Final Cut Pro X: Causes of Hysteria



Watching the hysteria unfolding on the net about the release of Final Cut Pro X, I would like to focus on its causes. This is my subjective look, the look of a man who has been sitting for more than ten years at the nailboard.

When I was an editor, I tried all available and popular packages from Avid, Adobe, Apple, choosing Final Cut. This was done due to the fact that he was very close to my needs as an editor: he worked quite quickly, supported all common input and output devices, and worked with most popular formats. Everything in it was not bad, except for the not very typical interface for Apple products. This is not surprising, because the program was purchased from Macromedia, which has never been famous for high-quality interfaces.

Time passed, the formats, carriers, principles of working with the material changed, along with this the generation of the program, seven major updates, and no development, but only work to improve the quality and stability of the work. Only a few interesting features were added, no innovations. And as many as seven generations have changed. For me, let’s say, it is obvious that this could not continue. Instead of film, people began to use digital cameras that wrote doubles to separate files, or even to cameras with video recording function. The resolution of the frame increased, which entailed an increase in the volume of files, and therefore the requirements for computer resources. Computers have long become 64-bit, in a word: the program no longer meets modern requirements for either performance or process organization.


Work on the short meter "1919", shot at 35 mm, there were no difficulties in the work

Apple took a big step forward, completely reworking the package, rewriting it again, integrating into it all the best that was in Final Cut, Shake, and Color, of course, one product cannot carry all the power of these products, but for solving everyday tasks, most users is optimal. The program turned out to be truly revolutionary, changing the principles of working with material, organizing the process, and assembling the timeline. Add speed and a high-quality (just like Apple usually does) interface. This is the first version that evolution is waiting for, overgrowing with new and improved functions, the implementation of which, in the current version, would greatly postpone the release date. Seven do not wait, so they say, those who invest in new technologies of shooting and production should not suffer, for the sake of those who still use Betacam, etc. In the end, they have the opportunity, along with their old equipment, to use old versions of the package. Apple is considering selling version 7 licenses, taking into account the interests of users. Support for multicameras will appear soon, as well as the ability to import / export to XML. Of course, there will not be and will not be the opportunity to open the projects created in the previous generation of the program, but this is quite logical, since it is a completely different, new program, incompatible with the previous ideology of track editing. No one bothers simultaneously holding on the same computer both the old and the new version of the program, you have been left with this opportunity. All ahead. In the meantime, it’s quite high-quality, I repeat, a product that meets the requirements of most, and also has become easier to learn. they have the opportunity, along with their old equipment, to use old versions of the package. Apple is considering selling version 7 licenses, taking into account the interests of users. Support for multicameras will appear soon, as well as the ability to import / export to XML. Of course, there will not be and will not be the opportunity to open the projects created in the previous generation of the program, but this is quite logical, since it is a completely different, new program, incompatible with the previous ideology of track editing. No one bothers simultaneously holding on the same computer both the old and the new version of the program, you have been left with this opportunity. All ahead. In the meantime, it’s quite high-quality, I repeat, a product that meets the requirements of most, and also has become easier to learn. they have the opportunity, along with their old equipment, to use old versions of the package. Apple is considering selling version 7 licenses, taking into account the interests of users. Support for multicameras will appear soon, as well as the ability to import / export to XML. Of course, there will not be and will not be the opportunity to open the projects created in the previous generation of the program, but this is quite logical, since it is a completely different, new program, incompatible with the previous ideology of track editing. No one bothers simultaneously holding on the same computer both the old and the new version of the program, you have been left with this opportunity. All ahead. In the meantime, it’s quite high-quality, I repeat, a product that meets the requirements of most, and also has become easier to learn. Use older versions of the package. Apple is considering selling version 7 licenses, taking into account the interests of users. Support for multicameras will appear soon, as well as the ability to import / export to XML. Of course, there will not be and will not be the opportunity to open the projects created in the previous generation of the program, but this is quite logical, since it is a completely different, new program, incompatible with the previous ideology of track editing. No one bothers simultaneously holding on the same computer both the old and the new version of the program, you have been left with this opportunity. All ahead. In the meantime, it’s quite high-quality, I repeat, a product that meets the requirements of most, and also has become easier to learn. Use older versions of the package. Apple is considering selling version 7 licenses, taking into account the interests of users. Support for multicameras will appear soon, as well as the ability to import / export to XML. Of course, there will not be and will not be the opportunity to open the projects created in the previous generation of the program, but this is quite logical, since it is a completely different, new program, incompatible with the previous ideology of track editing. No one bothers simultaneously holding on the same computer both the old and the new version of the program, you have been left with this opportunity. All ahead. In the meantime, it’s quite high-quality, I repeat, a product that meets the requirements of most, and also has become easier to learn. Support for multicameras will appear soon, as well as the ability to import / export to XML. Of course, there will not be and will not be the opportunity to open the projects created in the previous generation of the program, but this is quite logical, since it is a completely different, new program, incompatible with the previous ideology of track editing. No one bothers simultaneously holding on the same computer both the old and the new version of the program, you have been left with this opportunity. All ahead. In the meantime, it’s quite high-quality, I repeat, a product that meets the requirements of most, and also has become easier to learn. Support for multicameras will appear soon, as well as the ability to import / export to XML. Of course, there will not be and will not be the opportunity to open the projects created in the previous generation of the program, but this is quite logical, since it is a completely different, new program, incompatible with the previous ideology of track editing. No one bothers simultaneously holding on the same computer both the old and the new version of the program, you have been left with this opportunity. All ahead. In the meantime, it’s quite high-quality, I repeat, a product that meets the requirements of most, and also has become easier to learn. incompatible with the previous ideology of track editing. No one bothers simultaneously holding on the same computer both the old and the new version of the program, you have been left with this opportunity. All ahead. In the meantime, it’s quite high-quality, I repeat, a product that meets the requirements of most, and also has become easier to learn. incompatible with the previous ideology of track editing. No one bothers simultaneously holding on the same computer both the old and the new version of the program, you have been left with this opportunity. All ahead. In the meantime, it’s quite high-quality, I repeat, a product that meets the requirements of most, and also has become easier to learn.


Import from a P2 memory card. The import process from camera memory cards has never been so easy and intuitive

But oddly enough, a huge part of the editors met with hostility, raising real hysteria on the network, right down to the open letter to Apple. I see this as inertia, a lack of readiness for change, a denial of everything new and unusual. In my opinion, the installation process is primarily creativity and art, and not the jaggedness of buttons and commands. As an artist’s tool, the new FCP is a very good assistant who does not interfere, but allows and helps focus on the creative process. You simply lay out how all your clips are on the table and start collecting sequences from them, without paying attention to the technical side hidden under the hood of the program. It’s just that the time for change has come, this is not the time of artisans, but the time of creators who put the idea and ability to speak film language at the forefront. And the program only helps in this process. Clear, which for many was bread - the ability to press buttons, and it is a pity to lose. But time goes on and everything changes, fortunately.

I think the essence of the claims does not lie in the field of professional capabilities of the program, but in the desire of many negligent “professionals” to have a “button advantage” over others. Farewell, your time has passed, the time is coming when the instrument begins to be just an instrument and nothing more.

I read Final Cut Pro X called iMovie Pro, but even if so, what's wrong with that? I would recommend, for those who lack the capabilities of FCP, to pay attention to more serious solutions for cinema, for example from Autodesk, there are many buttons and opportunities to “understand”

Ready in the comments, answer all tricky questions, and prove that all that happened, only for the better.

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