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Since there is no way to send a clip directly to Motion 5 from Final Cut Pro X, only to open up general effects, transitions and generators; what is the best workflow for actually using Final Cut Pro X for a specific clip?

Let's say I have a movie that is five minutes long, and that I want to, every minute, create a floating text with some kind of motion following behavior. How am I supposed to accomplish this? Export separate clips, import them to Motion 5, do the edits, export the clip again, importing it to Fincal Cut Pro X and replace the old clip? This seems quite cumbersome.

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  • has your workflow changed since Final Cut Pro X 10.1 was released?
    – Crowder
    Commented Apr 9, 2014 at 18:18
  • @LuceGoose Should it have? I haven't seen any updates that would adress this problem. Or?
    – Speldosa
    Commented Apr 10, 2014 at 15:38
  • Looks like you're right. I found where Apple's white paper on media management in FCPX explicitly addresses this in a footnote on page 9: "* Motion projects (such as effects, transitions, and generators) and third-party effects are not managed within the library and must be separately tracked and archived." images.apple.com/final-cut-pro/docs/Media_Management.pdf
    – Crowder
    Commented Apr 19, 2014 at 18:32

4 Answers 4

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There's no really good workflow, I think, yet. The best way I found is to export the video out of FCPX and import it into Motion. Apple thinks that you don't need to work in Motion solely, you only go there to create an effect, title, whatever and then put that thing right on top of a clip in Final Cut.

The problem there is that sometimes you'd rather want to have all the editing options Motion offers and just want to see how the video's going to look like. That problem is, to my knowledge, not solved yet. I hope this is all going to change in the future.

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  • This is such a bummer but I too hope that they'll fix it!
    – Speldosa
    Commented May 11, 2012 at 14:06
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The new way: Create your Effect in Motion, but use it in Final Cut Pro X.

How to: Start up Motion. Select the category "Empty" and choose the "Final Cut-Title"-Template. Then create your title and effects in Motion. If you "save" your project you have to select or create a effect-category for FCPX, then it will be published in Final Cut Pro X.

Start Final Cut Pro X. Open your project. Choose your newly created title or effect in the effect-library and apply it to your clips.

P.S.: If you want to adjust an effect-parameter from within Final Cut Pro X, just rightclick it in Motion and select "publish" in the dropdown-menu. It will be available in the Videoeffect-Pane of FCPX.

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  • So, how would this for example apply to motion track a title to a moving object or creating muzzle flashes?
    – Speldosa
    Commented May 8, 2012 at 14:48
  • Motion tracking is imho one of very few instances that doesn't work that way. I think in that case you have to use Motion.
    – DoktorHauser
    Commented May 9, 2012 at 9:18
  • My description was more general.
    – DoktorHauser
    Commented May 9, 2012 at 9:19
  • I think Apple are pretty clear with how you should handle generic effects, such as titles not interacting with the material it's overlayed upon, and I think this workflow makes a lot of sense. However, when it comes to more specific uses it feels like they leave the users pretty much in the dark. I would love for them to make a tutorial on how to for example create an action movie (complete with muzzle flashes and explosions) in FCPX and Motion 5, but I doubt they could show us something tantalizing, workflow vice.
    – Speldosa
    Commented May 9, 2012 at 10:34
  • I'm sure they will fix it. Maybe with FCPX Version 2 or 3.
    – DoktorHauser
    Commented May 12, 2012 at 8:22
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Here a tool to convert Final Cut X timelines into Motion 5 timelines. http://www.ilgattohanuovecode.it/tool/final-cut-round-trip/

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There's a paid tool Xsend Motion - https://fxfactory.com/info/xsendmotion/

You can share your timeline or compound clip through this program directly to Apple Motion.

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