Update:
I tried exporting with sequence settings, however, it produced a folder of multiple files in strange formats instead of a single video file. So, I looked up the sequence settings, and matched them (format H.264, preset HD 720p 23.976) manually. It worked, but, it’s added black bars to the top and bottom of the frame. I don’t think it makes any difference, but obviously, it would be nice to have it at the actual aspect ratio.
Also, the opening crawl really does look unprofessional. I tried with Blender but just made a mess of things; Eyepainter, if you’re still happy to render a crawl for me, I’ll send you the text. Originally I just used SirRidley’s crawl from LoE, but I’ll make some tweaks to it now I’ve got the chance.
Ultimately, the big victory here is that my computer can actually render a feature length file overnight!
Sorry for not responding sooner. Having a busy week at the moment.
Anyway, .mxf files are gigantic files. They’re mainly used for digital cinema. I tried exporting my Episode I fanedit in .mxf once, and it took up so many gigabytes it couldn’t even fit on my hard drive. So I exported the file to the DNxHD format and used the quicktime codec instead. The final result of that export was only 30gb, and Handbrake took the file easily with no issues whatsoever.
As for the aspect ratio, you can rest assured that Handbrake is great at removing the black bars at the top and bottom. I’ve been able to get away with making the second export smaller by changing the resolution in the dimensions tab to 1920x820. Then customizing the cropping to 130 top and 130 bottom, giving the pixel aspect ratio a perfect 1x1 output. Of course, it looks like your edit is in 720p, so I’m not 100 percent on the dimensions for that format. However, in my experience, Handbrake tends to crop the image automatically.
As for the opening crawl, I’d be happy to work on it. However, as I mentioned, I’m having a busy work week. I might be delayed a few days to a week before I can make it sing. But I will hop to it as soon as I can.