LOOKHU · Self Distro
Free guide

Self Distro Deliverables Guide

Don't start preparing your drive or files until after you've finished reading everything in this guide.

We're just as excited to distribute your movie as you are to get it out there — but careful precautions create correct files. Repeating preliminary QC and requesting new files is time consuming and can delay your release by months. If you have questions, contact us before you send your drive. Before you send your drive, watch your entire movie and trailer to make sure you're happy with the video and audio — we will not replace it once it has gone live.

We only need 8 basic things.

Your drive should contain all of the following.

1
Movie File
.mov
2
Trailer File
.mov
3
Poster Files
.psd
4
Stills / Screen Grabs
.jpg
5
Captions
.srt / .scc
6
Signed Contract
Docusign
7
Music Cue Sheet
8
M&E Audio Tracks
.wav

Deliverable summary.

The full guide, organized by category.

1

Video Files

  • Video Requirements
  • Audio Requirements
  • Optional Video (4K)
  • Optional Audio (5.1)
  • Foreign Language Films
2

Artwork

  • Key Art: Poster & Still Sizes
  • Poster Requirements
3

Captions & Subtitles

  • Captions & Subtitles Specs
4

Miscellaneous

  • Contract
  • Deliverables Help (3rd Party)

Physical drive specifications

Copy all deliverables onto a palm-sized, self-powered USB 3.0 external drive (such as a 1TB Seagate, Western Digital, etc. — very affordable), formatted for both PC and Mac. If you use a Mac, connect the drive and open Disk Utility to check its format — it should be ExFAT.

Make sure to label your drive.

Do not use a thumb drive or anything smaller or bigger than a palm-sized external drive.

When your submission is approved, we'll confirm the shipping address for your drive.

Video requirements

If any of these things are missing you will fail QC.

Feature video

  • At least one frame of black before the feature — no more than 2 seconds.
  • Lookhu logo must appear after the black frame. Create your feature file before you order your closed captions.
  • At least one frame of black after the feature, but no more than 2 seconds. Fade final audio — no abrupt audio ending and no audio over black.
  • No URL, website, #'s or @, FBI, Coming Soon, or Rating cards anywhere in the feature. Acceptable frame rates: 23.976, 24.000, 25.000, 29.97, 30.000.
  • Feature must be 1920x1080. Do not send a 4K file.
  • File must be a "ProRes 422 HQ" file, 2-channel stereo with audio embedded.
  • There must be a title card prior to the program starting — no video with dialog before the title card.
  • No full frontal nudity or explicit / gratuitous sex.

Trailer video

  • Trailer must be G-rated — no sex, swearing, or excessive violence (guns firing at something off camera is okay).
  • At least one frame of black before the trailer, but no more than 2 seconds.
  • At least one frame of black after the trailer, but no more than 2 seconds.
  • No URL, FBI, Coming Soon, or Rating cards anywhere in the trailer.
  • Frame rate must match the feature.
  • Trailer must be 1920x1080.
  • File must be a "ProRes 422 HQ stereo" file.
  • If a trailer is not available or doesn't pass QC, a 2-minute clip from the feature can be used instead. The trailer or clip provided at delivery is final — no further changes can be accommodated.

Audio requirements

Stereo audio (required)

  • Feature must be 2-channel true stereo (not dual mono).
  • Trailer must be 2-channel true stereo (not dual mono).
  • LPCM, 16-bit or 24-bit, 48kHz, delivered embedded within the master file.
Channel configuration:
1 = Left Stereo (Lt)
2 = Right Stereo (Rt)

Optional M&E tracks (Music & Effects only) should be delivered as separate stereo .wav files.

Optional audio (5.1 surround)

In addition to the required stereo file — an extra file alongside the required HD stereo file.

