Attention filmmakers, this is going to save you a lot of time. The new application PrimariesExporter lets editors export sets of clips with synced audio and effects from the primary storyline in FCPX. All with just a few clicks.
If you are a regular reader on FCP.co, you are probably familiar with Clip Exporter and its developer, Thomas Szabo. He's now gone one stage further and released PrimariesExporter, a standalone application that works in tandem with FCPX to get multiple clips, stills and XML out.
Thomas explains:
When I re-coded ClipExporter 2 Mike Matzdorff (the 1st assistant editor for the FCPX feature film "Focus") and Sam Mestman (workflow architect of FCPXWORKS.com) got in touch with me and told me that they really missed an essential tool.
"The last missing puzzle piece in their post-production workflow". An app that batch exports rendered clips (aka dailies) and outputs a metadata report with thumbnails of the exported clips. Until then they used existing high cost software for this task and wondered if it was possible with Final Cut Pro X and a 3rd party app as well. And it is.
PrimariesExporter teams up with FCPX to help editors and post-production companies save time and money. It was built with ClipExporter´s production proven and rock solid XML parsing framework and speeds up workflows as it eliminates the need to export / import XML files. I hope that this new "exporter-family member" will help a lot of editors.
He's also produced this video that explains the benefits of using Primaries Exporter.
What we like about PrimariesExporter is the fact that Thomas has listened to the requests of editors and produced a very slick application that will save productions a lot of time and money. It is also priced well to fit into the FCPX ecosystem by being a free download, with the ability to output two clips for testing and then an in-app purchases for the output module licences.
VIDEO EXPORT ($89.99)
• Setup different Share Destinations and export small downscaled H264 or high resolution ProRes4444 XQ videos.
• Export rendered clips with synced audio, color corrections and effects.
• PrimariesExporter adds spotlight searchable "notes" and "keywords" metadata to the output video file.
IMAGE EXPORT ($29.99)
• Simply add markers to your clips to define a custom frame you wish to export. When no marker was added, ClipExporter uses the first frame of a clip.
• Set a custom image size and choose an image format that fits perfectly into your workflow.
METADATA LIST ($49.99)
• Thumbnail
• Save as HTML file or as Excel spreadsheet including thumbnails.
• Edit metadata field before saving.
• Supports the most common "studio" metadata fields.
We can see many uses for PrimariesExporter. There is obviously the film workflow use which the app has been designed for, but we can also see it being used as a 'batch export' tool. We see many requests to be able to export out more than one clip at a time and this should be able to that from the primary storyline. This could be especially useful when archiving media in TV stations for example.
The application is also creeping closer to one of the most requested new features of FCPX, media management in an FCP7 style.
So if you haven't already been convinced to download the free version of PrimariesExporter and give it a whirl, we will leave the last word to Mike Matzdorff:
I am the Editor-in-Chief of FCP.co and have run the website since its inception ten years ago.
I have also worked as a broadcast and corporate editor for over 30 years, starting on one inch tape, working through many formats, right up to today's NLEs.
Under the name Idustrial Revolution, I have written and sold plugins for Final Cut Pro for 13 years.
I was made a Freeman of Lichfield through The Worshipful Company of Smiths (established 1601). Though I haven't yet tried to herd a flock of sheep through the city centre!
Current Editing
2020 has been busy, the beginning of the year was finishing off a new property series (cut on FCP) for Channel 4 called The Great House Giveaway. I also designed and built the majority of the graphics as Motion templates. It has been a great success and the shows grabbed more viewers in the 4pm weekday slot than any previous strand. It has been recommissioned by C4 for 60 episodes, including prime-time versions and five themed programmes. The shows have also been nominated for a 2021 BAFTA.
Although both were postponed to later in the year, I worked again on ITV's coverage of the Tour de France and La Vuelta. 2020 was my 25th year of editing the TdF and my 20th year as lead editor. The Tour was the first broadcast show to adopt FCPX working for multiple editors on shared storage.
BBC's Snooker has played a big part in my life, I've been editing tournament coverage since 1997. I'm proud to be part of a very creative team that has pioneered many new ideas and workflows that are now industry standard in sports' production. This is currently an Adobe Premiere edit.
Covid cancelled some of the regular corporate events that I edit such as trade shows & events. I was lucky however to edit, from home, on projects for Amazon Kindle, Amazon Black Friday, Mastercard and very proud to have helped local charitable trust Kendall & Wall secure lottery funding.
As for software, my weapon of choice is Final Cut Pro and Motion, but I also have a good knowledge and broadcast credits with Adobe Premiere Pro, MOGRT design and Photoshop.
Plugin Design & Development
I'm the creative force behind Idustrial Revolution, one of the oldest Final Cut Pro plugin developers. It hosts a range of commercial and free plugins on the site. One free plugin was downloaded over a thousand times within 24 hours of release.
I also take on custom work, whether it is adapting an existing plugin for a special use or designing new plugins for clients from scratch. Having a good knowledge of editing allows me to build-in flexibility and more importantly, usability.
FCP.co
Now in its 10th year and 4th redesign, running FCP.co has given me knowledge on how to run a large CMS- you are currently reading my bio from the database! Although it sounds corny, I am pretty well up on social media trends & techniques, especially in the video sector. The recent Covid restrictions has enabled live FCP.co shows online. This involves managing a Zoom Webinar through Restream.io to YouTube and Facebook.
The Future
I'm always open to new ideas and opportunities, so please get in touch at editor (at) fcp.co. I've judged film competitions, presented workflow techniques to international audiences and come up with ideas for TV shows and software programs!
