Final Cut Pro X 10.1.2 update - all you need to know

Final Cut Pro X 10.1.2 update – all you need to know

Today Apple updated Final Cut Pro X to version 10.1.2. Nearly all the new features and refinements Apple announced seem to be about supporting high-end workflows:

More control over optimised media, proxy media and render files
Apply LUTs to HDR and wide-gamut media from high-end cameras – Apple calls this ‘Log Processing‘
A new ProRes flavour: 4444 XQ
Faster export of cuts only XDCAM media (good for TV news and DaVinci Resolve workflows)
Fine-grained control over XML export – from individual clips, multiple clips, projects, events or whole libraries
Library metadata view
Automatically apply keywords based on tags assigned in the Finder – the advantage over folders is that the same media can have multiple tags – such as camera name, location and scene number
The ability to search for or create smart collections of used or unused media in the current project, compound clip, synchronized clip or multicam clip.
A ‘Share to Vimeo at 4K’ destination

As well as these features for TV, movies and live events, there are new features useful for a larger range of Final Cut users:

Unused range indicators for compound clips, multicam clips and synced clips
Tools to support voiceover Audition clips
Adjust relaive as well as absolute audio volume of a clip or range within a clip
Option to sort events by date or name within libraries list
The ability to import a clip by dragging directly to the browser (before you could import by dragging a clip to a specific event in the libraries list)

Final Cut Pro X 10.1.2 information not promoted by Apple

The format for Final Cut libraries has changed, if you update them with version 10.1.2, any 10.1.1 or 10.1.0 systems will not be able to read them any more.
New ‘Basic Surround’ audio preset makes panning surround sound easier
Break apart Auditions to see the individual clips on the timeline (using Clip > Break Apart Clip Items or Shift-Command-G)
10.1.1 could run on OS X 10.9.0, Final Cut Pro X 10.1.2 requires at least OS X 10.9.2. This also applies to Motion and Compressor.
Using the , and . keys to nudge clips in the timeline now acts as a slide edit
Updated version of Final Cut Pro X XML – so a wider variety of information can be exported to or imported from other workflow applications
You can close all libraries – one does not have to remain open
More control of how synchronised clips are generated
Much better relinking of missing files. Select the parent volume or folder and Final Cut will now search all sub-folders until it finds the correct files
New text format presets
There are many new effects, transitions, titles and generators

Library properties

The inspector can show information about the selected library (also available using the new Control-Command-J shortcut)

When you are modify Storage Locations settings, tooltips pop up to show where media, cache and backups are currently stored:

When preparing to backup or transfer a library, you now have more control over whether optimised or proxy media is included:

Delete ‘Generated Files’

In addition to being able to delete render files, you can now delete proxy and cache files associated with projects, events and libraries:

XML Export

XML export can now include one or more clips only and one or more projects. Final Cut lists the elements to be included in the export at the bottom of the export dialogue box:

Volume control

Using a pair of new commands, you can set new volume values without using the audio tab of the inspector:

Then, with one or more clips selected, you can change audio volume amounts by typing a number into the timeline:

If you use Modify > Adjust Volume > Absolute, the audio level of the clips you selected is set to the new value. If any clips had audio level keyframes assigned, these will be deleted.

Sort events by…

Record Voiceover

The former ‘Record Audio’ command has more features:

You can name the resultant clip, hear countdown beeps to aid timing, combine different takes into an audition and choose into which event the audio clips are stored.

If you want to use the keyboard to start voiceover recording, press Option-Shift-A. To stop recording, press the space bar or press Option-Shift-A again.

ProRes 4444 XQ

4444 XQ is a new flavour or ProRes has data rates approximately 50% higher than 4444. Apple have updated their ProRes white paper with more information. ProRes 4444 XQ works on MacOS X 10.8 and newer. To use XQ, you may need to download the ProApps Codecs v1.0.5 installer. This should appear in the Mac App Store when you check for updates after installing Final Cut 10.1.2. If not, you can download the installer direct from Apple.