  • LPCM, 16-bit or 24-bit, 48kHz, delivered embedded within the master file.
  • When delivering 5.1 surround, a 2-channel stereo must be present as well.
Channel configuration (required in this order):
1 = Left
2 = Right
3 = Center
4 = LFE
5 = Left Surround
6 = Right Surround
7 = Left Total
8 = Right Total
Audio encoding specs
Codec
L-PCM
Sample rate
48kHz
Bits / sample
16 / 24 bit
Further requirements
  • Audio and video must be interleaved and in sync in a single mezzanine file.
  • Must be picture-to-picture with 1 second of black padding (1 sec of black at head and tail).
  • Must not contain FBI slates, piracy slates, commercial blacks, rating/certification slates, extra features, black empty space after feature/credits, or extraneous logos (production company logos may stay).
  • Must not contain trailer previews or advertisements at head/tail.
  • Must not include visible watermarks.
  • Must contain end credits.
  • Must be fully localized for the target territory: title card, subtitles, forced narrative, audio, main and end credits.
  • Must not have bad, dropped, or repeated frames.
  • Must not have ghosting or digital hits.
  • Must not end abruptly.

Optional video (4K)

Extra, in addition to the required HD feature file.

Video Codec & WrapperApple ProRes 422HQ or Apple ProRes 4444, .mov
Color Sub Sampling4:2:2 or 4:4:4
Frame RateAs original source; Film 23.976; Video 29.97; constant, no variable frame rates (24/25fps acceptable)
Bit Depth8 (SDR) / 10 or 12 (HDR)
Scan TypeProgressive; interlaced acceptable if source is video (do NOT deinterlace content that originated on film)
ResolutionUHD 3840x2160 or HD 1920x1080 (HDR) / UHD 3840x2160 (SDR). Do not remove letterboxing/pillarboxing.
Mastering Display EOTF (HDR only)EOTF "PQ" — Ref: SMPTE ST2084-14
Mastering Metadata (HDR only)Color Space, Display Primaries/White Point Chromaticity (CIE 1931 xy), min/max mastering luminance (cd/m²), Max CLL & Max FALL if available. Supply as a text document. Ref: SMPTE ST2086-14, CEA 861.3.

Key art: poster & still sizes

214 × 306
Thumbnail · PSD
1920 × 1080
Background · PSD
2700 × 4050
Main poster · PSD

Stills should also be 1920x1080 .jpgs. We require at least five high-quality stills (1920x1080) from the movie — not behind-the-scenes images. Pick and label the still you want as your background.

Poster file requirements

  • Must have a layered Photoshop version of the posters — the file ends in ".psd".
  • The Photoshop poster must have different layers. The title art must be on its own layer.
  • Make one Photoshop poster of each of the three sizes.
  • Make one JPEG poster of each of the three sizes.
  • Your poster must be "clickbait" and stand out — or no one will click on it.
  • We recommend hiring a professional poster designer if you don't have one on your team.
Final package

The final package

Everything that goes on your drive, organized.

What your drive should look likeThe "Important Documents" folderThe "LH" folderFile naming conventions

What your drive should look like

There should be three folders:

Important Documents
Important documents, for example: the signed contract.
LH_MovieTitle
All the important files we need.
Misc Folder
This folder should have anything extra that you want to include.
Important Documents
LH_MovieTitle
Misc Folder

The "Important Documents" folder

This folder should have:

  • Signed contract
    Copy of the PDF.
  • Chapter files
    No longer necessary.
NameDate modifiedTypeSize
Signed Contract.pdf—PDF—

The "LH" folder

Here's an example of what the inside of a deliverables folder should look like. (Note: there will be a few other files required that aren't in this image, but those do not have to follow the same naming convention.)

The example film in this image is titled "Acceptable Damages".

SCCLH_AcceptableDamage.scc
SRTLH_AcceptableDamage.srt
PSDLH_AcceptableDamage_1920x1080.psd
JPGLH_AcceptableDamage_1920x1080_Still1.jpg
JPGLH_AcceptableDamage_1920x1080_Still2.jpg
JPGLH_AcceptableDamage_1920x1080_Still3.jpg
JPGLH_AcceptableDamage_1920x1080_Still4.jpg
JPGLH_AcceptableDamage_1920x1080_Still5.jpg
PSDLH_AcceptableDamage_2700x4050.psd
MOVLH_AcceptableDamage_HD_EN_24.mov
JPGLH_AcceptableDamage_MoviePoster.jpg
PSDLH_AcceptableDamage_MoviePoster.psd
MOVLH_AcceptableDamage_Trailer.mov

File naming conventions

The files on your drive should match this naming structure.

