Digital Video - September 2007 - (Page 34)

Q&A Can you point out some favorite new FCS2 features? Motion 3, Soundtrack Pro, Compressor 3, and to a lesser degree, FCP 6, are the really big stories here. From what little I’ve played with the new upgrades, I can tell you what I love. Motion is killer. 3D, a feature request since Motion hit the shelves, is now a reality. It’s intuitive, and even I can get my head around it. Motion tracking is now for dummies like me and works beautifully. Many more cool and useful filters and effects. The coolest thing about Motion is that it is integrated with FCP much more deeply. And it’s so much fun. Soundtrack Pro has been completely rebuilt in version 2 and much more intuitive and Apple-like. Editing dialog is a breeze now. Surround sound is an added bonus, but I don’t have the setup to play experts as well. Are there cutters who bristle at this demand for multitasking? Do they have a life in the market if they just want to cut picture? Yeah, that’s nuts, isn’t it? “Master of none,” as they say. But then it’s the reality of the times. Walter Murch is both a master picture and sound editor. Robert Rodriguez directs, edits, does the music and special effects, and holds the camera. Probably cooks too. So does Steve Soderbergh. Those who are established and in the union have no worries—at least if they are working and in demand. Those who freelance should have at least some knowledge of audio, effects, compression, color and at least one other NLE. It’s not a strict requirement, though. I wish it weren’t true, but in the low-budget or no-budget world you look for cost savings, and if “Bobby” is a one-man band, that’s a good chunk of “I’m not sure if the pace of cutting has changed over the years due to the invention of the NLE. I’d argue that’s a myth. The story or genre dictates the pace of cutting—or at least it’s supposed to.” with it. There is this really cool feature called Audio Conform, which allows you to send your FCP project to STP for mixing and editing with one click. Any change you made in FCP is automatically updated so you can compare and conform the audio in STP 2. Compressor 3 ain’t your father’s Compressor. It has a brand-new interface and looks very FCP like. The Optical Flow technology, Episode Pro plug-in from Telestream and SD to HD upconversions are all huge. But it’s too early to tell if all is working as advertised. You’ve got to love the multi-format support in FCP 6. Now you can throw any and every format onto one timeline and edit. The jury is still out on this one, but so far I’ve thrown HDV, DVCPRO HD and DV onto one timeline with no problems. The new ProRes 422 codec sure looks sweet. It’s great for those working with 2K to 4K files or even HDV. And the tighter integration with the other FCS apps is really true. These days, editors are expected to serve as audio engineers, colorists and visual effects change saved. Same if the director is the camera operator, cinematographer, dolly grip and lead actor. Even craft service dabbles in makeup and hair. More often than not, the project suffers, but budgets force you to do whatever you have to. Five years ago, did the future of NLE look like it does today? What will it look like five years from now? Will we be editing pictures on our iPhones? Touch screen editing? Why not? Collaborative editing over the Internet via software such as SyncVue and iChat? Sure. Remember in the beginning of the movie Minority Report, when Tom Cruise is manipulating the images on a monitor without even touching it? I’m betting that manipulating images via voice recognition also will play a role. What the future of NLE technology holds in 5 years is anyone’s guess. It doesn’t really matter, though—because what will never change is the people, hovering over all this new technology, manipulating the images and crafting the stories. Give us anything and we will make it work. ■ For an extended version of this story, go to www.dv.com. 32 DV SEPTEMBER 2007 WWW.DV.COM http://www.dv.com http://www.dv.com http://www.dv.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Digital Video - September 2007

Contents News AG-HPX500 HD Camcorder First Look: Color V8000HD 8" LCD Monitor Shoulder Mount System Instant Expert Close-Ups Fest Cercuit Q&A Flight Plan Cutter's Way Imagination in Action Motion Graphics Production Diary

Digital Video - September 2007

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