Transfer NTSC DVD to PAL DVD

[xmatthew]

My friend has a DVD with a film he made and it is NTSC Region 1 (he authored it himself). He wants to send it to Europe and I offered to do the transfer for him. I have Mac the Ripper and know I can make it a region free DVD. Does anyone know if I also have to convert it into a PAL format? If so, what kind of software would that require?
Thanks
Matthew

[emaja]

I used Handbrake and iMovie with iDVD to do the opposite - PAL to NTSC - so I am sure that it would work the other way.

I might have doen it the long way since I needed to create the menus and everything. I could not find anything that would simply import it in one format and burn it in another. I know this is due to the differences in the standards, but it made it a bigger project than I thought it would be.

Basically, I ripped the DVD, then imported it into iMovie, marked the chapters as I wanted them to be, then saved it and imported it into iDVD. Made the menus and stuff and burned it.

[evil_santa]

My friend has a DVD with a film he made and it is NTSC Region 1 (he authored it himself). He wants to send it to Europe and I offered to do the transfer for him. I have Mac the Ripper and know I can make it a region free DVD. Does anyone know if I also have to convert it into a PAL format? If so, what kind of software would that require?
Thanks
Matthew

Its quite likely that it will play on a European domestic DVD as it is. Most of the DVD players in the UK will play NTSC, no problem as long as the DVD & TV are connected via an SCART lead, (usually sold with the DVD by the over keen sales person)
Was it created on a mac /pc or professionally authored? I read in one of the DVD studio books that you can only set region encoding on professionally authored disk, but i could be wrong on this.

Or he could re create the disk NTSC region free...

[aloofman]

Its quite likely that it will play on a European domestic DVD as it is. Most of the DVD players in the UK will play NTSC, no problem as long as the DVD & TV are connected via an SCART lead, (usually sold with the DVD by the over keen sales person)
Was it created on a mac /pc or professionally authored? I read in one of the DVD studio books that you can only set region encoding on professionally authored disk, but i could be wrong on this.

Or he could re create the disk NTSC region free...

These seem like better options to me. Software based NTSC<->PAL encoders invariably mess with the quality. If it's not critical to watch it on a DVD player, I would just Handbrake-rip it to a Quicktime movie and just watch it on a computer.

[idea_hamster]

Not all European DVD players play NTSC. You can try it and find out, but if you want to do the conversion:

You can just use the converter in Final Cut or something like that. They tend to be mediocre.

Also, you can check out the Final Cut plug-in made by Graeham Nattress (http://www.nattress.com/Products/standardsconversion/standardsconversion.htm), which I've used and does a great job.

Or just send it and let them figure it out. After all, we were here first. Those stuck-up euro types had to go and create their own standard that doesn't drop frames, has a higher resolution, and doesn't get called "Never The Same Color" by your broadcast crew. ;)