Distributing local streams for companion apps

This article covers features which are only available in Reeltime Pro

Reeltime Pro lets you distribute local streams for the companion apps Reeltime Cinema and Reeltime Viewer. The video streams you distribute from Reeltime Pro in the local network are protected using industry-standard encryption to fulfill your production’s security guidelines.

Like all other outgoing signals, you can configure local streams in the output slots. The current version of Reeltime Pro supports up to 9 output slots. Consequently, you can distribute up to 9 different local streams (if you do not need further outgoing signals such as SDI outputs to monitors).

Tip: Reeltime Pro’s filter and compositing options let you optimize the appearance of your streams according to the production’s guidelines and the individual use cases of the watching roles. For example, you could add an image overlay filter to all streams if your production’s security guidelines require that. Or you can create one stream with a clean image for the Director and another with metadata overlays for Script / Continuity.
Note: The maximum number of streams does not limit the number of connected clients. Reeltime Pro and its companion apps, Reeltime Viewer and Reeltime Cinema, do not impose any limit on the number of connected clients. The actual number of users who can access and view the streams is determined entirely by the performance and capacity of your local network.

To give your crew access to the local streams, you can set a password in Reeltime Pro’s local streaming settings and share the password with your team members. Additionally, you can display a QR code that links to the companion apps in the App Store or copy the link to share it with other team members.

Local streaming settings

To add another output slot as a local stream, open the slot manager and add an output slot in the “Output” tab. Choose “Local Stream” under “Device” and name the output slot as intended.

Note: The output slot’s name will appear as the stream’s name within the companion app. So, remember that the name should be meaningful and self-explanatory for everyone with access to the local streams.

Network stability and round-trip time#

You can modify the target bitrate in the output slot settings and inspect how many clients are connected to the stream (output slot). Furthermore, a diagram visualizes the round-trip time statistics for each connected client so that you can monitor the connection quality if needed.

In a properly configured network, the round-trip time statistics for a connected client in Reeltime Pro should not exceed 40 ms for stable and smooth streams.

If you observe peaks above this value, the network may not be able to deliver data consistently. In this case, try the following measures:

Disable AirDrop#

Disable AirDrop on:

  • The server Mac
  • All connected client devices (iPhones and iPads)

Use a wired Ethernet connection on the server side#

For best stability, connect the Mac that generates the streams to the router via Ethernet instead of Wi-Fi.

For optimal results:

  • Disable Wi-Fi on the Mac.
  • Connect the Mac to the router using a wired Ethernet connection.
  • Create or recreate the streams while Wi-Fi is disabled.

In Reeltime Viewer on iPhone or iPad:

  • Reconfigure the server in the app.
  • Restart the app on the client devices.

For additional troubleshooting steps and detailed guidance on improving streaming quality and reducing jittering, please refer to the Reeltime Viewer troubleshooting article.

Setting up local streaming through an output slot in the slot manager

Last updated: February 2, 2024