Seamless loop

A loop is judged entirely on whether the seam is invisible.

Workflow

1. Match the seam: position, motion and sound at the last frame must meet the first. Inspect both frames before claiming it is seamless.
2. No transition at the seam: a fade announces the loop. Hard cut on matched frames.
3. Constant energy: no builds, drops or text cards; anything that marks a beginning breaks the illusion.
4. Slow life on statics: applyMotionPreset "breathing-scale", "float" or "parallax-drift".
5. Soft grade: applyFilterPreset "Pastel", "Fade" or "Cool", saturation about 95, contrast about 98.
6. Audio loops too, or is silent. Trim music to a whole number of bars and do not fade it; a fade marks the seam.

Gotchas

• A forward and reverse duplicate (boomerang) is an optional effect, not a guarantee of a natural loop: it makes people, physics and dialogue visibly wrong.
• Keyframed motion must return to its starting value on the last frame or the seam jumps.

Related skills: camera-motion, music-bed.