TESSR Review - What are its Usages?
Upon opening TESSR Review, users will be led to a dedicated space for the sole reason of reviewing an uploaded scene. So, without any distractions, TESSR Review is a centralised module that allows you to annotate, comment on, discuss and upload files and renditions on a single page.
Let’s delve deeper into its details:
1. Scene Details
The Scene Details displays information and metadata about the current scene you are on, alongside a few action icons such as:
Previous/Next Scene: Quickly swap between scenes, with the arrows on the far left and right of the Scene Details bar.
Download: You can choose to download an Active Frame, All Annotated Frames, Note Files or Rendition Files of the scene you are viewing.
Set as Thumbnail: According to whichever Frame you are currently on, you can set it as the Thumbnail of the active scene. You can choose to set the Thumbnail of the scene itself, a certain Rendition of a scene or both.
Open In: Between the Project Directory or Woohoo Details, you can choose to open the current scene in either or both modules, sending you to a new tab.
Rendition Drop-Down: Quickly swap between Renditions of the active scene, through this drop-down. You are also able to create a new rendition altogether within this menu.
Assignee: Check who has been assigned to the scene you are actively on, and if you have the permissions to do so—assign or unassign more members.
2. Scene List
The Scene List is a little more straightforward than the other components listed in this article—but that doesn’t make it any less important. This feature displays a pre-loaded list of scenes available for review, and it allows you to swiftly jump from scene to scene. Simply tap on the thumbnail of a scene in this upper bar, and you’ll be right where you need to be.
3. Search
It can get tedious to scroll through a seemingly endless list of takes—but the search tool allows you to find what you need almost instantaneously. Here are a few things to note:
Refine your search: Switch between searching within a Take or an entire project, for easy access to your work.
Focus in List: Click on the icon with four arrows pointing to a symbol of an eye, to jump to a specific scene on the Scene List.
Open in New Tab: You can also choose to open a scene in an entirely new tab, if you need to have a few open simultaneously.
4. Annotations
Annotate your scenes in the Review module itself. TESSR has centralised your reviewing needs—you no longer have to export scenes to annotate on, in an external app. The Annotation Bar currently has the following features, which you can use by either tapping on the designation icon, or using shortcut keys:
Colour Wheel: Choose from a spectrum of colours and hues, or simply type in a hex code to get the exact shade you want.
Size: Applicable to both Shapes, freehand Drawing and the Eraser tool, switch between seven different sizes.
Ballpen: The Ballpen helps create smooth, clean lines.
Brush: The Brush tool creates sparse, rugged lines.
Eraser: If you’ve made a mistake or want to neaten your annotations, just click on the Eraser tool as needed.
Shapes: Circles, Squares, Lines and Arrows have been readied for you—but don’t fret, you can stretch and turn your shapes to manipulate them to your liking.
Undo and Redo: If using the Eraser is too much of a hassle for you, simply Undo your last annotation with a click of a button—and if you happen to change your mind, the Redo button will appear right next to it.
*Note: However, this is limited to the specific Frame you annotated on—move to a different Frame, and you won’t be able to undo your last markings. This is to avoid accidentally undoing an annotation from a previous Frame, unknowingly.
5. Media Player & Toolbar
The media player and toolbar do an array of things related to the playing of an uploaded scene:
Next Frame: Swap between Frames of a scene, precisely. Normally tapping through the track slider may not be able to give you the exact Frame you want, purely due to human error.
Play/Pause: Play or Pause the scene.
Next/Previous File: Jump from the following or preceding Files without hassle.
Replay: From any point of a scene that you are currently on, you can simply click the Replay button to move back to the start of a scene.
Play Speed: There are seven (7) speed options for you to choose from. Slow down to catch details or speed up to skim through scenes, with the following FPS: 300, 150, 60 45, 30, 15 and 7.5.
Looping: Toggle this on or off to Loop or Unloop a scene, if need be.
Timecode: The Timecode provides information of the length of a scene, down to the second.
Next/Previous Marker: A vertical red line in the track slider indicates that there are Annotations on the frame it is on. With the option to hop between a marker to the next, allows for easy receiving of feedback and amendment.
Clear Active Frame: On the frame you are on, this button will clear all the Annotations that you have made in one go.
