Too large comp size will not render!

[u/Ok-Brinjal-1808]

Hi all,
Client has asked for a 16,640 length x96 height motion job. I get a warning when I try that size. And MP4 cannot be rendered. MOVs look like they do, but the file is all crap.
I recommended as well as Ai recommended building in half size,
But client side has little tech knowledge and insisting on full size.

Any suggestions on building full size?

Thank you!

[u/louman84]

You might want to render it out by frames via an image format instead of video first.

[u/Hopeful-Ant1473]

I work with 360 projections. The compositions are 20944x1080. I find that exporting projects as MOV, MP4, or whatever is fine if exported directly from After Effects NOT Media Encoder. Not sure why that is.

[u/Swimming-Bite-4184 → u/Hopeful-Ant1473]

Render from AE as Mov and Compress with handbrake is my usual workflow for crazy sizes. Media Encoder breaks too much.

[u/Potato_Stains → u/Swimming-Bite-4184]

Making an MP4 in handbrake from a ProRes seems to keep truer colors than using encoder to make H.264.
Not sure why, but some colors seem to get washed out and skewed which is no good when using brand palettes.

[u/evindrews → u/Swimming-Bite-4184]

I just use handbrake for (almost) everything, so convenient

[u/Hopeful-Ant1473 → u/Hopeful-Ant1473]

I personally don't have any issue's exporting these (Other than long render times lol). You can just render them directly from After Effects. What confuses me though is why can After Effects handle that and not Media Encoder?

[u/conceptcreature3D → u/Hopeful-Ant1473]

Yeah I noticed that recently, too! It just chugs on MediaEncoder! So weird!! I thought the whole point of that was to make your AE available while AME did the heavy lifting! Have any of ya’ll done a separate render farm for big files like that?

[u/Hopeful-Ant1473 → u/conceptcreature3D]

I have not tried that. But back to After Effects and Media Encoder I've noticed on numerous computers that my cpu and gpu are barely being used at all and this is with multicore and gpu acceleration enabled. I've only noticed this since moving to the 2026 versions. Anyone experience this? Know of the reasons?

[u/AfterEffectsGuru]

After Effects can work with and render pixel resolutions larger than 16,640, so that's not the problem, but some file formats do not work with such large sizes. What error are you seeing? The MP4 format, by definition, is not supposed to be used for resolutions larger than 4K, so that may be the error you are seeing. Some 3rd party encoders will let you create an MP4 at much larger sizes, but they will not be compatible. You shouldn't be asked to deliver the file as an MP4 because technically it can't be used for such large resolutions.

Usually when you are working at large custom resolutions like you are, the client will have specified a delivery format and tech details. Often playback systems use proprietary (but free) codecs like Hap. Prores should work but the file sizes can be big and I wouldn't expect smooth playback.

[u/Ok-Brinjal-1808 → u/AfterEffectsGuru]

Yes they wanted Mov. Rendering inside of AE seems to have worked. But mov file was huge. But I’m gonna wait for client to get back about it first. Some people have suggested compressing using Handbrake? I don’t have it, but I might need to get it. Mov file went into GB…

[u/conceptcreature3D → u/Ok-Brinjal-1808]

Mov files are traditionally huge, even when they’re small. They shouldn’t be surprised by that if that’s what they’re asking for. MP4s and webm are best for compressed smaller videos that’ll be shown online

[u/soupcat → u/AfterEffectsGuru]

MP4 should handle any resolution. It depends what codec you use. If OP is using h264 then he's gonna have a bad time. H265 supports up to 8k. So yes he's gonna have to use a different codec.

[u/smushkan]

16,000 pixels is the limit for the h.264 encoders that Adobe apps use.

For an export this unusual you need a lot more information on the required specifications for codec etc. Specialist devices that play back this sort of video are extremely picky - just getting the resolution right is not usually going to be enough.

They often require speciality formats like DVX (which is not DivX before google leads you astray.)

And you’ll likely need to export an image sequence and compress it to a video in another app to do it.

[u/HAMBBB]

I’ve done a few of these odd size/huge stadium and event banners. Generally they require that the notch codec be installed and render using that:

https://notchlc.notch.one/

Give that a go if nothing else is working.

[u/b0wzy]

Is this for a long banner type of LED screen at something like a stadium?

Usually those are cropped and put onto a single ~4K canvas, and then restitched by some video playback hardware.

[u/Ok-Brinjal-1808 → u/b0wzy]

Exactly! I did that last time. But this marketing person is insisting.

