Request for Help with Restoration Settings in Hybrid

[djilayeden]

Hi Sleur,
I'm currently working on restoring a film, but I'm having trouble identifying the exact issue with the footage. I suspect it might be related to framerate, stabilization, or maybe deinterlacing – but I’m not entirely sure what’s causing the movement problems.
Would you be kind enough to guide me or suggest some recommended settings in Hybrid for a general restoration in this kind of situation?
Even just a bit of direction from you would be really helpful.
Thanks a lot in advance for your time and support!

Footage 1932

Best regards,

[belyshev]

Try:  Vapoursynth  ->  Frame  ->  ReduceFlicker or SmallDeflicker.  Also analyzing your video seems you do not have original Reel footage, but a VHS copy which was captured in 1080p instead of original interlaced format, it's kind of like trying to enhance a pirated movie which was recorded by a cellphone in a theater. And if it is a VHS tape that you are capturing from, then this jerking is usually caused by tape edges warping due to age and can be fixed by baking them by lab experts (not in your home oven). Also when I want to see how effective each filter or setting is, I try it on a short 5 seconds of a video to save time & then compare results of different parameters.

[djilayeden]

Hi,
Thank you so much for the detailed response and for taking the time to analyze the footage – I really appreciate it!
Your explanation makes a lot of sense – thanks for that!
I’ll definitely experiment with Vapoursynth → Frame → ReduceFlicker and SmallDeflicker, and I’ll follow your advice to test on a short 5-second clip first before applying settings to the whole footage. 
Thanks again for your help and guidance – it's really valuable!
Best regards,

[Selur]

I'm having trouble identifying the exact issue with the footage

It seems like the source was once interlaced and seemingly got bob deinterlaced with the wrong frame order.
And then got resized and overly compressed.
=> If possible, this should be re-captured into a lossless interlaced format at the correct frame rate and resolution, before filtering,..

If that is not possible, be aware that whatever you do will basically be smoothing and removing stuff,..
I would recommend:

• throwing away half of the frames cycle: "2" offsets: "1" (if you need more than 15fps: add some frame interpolate)
  
• Using SpotLess with a temporal radius of 3 to get rid of most of the artifacts
  

Cu Selur

[djilayeden]

Hi Selur,
Thank you very much for your detailed analysis and suggestions – I really appreciate your time and expertise!
It makes sense now that the source was likely interlaced originally and then bob deinterlaced with the wrong field order. Unfortunately, I don’t have access to the original source to re-capture it properly, but your explanation helps me understand the limitations I’m working with.
I’ll follow your advice and try throwing away half the frames with cycle "2" and offset "1", and possibly add interpolation if needed to keep the motion fluid. I’ll also test SpotLess with a temporal radius of 3 to clean up the remaining artifacts.
Thanks again for all your help – this gives me a much better direction to approach the restoration.
Best regards,

[djilayeden]

Hi Selur,
Just wanted to say thank you again – I followed your advice, and I finally got a really good result!
The frame decimation and temporal cleaning made a big difference. Your insights helped me understand where the real issues were coming from.
Much appreciated! 🙏
Best regards,