FCPX Multicam Tip: Taking Notes with Titles

I’ve been working on editing a long interview this weekend, and in the process I stumbled upon a useful way to organize the multicam edit with annotations. That way when I go back to make a shorter edit, I can pull pieces of the interview quickly.

In this multicam edit, I’ve dragged a title over into the project (you can put it above or below the main storyline, whichever you prefer), and then right-clicked the title to rename, and typed a description of that interview segment. Right-clicking to rename is quicker than going into the Inspector -> Info -> etc, in my opinion.

You can use any title from the title selection, and if you don’t want to see the description written out in the video, you can hide the clip (shortcut “v”), while still seeing the clip description in the project. BUT, I recommend downloading the RT Adjustment Layer – it’s essentially a title plugin that doesn’t have titles in it, so you can use it for just about anything in the project, to both help organize the project, while also using it as an adjustment layer.

For example, we place the RT Adjustment Layer over an entire project, and drag the Broadcast Safe filter over it. It’s easier than adding the filter over every little clip (and remembering which clip might not have it, if you make changes later).

You can also use the RT Adjustment Layer to create separations to help organize audio and music, etc. Like so:

Some alternatives to using titles to organize an interview are:

1) compound clips…. seriously, I really dislike compound clips for project organization (they’re good for other uses). One, anytime you compound a clip you have to create a name and add yet another clip to your busy event library. And two, I’ve been screwed more than a few times when exporting compound clips, only to find the edit was rearranged inside, clips were missing, etc. And 3), while you’re still editing, you have to go into the compound clip each time you want to make an adjustment, how annoying.

2) markers…. these are okay, but a single point doesn’t help with that interview section’s description, and it doesn’t stretch over the interview clip duration. So, it’s just a mysterious marker that doesn’t say anything.

That’s all for now, happy multicam editing.