FeatureLH_MovieTitle_HD_EN_2397
TrailerLH_MovieTitle_Trailer
Movie PosterLH_MovieTitle_MoviePoster
StillsLH_MovieTitle_1920x1080_Still1
CaptionsLH_MovieTitle.scc
SubtitlesLH_MovieTitle.srt

Feature

LH_MovieTitle_HD_EN_2397
LHStands for Lookhu.
MovieTitleThe name of your movie. Remove all spaces and special characters so it's just letters — every new word starts with an uppercase letter.
HDIndicates your feature is a 1920x1080 HD file.
ENIndicates your feature is in English.
FramerateThe frame rate of your movie. In this example 23.976 — use the first 4 digits and remove the decimal. For a 2-digit frame rate, use it as-is. Other examples: 24, 2997, 30.

Trailer

LH_MovieTitle_Trailer
LHStands for Lookhu.
MovieTitleThe name of your movie. Remove all spaces and special characters so it's just letters — every new word starts with an uppercase letter.
TrailerIndicates the file is the trailer for your movie.

Movie Poster

LH_MovieTitle_MoviePoster
LHStands for Lookhu.
MovieTitleThe name of your movie. Remove all spaces and special characters so it's just letters — every new word starts with an uppercase letter.
MoviePosterIndicates this is the movie poster file. You should have 2 versions: a .jpg and a layered Photoshop .psd.

1920x1080 Movie Poster

LH_MovieTitle_1920x1080_MoviePoster
LHStands for Lookhu.
MovieTitleThe name of your movie. Remove all spaces and special characters so it's just letters — every new word starts with an uppercase letter.
1920x1080Indicates your poster is 1920x1080 resolution.
MoviePosterIndicates this is the movie poster file. You should have 2 versions: a .jpg and a layered Photoshop .psd.
NOTE: This MUST be a layered Photoshop file.

2700x4050 Movie Poster

LH_MovieTitle_2700x4050_MoviePoster
LHStands for Lookhu.
MovieTitleThe name of your movie. Remove all spaces and special characters so it's just letters — every new word starts with an uppercase letter.
2700x4050Indicates your poster is 2700x4050 resolution.
MoviePosterIndicates this is the movie poster file. You should have 2 versions: a .jpg and a layered Photoshop .psd.
NOTE: This MUST be a layered Photoshop file.

Stills

LH_MovieTitle_1920x1080_Still1
LHStands for Lookhu.
MovieTitleThe name of your movie. Remove all spaces and special characters so it's just letters — every new word starts with an uppercase letter.
1920x1080Indicates your still is 1920x1080 resolution.
Still1Indicates which still this is. Use Still1–Still5 for a total of five 1920x1080 stills.

Captions

LH_MovieTitle.scc
LHStands for Lookhu.
MovieTitleThe name of your movie. Remove all spaces and special characters so it's just letters — every new word starts with an uppercase letter.
.sccIndicates this is a caption file.

Subtitles

LH_MovieTitle.srt
LHStands for Lookhu.
MovieTitleThe name of your movie. Remove all spaces and special characters so it's just letters — every new word starts with an uppercase letter.
.srtIndicates this is a subtitle file.

Guides & resources

Helpful references for preparing your deliverables.

Theatrical Release Guide

Guidance for preparing a theatrical release for your film.

Open Theatrical Release Guide

Amazon Territories & Languages Guide

A list of all the Amazon territories and the languages they use. Use this as a guide for what language your film is in and what subtitles you plan to make.

Open Amazon Territories & Languages

Amazon Genres

A list of all the Amazon genres. Pick three to keep in mind when marketing your film.

Open Amazon Genres

Lookhu Logos

If your film is letterboxed, make sure you letterbox our logo by shrinking it down.

Download Lookhu Logos

Deliverable ready? Let's distribute.

Once your deliverables are complete, submit your film from your Lookhu dashboard — or learn how Lookhu Distribution works.