Apple will promote it as being as good as uncompressed at much lower data rates and good enough for storing camera original media:

ARRI have announced that the next software upgrade for their cameras will support ProRes 4444 XQ recording.

Surround Sound

A new audio panning mode: ‘Basic Surround’

Basic Surround positions the signal in its default channels, with a stereo signal in the right and left channels, and a mono signal in the center channel. The Pan Amount slider setting distributes portions of the signal to other channels and can be adjusted from –100 (left channels) to 100 (right channels).

Import preferences

As imported media can be copied to a location defined by each library (within the library or elsewhere), the file location option is to follow the library setting or to leave the source clips in place.

Final Cut Pro X 10.1.2 defaults to adding keywords to clips based on the tags assigned to their source media files in the Finder (and perhaps using other metadata manipulation applications one day). If you use REDCODE RAW media, the keywords assigned to the clips are based on the tags assigned to the parent folder of the media.

Those options are also available when importing specific clips. In this case the new clips will be imported to the storage location for the “Window Cleaner” library, which is currently set to ‘relink test’:

Final Cut Pro X XML version 1.4

Once again Apple has updated their data interchange format so more information can be exported from and imported into Final Cut.

Libraries and events can be encoded in XML files – but XMLs can no-longer refer to objects in other libraries

<!-- LIBRARY ELEMENT -->
<!ELEMENT library (event*)>
<!ATTLIST library location CDATA #IMPLIED>

<!-- EVENT ELEMENT -->
<!ELEMENT event (clip | audition | mc-clip | ref-clip | %collection_item; | project)*>
<!ATTLIST event name CDATA #IMPLIED>
<!ATTLIST event uid CDATA #IMPLIED>

A clearer way of encoding animated values

<!-- A 'keyframeAnimation' element describes an animation curve using the contained 'keyframe' elements -->
<!ELEMENT keyframeAnimation (keyframe*)>

<!-- A 'keyframe' element describes an point along an animation curve -->
<!ELEMENT keyframe EMPTY>
<!ATTLIST keyframe time %time; #REQUIRED>
<!ATTLIST keyframe value CDATA #REQUIRED>
<!ATTLIST keyframe interp (linear | ease | easeIn | easeOut) "linear"> <!-- interpolation type for point. -->

What was encoded in version 1.3 of FCPX XML as a ‘shot marker’ is now an ‘analysis marker’

<!ENTITY % marker_item "(marker | chapter-marker | rating | keyword | analysis-marker)">

Analysis markers can encode what kind of shot is in a clip (or range of a clip) and also encode how shaky the shot is

<!ELEMENT analysis-marker (shot-type | stabilization-type)+>

<!ELEMENT stabilization-type EMPTY>
<!ATTLIST stabilization-type value (excessiveShake) #REQUIRED>

Sequences (projects and compound clips) can now be assigned audio layouts and sample rates

<!-- A 'sequence' is a container for a spine of story elements in a sequence project. -->
<!ELEMENT sequence (note?, spine, %audio_comp_items;, metadata?)>
<!ATTLIST sequence %media_attrs;>
<!ATTLIST sequence audioLayout (mono | stereo | surround) #IMPLIED>
<!ATTLIST sequence audioRate %audioHz; #IMPLIED>

Individual multicam clip angles must include basic transform settings (intrinsic-params-video) and not applied to the whole clip

<!ELEMENT mc-source (%audio_comp_items;, %intrinsic-params-video;, filter-video*)>

Text in a title can now be set to ‘justified’

<!ATTLIST text-style alignment (left | center | right | justified)

‘Break Apart’ Auditions

If you have created an audition in an event or by dragging multiple clips to a timeline, you can now exchange the audition elements with the individual clips.

Previewing first audition pick:

Previewing third audition pick:

break-audition-2

After choosing ‘Break Apart Clip Items’ from the Clip menu:

The current (third) audtion pick is now in the main storyline and the other picks are attached to it in order.

