Video review proxies: small files, traceable notes

Define what the proxy is for

A smaller review file can make playback and transfer more practical, but it should still identify the same events the editor will change in the original. The proxy is a representation, not a new creative version. Preserve a defined time mapping and make clear which details need original-quality inspection before the output can be accepted.

Adobe’s proxy workflow documentation describes alternate media linked to originals. This guide proposes a review contract around that relationship. ai ad workflow small business provides the small-business context. The important question is whether a note made on the review file can be located accurately in the source and final cut.

A hypothetical bench assembly proxy lets a reviewer locate the screw insertion without transferring the larger source for every comment. Its time mapping must still identify the same action in the original. If compression obscures whether the screw seats properly, the review needs the original-quality interval. Keep that limitation explicit rather than interpreting an unclear small image as evidence of a defect or silently approving detail the proxy cannot reveal.

Give original and proxy separate IDs and hashes. Record whether proxy time zero corresponds to original time zero or to a defined source offset. Preserve duration and the intended frame-time relationship for the review task.

A proxy made from a trim needs its original interval. Without that mapping, a note at five seconds can point to several different events. Keep the relationship in the manifest rather than relying on a naming convention. If a new proxy is generated after an edit, mark it as another version. Do not overwrite the review reference while retaining notes that described the previous cut.

Source: Turntake editorial checklist (proposed), October 2026.

Preserve the reviewed composition

Keep the same crop and visible layers when the purpose is creative approval. A proxy that omits captions, required labels or a product edge does not show the package the reviewer is meant to judge. If a reduced representation hides something, state that limitation.

Do not add a center crop merely to reduce the file size. It can conceal the very overlap or safe-area issue a reviewer needs to see. In our production in October 2026, notes remain tied to a version and location. A reliable proxy preserves that meaning. Tag a video clip library with AI: rules first covers tagging visible source content, which should remain distinguishable from a proxy’s technical reduction in detail.

1. 01Identify original and proxyRecord both hashes
2. 02Define timeline mappingPreserve offset and duration
3. 03Check composition and textExpose review limits
4. 04Verify important decisionsApprove original-quality final

Inspect text at the reduced resolution

Small captions and factual qualifications may become harder to read in a proxy. Test them at the actual review size. If the review copy cannot show the required text legibly, provide a suitable higher-quality reference or mark text review as incomplete.

1. Original
2. Proxy

Compression artifacts can also resemble a source defect. A product edge may look unstable only in the small file. Ask reviewers to locate the issue and compare it with the original before authoring a repair. A proxy is useful for finding a candidate problem, but its reduced detail should not force unnecessary changes to otherwise correct source footage.

Test timestamp notes against the source

Choose events near the opening, middle and ending and verify that the same review times locate them in the original. Use clear actions or spoken words. A matching duration alone does not establish that every event has the expected correspondence.

This is a recommended acceptance check, not a claim that one proxy preset works for every source. Inspect any trimmed or retimed section separately. If the source has been converted or its frame timing changed, record which representation the proxy follows. The editor needs a defined relationship, especially when the note concerns a brief movement, a caption onset or a single frame around a cut.

Proxy checkOriginal check

• Proxy checkPractical playbackOriginal checkFull image detail
• Proxy checkLocated review eventOriginal checkExact source event
• Proxy checkReduced text legibilityOriginal checkFinal qualification reading
• Proxy checkCompression symptomOriginal checkConfirm actual source defect

Keep review convenience separate from final approval

Use the proxy to collect editorial notes, then inspect important details in the original-quality final. Audio balance, fine product detail and small text can change the judgment. Keep the final approval attached to the actual delivery file rather than only the review copy.

Do you have enough footage for new video ads? covers whether there is enough usable footage, a content question that proxy count cannot answer. A folder containing many review copies may still represent a small number of unique source actions. Preserve original IDs so the coverage review counts actual material rather than every technical derivative as another shot.

Retain or archive proxies by their role

Archive video ad assets without losing the next edit covers archiving assets. Keep review copies while they support open notes or approval evidence, and follow the project’s retention process afterward. A proxy can be regenerated only if the source, transformation and timeline relationship remain available.

Turntake’s content library approach describes Turntake’s content-library approach. This is a production method for review media, not a statement that a new automatic proxy service is currently available.

For a hypothetical proxy made from a thirty-second source interval, record that offset explicitly and test the first visible action against the original. A note at the proxy’s start should point to the interval’s start in the source, not the beginning of the entire recording. This small record prevents a precise-looking timestamp from becoming an imprecise instruction when the editor opens the larger file.

Escalate a detail the proxy cannot show

If a reviewer cannot read a qualification in the reduced file, mark that specific decision as untested and provide a clearer reference. Do not resolve the note by assuming the original must be readable. Open the original-quality final and inspect the actual line at delivery size. A proxy limitation is evidence about the review medium, not proof that the source is correct or defective. Keeping that distinction in the report prevents convenience media from deciding a factual readability question it cannot answer.

Who wrote this We made the ads first, for SmartSolar in Denmark, Sweden and Ireland. Then we built Turntake. Where Turntake comes from