DCP Quality Control Checklist

Video/Audio/Subtitle sync This is the basic QC check that must be performed to make sure all elements are aligned as they should during playback.

Color Space Accuracy Verification of the transformation to XYZ color space with a 2.6 Gamma curve. This ensures the image does not appear washed out or display the "milky green" tint characteristic of improper Rec.709 to DCI conversion.

Framerate Compliance Confirmation that the framerate matches the DCP standard (typically 24 fps for Interop, or 24/25/30/48/60 fps for SMPTE packages) and plays smoothly without stuttering or dropped frames.

Geometry and Aspect Ratio The image must correctly fill the DCI Container (Flat 1.85:1 or Scope 2.39:1) without geometric distortion. This includes checking for proper scaling (letterboxing/pillarboxing) if the source material does not match DCI aspect ratios perfectly.

Bitrate Management The data rate must remain under the hard ceiling of 250 Mbps. High-motion scenes should be inspected to ensure the encoder did not spike beyond this limit, which can cause buffer overflows and playback crashes on older cinema servers (Series 1).

Black Level Fidelity DCI projectors use true light-blocking technology. QC must verify that blacks are not "elevated" (looking gray) nor "crushed" (losing shadow detail), utilizing the full 12-bit depth of the format.

First and Last Frame A manual check of the absolute start and end of the file. This verifies there are no accidental leaders/slates left in the file, and that the audio does not cut off prematurely before the visual fade-out is complete. As a general rule, the first and last frame of the content of the DCP should be a black frame with silence.

Audio Routing and Normalization Verification that the channels are mapped to the correct cinema standard and levels are normalized to theater standards with dialogue centered firmly in the Center channel.

Artifact Inspection The image must be free of compression artifacts such as banding in gradients, aliasing, or digital noise. The audio must be free of pops, clicks, or distortion.

Subtitle and Caption Logic Ensuring subtitles are authored as separate XML (not burned in). They must be verified for sync, screen position (to avoid being cropped by masking curtains), and legibility.

Metadata Accuracy Cross-checking the CPL (Composition Playlist) and PKL (Packing List) against the Digital Cinema Naming Convention. The ContentTitleText must accurately describe the film’s version, audio configuration, language, and aspect ratio to ensure automated theater management systems (TMS) ingest and schedule the file correctly.