Andrew Balis Talks FCP X: The Timeline

[Nelson Torres]

The guys heart in the right place but it’s still ‘snake oil’. In FCP 7 you can cut audio & picture at the same time. On the secondary video track you can lengthen or shorten and won’t throw anything else out of sync. The clip collision ‘protection’ is bogus. If you set up your timeline properly (checker boarding your various organized tracks) to begin with you won’t run into any of these errors ergo there was no need for idiot proofing FCP. I guess if you’re cutting talking heads it’s pretty useful. Make your radio cut then pepper in your b-roll but for me these so called improvements are cumbersome in narrative story telling.

[Alban Egger]

I don´t really understand that. So if checker boarding your timeline (which is a task on its own) is the workaround for something that can be achieved easier, why not go with the easier method and why does it make your editing cumbersome?

[Nelson Torres]

Checkerboarding is a task only if you wait until the end to do it. Personally I don’t like the timeline doing anything for me because I don’t want to waste any time undoing what the computer may do automatically. Many of my colleagues finds the new paradigm very cumbersome. For instance all of my clips are labeled SC01S01AT01 (scene/shot/take). I don’t want the computer to start collating all my Med Shots or shots with people together and messing up my numbering systems. The timeline is a complete disaster. Apple simply doesn’t want the Broadcast & Theatrical market. They have even admitted it. Too bad FCP was a great program and was taking over the business. Now it will all be going back to Avid.

[Michael Largé]

[Nelson Torres] “For instance all of my clips are labeled SC01S01AT01 (scene/shot/take). I don’t want the computer to start collating all my Med Shots or shots with people together and messing up my numbering systems.”

You can turn that option off when you import and keep your numbering system.

[Aindreas Gallagher]

he says “destroying your timeline” in relation to FCP7 way too often. It smells of shilling a little. You’d swear the old FCP was slicing limbs off with its uncontrolled collisions.

http://www.ogallchoir.net
promo producer/editor.grading/motion graphics

[Craig Seeman]

Sure you can do all that in FCP7. It’s just a lot more potential pitfalls. There’s just far too many ways to make a mistake in FCP7. There’s no reason to believe that when there’s a complex way or a simple way to achieve the same thing that the simple way is inferior. Having to think through several steps when you can do the same thing in one, is not an advantage.

[Aindreas Gallagher]

[Craig Seeman] “There’s just far too many ways to make a mistake in FCP7”

mmm.

http://www.ogallchoir.net
promo producer/editor.grading/motion graphics

[Craig Shields]

So the guy liked the program and you call him a shill. Don’t you get a little tired of posting on this forum 20 times a day and calling people names for a program that you hate. This shigidy is getting old. For real!

[Aindreas Gallagher]

you’re right – shill is too strong – but I really did think he carefully set up timeline scenarios to show why FCP7 was “bad”.

And hey – my posting rate from the mad ranting height is waaay down.

http://www.ogallchoir.net
promo producer/editor.grading/motion graphics

[Ewan Lim]

There are far too many ways to make mistakes in other NLEs too. The thing is, you won’t be makin too many mistakes if you know what you are doing.

Ewan
Avid, FCS3, Premiere Pro, After Effects