Search for used or unused media in current item

A hidden feature of Final Cut Pro X 10.1 was when looking for media in the browser you can choose to find clips based on whether they are used in the current project, compound clip, synchronized clip or multicam clip – you could get this view using the Control-U keyboard shortcut. In 10.1.2 you can carry out more complex searches or create smart collections based on whether media is used or not.

For example you could find all the synchronized clips not used in the current timeline – be it a project, synchronized clip or a multicam clip being edited in the angle viewer.

Nudging clips in the timeline defaults to slide edits

If you change the position of a clip in the timeline by entering relative timecode (e.g. typing ‘+15’) or use the ‘,’ and ‘.’ keys to move a clip forwards or back along the timeline, Final Cut now does a slide edit – the neighbouring clips are trimmed to allow for the change.

Before:

slip-1

Pressing Shift-. a few times slides the audition further along the timeline:

The ’06c-14:5′ clip duration is increased and the start of the ’04-13:1 1′ clip is trimmed off to allow for the change.

Note that as this slide movement depends on the unused parts of the neighbouring clips, if there is no more media to reveal in the earlier clip (’06c-14:5′ in this case), the selected clip will not move forward in the timeline.

To get the clip nudge result in previous versions of Final Cut, use the Position tool (press the ‘P’ key) to either drag the clip, or if the position tool is the current tool, nudging will insert a gap clip before the clip you are nudging:

More control over synchronized clip generation

In 10.1.2 when you synchronize selected clips in an event, you get a dialogue box that gives you multicam-like controls over how the new synchronized clip is generated:

Editing clips between libraries warning

For editors who regularly use clips from one library in another, there is now the option not to show this warning every time:

Interesting that Apple have spent time on the kind of change that a few editors must have asked for – that hopefully was a task that a single programmer spent a few hours on.

New Plugins

It is interesting that Apple didn’t mention the many new effects, transitions, titles and generators included in the 10.1.2 update – it is almost as if they don’t want this version associated with any consumer-friendly improvements.

New Effects

Focus

Found in the Blur effects category

Graduated Mask

Found in the Keying effects category:

Streaks

Found in the Light effects category:

Newsprint

Found in the new Nostalgia effects category:

Security

Also found in the new Nostalgia effects category:

Raindrops

Found in the Stylize effects category – the checkerboard background shows where the effect made the clip transparent – when rendered, these areas export as black:

Textures

Found in the Stylize effects category. If defaults to using a wood texture, but you can apply your own using the drop zone:

Decal

Found in the new Text Effects effects category – designed to be applied to connected Titles with underlying video being used in the drop zone:

Stencil

Found in the Text Effects effects category also:

Visual Echo

Found in the Tiling effects category:

New Transitions

Divide

Found in the Dissolves transition category:

Clothesline

Found in the Movements transition category. Each clip swings as if it is hanging on a clothes line:

Color Planes

Found in the Movements transition category:

Fall

The outgoing clip falls forwards. Found in the Movements transition category:

Push

Although already as an option in the Slide transition, it is now also to be found in the Movements transition category:

Scale

Scales the incoming clip or the outgoing clip up or down. Found in the Movements transition category:

Switch

In the Movements transition category:

Arrows

From the Movements transition category. Choose from Arrow, Round, Square, None and Bevel end caps:

3D Rectangle

From the Replicator/Clones transition category:

Combo Spin

From the Replicator/Clones transition category:

Concentric

From the Replicator/Clones transition category:

Vertigo

From the Replicator/Clones transition category. Choose from Arrow, Round, Square, None and Bevel end caps:

Color Panels

From the Stylized transition category:

New Titles

Activate

From the Bumper/Opener title category:

Bold Fin

From the Bumper/Opener title category:

Point

From the Bumper/Opener title category:

Stacked

From the Bumper/Opener title category:

Slate

From the Credits title category:

Thumbnails

From the Lower Thirds title category:

New Generators