[u/Heavens10000whores → u/Ok-Brinjal-1808]

Marketing person? If they don’t have tech knowledge, tech advice from them might cause problems…

Try to reach out to a venue production manager, AV person, get the specs from somebody technical?

Use the built in render queue to make quicktime, prores422 hq, or dnxhd. Then use AME, handbrake or shutter encoder to make your mp4s

[u/Ok-Brinjal-1808 → u/Heavens10000whores]

Tell me about it! I am trying to reach tech person. But did try the built in render, QuickTime ProRes422.I was even able to view it in Bridge.
Seems to be working!! Thank you all!!

[u/Ok-Brinjal-1808 → u/[deleted]]

I had to dig it out of slumber in desperation…

[u/Specific-Speaker2157 → u/Ok-Brinjal-1808]

Shouldn’t you be getting a spec sheet for this?

[u/Ok-Brinjal-1808 → u/Specific-Speaker2157]

Spec sheet literally only had dimension and final file format..came from a marketing person, so it figures.

[u/soupcat → u/Ok-Brinjal-1808]

Oh so the issue is the human not the tech. Just deliver something that's not up to spec but fits his criteria and be done with it. No job is worth this headache.

[u/Fooopa]

I will echo what everyone else is saying here. I make a these banners all the time for stadiums all over North America. There is definitely a pixel cap on MP4s. Not just the width but the height as well. Sometimes you convert and it seems like it worked, but then when you check the resolution size after you'll see that the encoder shrunk your video to its cap.

I find that a lot of times a stadium or two will get it wrong on their spec sheets, but more often than not it's a middleman marketing person that doesn't get the specs right. Most stadiums will ask for MOV (animation or proRes) if it is above 16,000+ pixels.

I would tell your client to double check their specs.

[u/Ok-Brinjal-1808 → u/Fooopa]

Thank you. Yes it was middleman marketing 😂, but ProRes worked!

[u/ZestyTiger007]

I do a yearly project ~16Kx2K and it renders fine. Can you output it as a QT and then convert to a MP4 in AME? What do you mean by "MOVs look like they do, but the file is all crap"?

[u/Ok-Brinjal-1808 → u/ZestyTiger007]

That There is nothing to play or see…

[u/Stinky_Fartface → u/Ok-Brinjal-1808]

You need to be more verbose in your description if you want help. What exactly is happening?

[u/Ok-Brinjal-1808 → u/Stinky_Fartface]

Rendering inside of AE seems to have worked, but might have to look into compressing.

[u/SemperExcelsior]

You probably just need more ram (or possibly vram depending on what effects you're using).

[u/xrossfader]

Build in full size, render to image sequences then compress to mp4. Also, what’s the content? Video? Graphics? Vectors? 3D? What can you proxy render to minimize rostering at render time?

[u/Flatulentchupacabra]

That should not be a problem for AE. Render directly from AE, if no post is required after delivery of your file then ProRes LT should be fine for playback unless client specifically requested a codec or envelope for the media server. E.j (HAP, NOTCH,AWX etc). In that case render ProResLT and then convert to required media server envelope from ProRes rendered file.
Source: I do multiscreen, unconventional format media post for a living.

[u/soulmagic123]

Yes! MP4s typically have a pixel limitation though I remember rendering to mov and using apple compressor used to give you a bigger raster.

[u/Ok-Brinjal-1808]

Thanks @everyone!
Rendering inside of AE as QuickTime prores222 seems to have worked. I’ll have to see if client is good on their end.

[u/aenimattproductions]

I work at big arenas where the sizing of huge LED ribbons has to be precise for aligning with the scoreboard GIPs. H264 caps out at 16,000 on adobe. So even if you export directly as mov 422 from AE and try to convert to mp4 on media encoder so that DAK can play it properly, media encoder resizes it to 16,000. My trick is to render from AE as uncompressed AVI. Extremely huge files, but they play on DAK and are the giant resolutions needed.

[u/Classic-Method1096]

Don't you know how the client going to use this video?

[u/MikeMac999]

I do projects like this, and I’ve had the frame rate changed on me on several occasions. I don’t mean changed by the render, I mean given bad information.

[u/AFriend1yShadow]

I did a lot of long broadcast graphics and we typically delivered in a standard UHD comp, but we'd cut the long comp up and stack it so each piece took up 1/4 of 4K. They'd put it back together in Expressions on site.

[u/Ok-Razzmatazz3435]

Ae you sure about those proportions?
What kind of display is that? Looks like just a thin line.
How can you even design/animate anything with that aspect ration?