Today is the official launch day of FMC's online training and certification for Final Cut Pro.
MC and Apple are very excited to launch three new FCP Certifications today. Coming later this summer, students will also have the option to take a prep course for the exam and exclusive training courses in not only Final Cut Pro, but Logic and Motion as well! Starting today, however, Final Cut Pro certifications are available for purchase.
We broke the news of Future Media Concepts' new training and certification courses in January.
Since then, there's been much publicity surrounding the new FCP training including being mentioned in Apple's recent response to the open letter from FCP editors. The new certifications are also live on the Final Cut Pro web page, showing Apple's dedication to Final Cut Pro and this new training venture.
However, today is the big day that the website is officially live and accepting orders!
Final Cut Pro Exams are available at $149 each, which sounds like a good deal if you know your stuff already. The exams are divided into three separate skill levels and niches as follows:
FCP Certified SocialPro
This exam certifies users wishing to focus on online content and social media. It is ideal for students and professionals looking to get their feet wet in the Final Cut Pro ecosystem. It covers the main features of Final Cut Pro at an introductory-to-intermediate level and includes questions about integrating iPhone video into the production process.
FCP Certified VideoPro
This exam certifies users wishing to showcase their efficiency and expertise in producing professional content for film, television, advertising, and business. It covers all areas of Final Cut Pro at an intermediate to advanced level and includes questions on importing, editing, and exporting finalized professional-quality videos.
FCP Certified Post-ProductionPro
This exam certifies users wishing to gain a wide breadth of knowledge across the Pro Apps ecosystem. It covers all areas of Final Cut Pro at the expert level and includes questions concerning Motion and Compressor as well as post-production terminology and concepts.
Upon completion of the certification exam, all Final Cut Pro Certified Users will receive an official FCP Exam Certificate and an official LinkedIn Badge to showcase your proven mastery of Final Cut Pro.
For those seeking additional training to brush up on their skills prior to taking the certification exam, FCP training courses are available for registration. Dates are currently listed for upcoming online sessions which are scheduled to start in late June.
Courses that are currently available include:
- Final Cut Pro for Social Media
- Final Cut Pro for Broadcast Production
- Logic 101 – Introduction to Logic Pro
- Logic 301 – Advanced Techniques in Logic Pro
- Motion 101 – An Introduction to Motion 5
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!
