Creating a Demo Reel from Previous Libraries

Hello FCP.com
My first post here. I hope some kind person can help me with a workflow/file management question.

I'd like to create a demo reel of material from 3 previous Libraries. How do I access footage for the new Project in a new Library without having to copy all of the media form the previous Libraries to the new one? Shouldn't I be able to just reference the original media in the previous Libraries without having to copy all of it?

I can't be the first person to try to create a demo/sample reel of work from previous libraries.

Thanks for any suggestions.

A.T.

I believe you'll need to have each of those libraries open during your edit so the project will be able to access those files. I don't know how far flung your libraries are so that could be a challenge. You'll be prompted to copy the files into your project as you bring them onto your timeline, but you should be able to leave those files in place. I may be wrong about this. You may want to import those files into your new library anyway as you go so when you're done, you won't have to have those other three libraries open if and when you return to your new edit. Your new library will have copied over only those files you needed. Does that make sense? Someone else chime in here if I have this wrong.

Open all Libraries.
Take clips needed from any Library, drop it into your Project timeline.
When done, close all unneeded Libraries.

Don't worry about FCPX saying it needs to copy files to the Library you're working in. The Library your Project is in, will now contain the clips needed from the older Libraries, and if they're all on the same drive, there will be UNIX links all pointing to one physical file, so it won't eat up drive space.

what FCPX.guru said