FCPX and separate video tracks/B roll/whatever you call it?

[Andy Neil]

Open up the title browser. Select a basic title with no animation. Hit W to insert it into your project between scenes (since it’s an interstitial).

Double click the text in the viewer and type away. Hit enter when finished. That’s all you need.

There are no tracks in FCPX. Just primary storyline clips, and connected clips. In your case, interstitials should be placed in the primary storyline.

Andy

https://www.timesavertutorials.com

[Ellary Eddy]

Hey Thanks Andy ~

That works, but I’m still struggling with FCPX magnetic timeline. I mean, I loved the way you could jockey clips around in the older version. while you played with stuff on other tracks. I don’t get how FCPX accommodates that intent? Is that where compound clips come into play? Frustrated!

[Andy Neil]

[Ellary Eddy] ” loved the way you could jockey clips around in the older version. while you played with stuff on other tracks.”

Not exactly sure what you mean by that, but if you’re talking about how you can move clips on one track independent of where other clips are on other tracks then:

First, understand that FCPX is a different paradigm where instead of having independent tracks where you keep track of what broll goes with what aroll, you create parent/child relationships so that your broll is attached to your aroll and subsequently if you move one piece of aroll (in your primary storyline) you’ll move all the pieces of broll that are attached to it. This requires thinking about your edit in a slightly different way.

However, in the newest version, 10.0.6, they added the ability for us to freeze connected clips in time so that you can slip/slide/move clips in the primary storyline without affecting the position of the connected clips in time. You do this by holding down the “~” key (right below the esc).

Andy

https://www.timesavertutorials.com

[Ellary Eddy]

Thanks again Andy!
That helps.

But here’s my real issue: I want to basically OVERLAY a black card (with text) on top of a separated audio/video track, keep the narration running underneath and then have the video be in sync as the card disappears. But if the title card rests above, it’s always transparent…

I’m also having issues with putting transitions on a title card above my storyline….

I will forgive you in advance if I’m being too big a bore on all this. It’s just not all that intuitive, even though I’ve been a Mac person forever..

[Andy Neil]

[Ellary Eddy] “I want to basically OVERLAY a black card (with text) on top of a separated audio/video track, keep the narration running underneath and then have the video be in sync as the card disappears. But if the title card rests above, it’s always transparent…”

You’d be having the same problem in any NLE because titles typically include only the text as a default. Here’s what you can do in FCPX to get your effect.

Go to the Effects Browser and click on the icon for Generators (it’s 2nd from the right I believe, I don’t have X in front of me). In there, you should find a solid color generator and make the color black. Lay that into your project as a connected clip above your video and narration (Q).

Select the black clip that you just added. Go to your Titles Browser and find your simple title. Double click it. This will apply the text as another connected clip atop your black clip and because you selected the black clip ahead of time, it’ll be constrained to the length of the black clip. Now you have two equal length connected clips above your primary storyline.

Edit your title and position it how you want.

Lasso both the black clip and title to select them both. Right click and choose: Make Compound Clip. This will combine both clips into a single connected clip.

Apply whatever transition you want.

Believe it or not, this is very similar to what you’d have to do in ANY NLE (with the exception of Avid). Also, if you have Motion 5, you can build a specialized title that can negate the need of a clip of black, by including it in the title itself.

Andy

https://www.timesavertutorials.com

[Ellary Eddy]

Thanks Andy – that worked. You’re swell!

one last question: I find that after an hour or so of editing, FCPX kind of jams up. Can’t move the playhead… I have a 2009 iMac, 2.66 dual processor, 8 GB Ram, an open 188 GB on the iMac and I keep my footage on a Western Digital My Book Studio 3 TB FireWire 800 External Hard Drive… with tons of room on it.

I sometimes have a few other programs like Photoshop or iTunes open, but is it necessary to be running NOTHING else? Is this sort of soft crash common or do you have any suggestions? Is this computer adequate to FCPX?

Thanks again!

[Andy Neil]

Well, I can’t be sure about crashes you may be having, but I will say this. The My Book Studio drive by Western Digital is one of the worst drives I’ve ever had the misfortune of connecting to my computer. I had one briefly and it was the source of all kinds of issues from spontaneous unmounting, to over-heating, to sleeping so that it crashes or locks up FCP.

I wouldn’t trust that model drive for anything.

Andy

https://www.timesavertutorials.com

[Ellary Eddy]

Wow. Major sadness here. But thanks for the sobering truth. I also have a FreeAgent drive.. probably 2 years old. Guess I should turn back to that one… btw – what drive do you recommend?

[Andy Neil]

Western Digital is typically a decent drive manufacturer. It’s just that those My Studio drives are uber-cheap and aimed at people who are only using it to back up their itunes and photos.

I have a number of external drives (though I prefer internal for editing). Hitachi makes a 2TB drive with a cooled enclosure (fan). iomega has some nice drives (though they tend to be a little more). Just look for something with high speed (7200), quick read/write access, preferably cooled with a fan. Do some internet research on model numbers before committing to buy.

Andy

https://www.timesavertutorials.com

[Steve Connor]

[Andy Neil] “Western Digital is typically a decent drive manufacturer. It’s just that those My Studio drives are uber-cheap and aimed at people who are only using it to back up their itunes and photos.
“
That they are, I’m forced to use one on a job at the moment and it randomly spins down when you haven’t used for 10 minutes even though the drives aren’t set to spin down

Steve Connor
‘It’s just my opinion, with an occasional fact thrown in for good measure”