Yes, it is masking the top, bottom and sides of the image. Not really sure why, but it does it nonetheless. When I preview the original file in Adobe premiere, it fills out the monitor. When I preview the rotoscoped image, it condenses it to the middle. The problem is, now I have to re-rotoscope all 84 frames, which isn't the quickest thing to do. If I could get the film strip to save in the correct aspect ratio (I'm saving it as a 720 x 480 0.9 Widescreen, the same that Adobe says the source is), then I've devolped a fairly quick way of doing the saber effect. The above image is not indecitive of the final result. The core has more of a glow to it than that JPG above. My main bone of contention with the OT sabers is that the core loses it's form alot of the times. Meaning, instead of being symetrical all the way around, sometimes it will kinda flicker making the edges of the core ragged. I don't have a problem with the saber flickering, it's the ragged edges that bother me. The only reason that it is like this is because of the original method they had to go about creating the sabers, not because it was the desired effect.

The images I used as a source were from Anakin's slaughter of the Seperatists on Mustafar, as I felt the two interiors were similar enough to be sources. The final result is alittle brighter than that picture and with more of a 'glow'.

But it gets tiresome having to redo the work every time, because the filmstrip never turns out right.

EDIT: This is a more accurate picture than the one of above. For some reason I had clicked off the 'eye' on the layer for the core and glow when I made the last screen cap. Instead of replacing it (so Hurin doesn't get mad), I'll simply show it as a new cap. The problem I have with this saber is the core may be too big. However, I can fix that if anyone else thinks it's a problem.

This is a brighter background, so the glow will be a brighter blue.

http://us.movies1.yimg.com/movies.yahoo.com/images/hv/photo/movie_pix/twentieth_century_fox/star_wars__episode_iii___revenge_of_the_sith/hayden_christensen/sith2.jpg

http://home.comcast.net/~glgrimm1/saberglowfixed.JPG