FCP max project size

[Shane Ross]

[Adam Weinberg] “we simply won’t have the time to transcode from DVCPRO HD to ProRes proxy.
“

No need to. DVCPRO HD 720p has a VERY low data rate. It is on par with ProRes proxy. No, DVCPRO HD is a VERY easy codec to edit with.

[Adam Weinberg] “will Final Cut be able to handle a project file that is referencing 2TB of media? does it ever max out?
“

Absolutely. I worked on projects that reference 16TB of media. It really isn’t the clips that make file sizes large, it is how many sequences, how much text it contains. 80 hours…easy! I’ve done that lots. One firewire drive. This is no strain on the system.

Shane

GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def

[David Roth weiss]

I agree with Shane. Make sure to budget your hard drive space for loads of render files and exports in addition to the hours of video you’ll be capturing, and make sure you maintain at least 10% free space on all drives as well.

David Roth Weiss
Director/Editor/Colorist
David Weiss Productions, Inc.
Los Angeles
https://www.drwfilms.com

POST-PRODUCTION WITHOUT THE USUAL INSANITY ™

A forum host of Creative COW’s Business & Marketing and Apple Final Cut Pro forums. Formerly host of the Apple Final Cut Basics, Indie Film & Documentary, and Film History & Appreciations forums.

[Adam Weinberg]

appreciate the feedback guys. this FCP proj will have hundreds if not over a thousand sequences .. have you found there to be a point (possibly measured by the file size of the FCP proj file?) where you should begin working in multiple FCP projects?

[Shane Ross]

[Adam Weinberg] “this FCP proj will have hundreds if not over a thousand sequences “

Are you SERIOUS? Dude, I have done a good dozen 2-hour long form documentaries for various cable networks, and I have had at MOST 30-50 sequences. One per Act…9 acts. Revisions to those acts. Never approached one hundred sequences. How the heck will you get multiple hundreds…THOUSANDS? That doesn’t sound right at all.

[Adam Weinberg] “have you found there to be a point (possibly measured by the file size of the FCP proj file?) where you should begin working in multiple FCP projects?”

If you plan on having that many sequences…then it would be prudent to do that right away. One project for footage, another for the sequences. Maybe another for audio. I explain how to organize this in my tutorial DVD. WARNING: Having sequences in separate projects from your footage means you can’t match back to the clips in their bins. The link will be broken…because you are going across projects.

If you plan on having this many sequences…instead of duplicating the sequences when you make revisions…duplicate the projects and make changes to the new projects.

Shane

GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def

[Mark Raudonis]

Adam,

Reading between the lines of your posts, it sounds like you would benefit from some research into FCP media/project management. Shane’s done a whole DVD about it. Google it.

Here’s the quick answer. With FCP, the “Project” is meaningless! Use the mac “finder level” to organize your media. You can have hundreds of projects all referencing the same media. We have a few x-sans that reference over 200 Tb of media. It’s NOT the media that dictates project size.

Would you perhaps be coming from an Avid background where everything is “project centric”? That’s just NOT the case with FCP.

And… as for hundred of sequences???? Yikes. What are you thinking?

Mark

[Adam Weinberg]

ha. no, not coming from an Avid background .. i’ve been using FCP for almost a decade .. i’ve just never taken on anything with 80 hours of media and want to ensure my workflow’s right from the beginning. and i understand that it’s the sequences that dictate the project size, not the media .. but in my case there is a strong correlation between the number of sequences and the amount of media..

1000 sequences may have been an exaggeration, but it will definitely be in the hundreds. i mean we’re doing 40 interviews, and each one will necessitate 10 to 15 sequences minimum before combining them all into a rough cut .. is that really unheard of? 😛 i’m just used to working with maybe 20 interviews @ 20 to 30min each, as opposed to this which is 40 interviews @ 1hr each.

anyway, i think the best solution will probably be the use of multiple project files each containing their own set of interviews ..

appreciate the advice!

[Shane Ross]

[Adam Weinberg] ” i mean we’re doing 40 interviews, and each one will necessitate 10 to 15 sequences minimum before combining them all into a rough cut .. is that really unheard of?”

Yes. Yes it is. I have edited long form docs for 10 years, and I have never done things like that. Separate sequences for each interview? No. For each subject…topic…yes. But I combined interview bytes from many sources to those sequences.

Unless some producer has gone through the interviews and handed me selects, or a script…then I start with ONE sequence…the radio cut, and everything goes on that.

Shane

GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def

[Adam Weinberg]

we’re not creating just one video with all this footage. but i appreciate the perspective.

[Shane Ross]

AH…gotcha.

Shane

GETTING ORGANIZED WITH FINAL CUT PRO DVD…don’t miss it.
Read my blog, Little Frog in High Def

[Matt Lyon]

FWIW, I find that when my projects get above 200 megs, then FCP starts to strain under the weight. My sweet spot is about 50-100 megs file size. Once projects start creeping above that, I version up and prune old sequences.

I think it’s also a good idea to sort out your naming convention(s) for sequences, before you hit the ground running. You’ll want a system that allows you to easily track content, version numbers, etc. Consistency is key!

Hope this helps,

Matt Lyon
Editor
Toronto