Hide/Show Legend: The Legend lists who has Annotated on a certain scene. It provides the option of hiding or deleting the annotation of a person, by either tapping on the respective icons besides an individual’s name—or by clicking on Hide/Delete All.
Fullscreen: Fullscreen mode removes the Scene List, and the columns on the right. It helps you fully focus on the current scene you are on, putting you in a setting where it is just the animated scene and your Annotation tools.
Volume Rocker: Mute or Unmute an active scene.
Preferences, Soundwave: Under the gear-shaped Preferences Icon, you can toggle the soundwave of a scene on or off. We've implemented this to help your checks on lip-syncs or special sound effects over your animated pieces, become easy.
*Note that this is currently only available in the public BETA version, and soundwaves will only appear on scenes that have been uploaded while in the BETA module.
Preferences, Keyboard Shortcuts: By clicking on this, a menu that displays TESSR Review’s available Keyboard Shortcuts will pop up on your screen.
5. Renditions
Renditions are essentially the evolution of a scene. Rendition 2 would be the amended version of Rendition 1 —and so on. This can be leveraged to compare and choose which Rendition of a scene should be deemed as final.
There are two (2) ways to switch between Renditions of a scene. Either from the drop-down list on the Scene Details bar, or from the tab on the right of the screen. The difference between the two is that:
Drop-down on Scene Details bar: this offers a quick switch among renditions.
Renditions tab (on the right): this provides more detail—view dates, lengths and the number of comments. Here, you are also able to rename or delete a Rendition and view its descriptions when hovering over the three dotted icon.
7. Comments
The comments tab is optimised for comprehensive communication between members of a team. Here’s what you’re able to do:
Comment Box
Emojis & Fonts: To best convey emotion through text; attach expressive emojis, bold or italicize, underline or cross out.
Lists: Choose between a bulleted list, a numerical list or a checklist, to better organise your thoughts.
Structure: Increase or Decrease the indents of your text.
File: Attach files from your computer to your comments, if need be.
Link: Similarly, you are able to add links onto the text of your comments.
Mic: If written text doesn’t cut it, simply record a voice message for your team members to hear. Tone and volume don’t translate well to text, and sometimes speaking simply gets the message across better—but this feature hopefully amends that.
Mention Frames: If you have a piece of feedback about a specific frame, you can attach it onto your comment. When others tap on the linked frame, they’d jump to it—avoiding miscommunication regarding which scenes were being referred to.
Comments Section
Renditions Drop-down: Without having to manually switch between renditions of a scene, you are able to solely view the comments of a specific rendition. This helps you cross-check if the previous comments of an older rendition have been addressed in a newer rendition.
Assign: Besides using the address sign (@) in your initial writings, you can assign a comment to individuals, to ensure they see and understand that they have been tasked with something.
React: With our custom Tilemojis (tile + emoji), you can react to a comment. This can indicate that you have acknowledged the comment, wordlessly.
Reply: Directly reply to a comment that was left previously.
Edit: If a comment of yours needs to be tweaked, simply click on the Edit icon. Clarifying texts or fixing typos become hassle-free.
Copy Link: If need be, you can copy the link to a text. This would be done for numerous reasons, like for recordkeeping purposes.
8. Files
The Files tab is where all media files uploaded via comments compile in. It’s tedious work to scroll through comments, just to find one file, so centralising uploads alleviates the problem. For further organisation, the Files tab is split up between sub-tabs according to Media, Documents and Links.
Conclusion
To put it broadly, this module provides features that can help teams better communicate and collaborate to achieve a project of optimal result. TESSR Reviews is the last module under the Studio tab—but it isn’t the last instalment in our Guidelines series. As long as TESSR keeps updating and improving, our Guidelines will work to catch up with it.
Stay tuned for the next part of this series—the TESSR Planning tab!
Author Bio
From Malaysia, Leia Emeera is a writer at TESSR, and a published author. She has been putting pen to paper ever since she learned how to, and has an anthology to her name, titled 'Ten'. Leia loves music, games and her beloved labrador retriever, George. She aims to further her studies in English Literature and Creative Writing the moment her gap year ends. 'Till then, you will find her sitting behind a desk, writing with TESSR.
Connect with her on LinkedIn: Leia Emeera
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