you'll be able to handle it as a matte in Avid, with all the flexibility that implies.

That's a good idea... something so simple just made my life a bit easier... thxs.

How do you export it out of AE as a quicktime. The only options I get for exporting from AE is to Flash, Flash Player, or Premiere?

Never mind, I figured it out. In AE I just right-clicked my composite and selected create proxy. Then I selected movie and where I wanted to save it. It then appeared at the bottom of the screen with a render button all the way to the right. I then rendered it and it saved as an AVI file. I was then able to go back to Avid and import that AVI file into Avid and it appeared as a Matte.

You do not need to create a proxy...

In AE you don't really "export"... it is a quirky thing with AE... but, you would (in AE speak) add the composition to the render queue... from the render que you will then choose the format you wish to render the composition out as... or, in MC speak ...it would said... from the Render Queue Window you would "export" the composition.   (look in... Composition>Add to Render Queue to add the composition to the Render Queue).

In the Render Queue window... you make the export setting changes/render changes in the - Render Settings... Output Setttings... and Output To:  (double click on the "Best Settings" and "Lossless" areas.  In AE do not use the file export as a way to export the composition... and,... yes that sounds a funny as it looks.) 

You will want to export it as a MOV (Quicktime) file... MC has problems with certain AVI files over 2G... 

For most practical purposes...

In AE... render = MC's... export  (for this...just forget about using the file>export option in AE).

Joe M:

for this...just forget about using the file>export option in AE

Sorry, Mswilliams, I should have specified that too.  I very, very rarely use export.  The render queue gives more power than you'll need, and you can tailor your settings to suit your wants.

For example, on my systems I've added several QT export settings.  I have QT animation, QT animation+, QT DNxHD, and QT H264.  The last I use for providing quick and dirty previews.  Because I'm currently working on a HD animation project I've recently added a selection of graphic sequence settings too.

Get to know the render queue.  It's worth it.

I am having the exact same issue with AAF Avid>PP.  Currently I am running MC 5.5.1 and CS5 PPro.  THe AAF imports from Avid just fine into PPro, but when I open the folder, audio and video are two different files with the video always offline.  I also tried to relink to the MXF and PPro indicates that the MXF file is an invalid media type. 

I also tried an AAF with the "copy" option and tried a couple of transcode formats incluidng DVCPro HD MXF for my P2 media specifically. 

I have tried the AAF with Ikegami Long GOP media, P2 and DV media.  DV media is hte only thing that opens in PPro with audio and video, but if drag a clip into a new sequence or open the Avid exported sequence, PPro crashes immediately with no other applications running in the background...

I've got 4 TB worth of Avid MXF filest aht I need to access in PPro.  Has anyone solved or come up with a work around for this issue without purcahsing a third party app?  Though if 3rd party is needed Automatic Duck was mentioned as a good tool to get media into AE but does it work for PPro too?

Lindsay