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Using Final Cut Pro X for News Editing
Hello,
After 20 years of working as a reporter and anchor in both radio and TV, I just accepted a position as a “multimedia journalist” in the Atlanta market. That’s a fancy new term my company came up with for a “one man band” reporter for both radio & TV. What can I say? It’s the state of the business right now.
I will be using Final Cut Pro X to edit local news stories. I will be shooting and editing my own stories for both radio and television. I’ll also need to export soundbites from my timeline into .wav or .mp3 files so I can edit them in my DAW of choice (Adobe Audition 6.0) for radio. I figured out how to export (share) the audio files only.
But what I really want to know is what is the best way to edit in FCP X for TV news? I come from an era of tape to tape linear editing. I taught myself non-linear editing in FCP 6 & 7. I’ll admit, I am no expert, but I can hold my own in typical straight cut packages with maybe a few transitions, graphics and photos thrown in for good measure.
I will be shooting in standard definition (720×480 DV Anamorphic). My camera is the Sony HXR-NX5U. So, I can take the SDHC/SDXC cards I’ll be shooting on, slip them into my MacBook pro and import the raw footage directly into FCP X. What I need is a quick, reliable workflow that will allow me to log my VO and soundbites by timecode. I also need an editing style that will be consistently fast.
Having learned to edit on FCP, I am somewhat familiar with FCP X. It is a departure, but I kind of understand where the developers were going with this one. I really like the magnetic timeline and the background rendering. The built-in effects are also very useful for TV news.
What I am having trouble with is what seems to me to be the elimination of editing in the A-roll (soundbites) and B-roll (cover for voice track/narration ) style that is typical of TV News. I’m used to laying down a voice track, then sound bites, maybe a bridge standup (reporter on camera) and then other voice tracks and maybe another soundbite or two. I would then fill in the holes with B-roll. It’s the simplest way to craft a short story for television.
The problem is FCP X places the audio track and soundbites on the same timeline. If you try to drop voice tracks/soundbites for that matter) below or raise them above the soundbites/voice track it snaps the two together — effectively locking them. This is very annoying. FCP X also makes editing in B-roll more difficult than I’m accustomed to.
Again, the magnetic timeline should make things easier and faster for editing projects with a quick turnaround like local news. But I have been frustrated trying to edit in FCP X. I did figure out how to right click a voice track in the timeline and prompt it to “Lift From Storyline” It drops it below the soundbite and inserts a generated gap in its place that is the same length of the voice track you lifted from the primary timeline. But this feels awkward.
Please help me. I have been working with a photographer and editor for the past week. But I’m told that most of my gear is here and the engineers are just waiting for a few other items to arrive. That means I will soon be on my own and expected to file stories for both radio & TV. Maybe I just don’t quite understand FCP X. I have been using it to edit little home movie projects of my 5-year-old. But nothing as potentially complex as a news story.
Any advice or help you can give me will be truly appreciated.
Regards,
Trey
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8 Replies
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[Ernest Murphy] “The problem is FCP X places the audio track and soundbites on the same timeline. “
Can you explain what you mean here?
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IMHO FCPX is a killer for news editing.
Get the idea of audio and video tracks out of your head.
Think instead of clip relations be they audio video or graphics. What’s driving your story?
Remember the concept is storyline and connected clips.
I would lay my VO in the primary stotyline and then add my b-roll & gv’s as a connected clips IV’s go on the primary storyline and you can easily do split edits.
Michael Sanders
London Based DP/Editor -
When you drag and drop video or audio onto the timeline (or click “e”) they appear on the same primary timeline. You can drag the audio above or below the video on the primary timeline, but the video slides underneath or above the audio — bascially, locking the separate files together.
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Michael,
Thanks for your response. But I’m not sure what you mean by “connected clips IV’s.” Remember, I’m self-taught. So I don’t know all the technical jargon.
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I would suggest investing in training. Ripple Training offer one of the best packages, and it’s only $39.99 for the iTunes/iPad version. Take a look at the sample videos on their web site. There is much to learn about FCP X, things that are not readily apparent when trying to learn yourself.
Other training packages are available from Larry Jordan, and the Apple Pro Training Series.
For a small investment you’ll get up to speed much quicker.
From your job description it sounds like you’ve gone from being a one man band to a one man orchestra.
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Thanks for the suggestion. And I do feel like I’m playing in an experimental orchestra. 🙂
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If you select the ‘position tool’ (P), you can drag clips out of the primary storyline and they will be replaced by a ‘gap clip’, leaving the other clips in place. This way you can position the clip anywhere you want, without magnetic ‘snapping.’
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[Ernest Murphy] “When you drag and drop video or audio onto the timeline (or click “e”) they appear on the same primary timeline. You can drag the audio above or below the video on the primary timeline, but the video slides underneath or above the audio — bascially, locking the separate files together.”
Another vote for ripple training.
FCPX works differently than FCP7 and other NLEs. A few hours of familiarization and you’ll be up and running.
Jeremy
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