FCP X Sequence Import: Supported Transitions and Effects

Supported Data

Smoke supports Final Cut Pro X (10.0.6) XML export, including ones referencing directly R3D and MXF files.

NoteDue to the limited information written to the XML file by Final Cut Pro X, the conform in Smoke can look different from the sequence created in Final Cut Pro X: Smoke cannot set parameters or recreate effects for which there is no information.

To see how the timeline will look in Smoke, export in Final Cut Pro X the timeline to XML, and then import it back in Final Cut Pro X.

The following general limitations apply to Final Cut Pro X XML imports in Smoke:

Compounded (nested) clips are not supported. As a workaround, remove any compound clip before exporting the sequence from FCP.
All transitions and supported effects are reset to default values.
Only transitions, retime and title effects, and a subset of audio effects are supported. Other clip effects such as Color are not supported, due either to lack of information within the XML, or to the complexity of the effect.
NoteWhen working with .R3D files, Color settings are supported as RMD settings in Smoke. See Regarding Support for RED in FCP.

Transitions

In cases where the video and audio are imported and treated as a single entity in the Final Cut Pro X sequence, applying a video transition affects both video and audio and is translated in Smoke as follows:

Dissolve transition: Smoke applies a dissolve to video and audio.
Wipe transition: Smoke applies a matching wipe to video, and a dissolve transition to audio.
DVE transition: Smoke applies a dissolve to video and audio.

Apple Final Cut Pro X Transition	Translation in Smoke
Blur (any)	Dissolve
Dissolve	Dissolve except: Cross Dissolve changes to Dissolve (no keyframes) Fade to Colour changes to Fade To/From Black (no keyframes)
Lights	Dissolve
Movements	Dissolve
Objects	Dissolve
Replicator/Clones	Dissolve
Stylized	Dissolve

Apple Final Cut Pro X Wipes	Translation in Smoke
Bands	SMPTE Wipe 001 + cue mark
Center	Supported
Checker	SMPTE Wipe 001 + cue mark
Circle	Supported
Clock	Supported
Gradient Image	Dissolve + cue mark
Inset Wipe	Supported
Letter X	Supported
Wipe	Supported

Retime Effects

A clip retime is translated to a Soft Timewarp with matching speed up or down.

Final Cut Pro X Retime	Translation in Smoke
Slow	Slower than real-time linear timewarp, at same speed as in Final Cut Pro X
Fast	Faster than real-time linear timewarp, at same speed as in Final Cut Pro X
Normal 100%	Not Timewarp
Hold	0% Soft Timewarp, using same frame as the one defined in Final Cut Pro X
Reverse	Reverse speed linear timewarp, at same speed as in Final Cut Pro X
Speed Ramp (to 0% / from 0%)	Animated speed ramp timewarp
Rewind (1x / 2x / 4x)	Animated speed ramp timewarp

Title Effects

Text effects parameters are not saved to the Final Cut Pro X XML, only the text strings are imported.

All text effects are set to:

Colour: White
Font: Discreet
Size: 50
Alignment: Centered

Audio

Only audio fades are supported.

Smoke correctly imports FCP X XML using multi-track audio.

Regarding Support for RED in FCP

NoteThe following only applies when using Final Cut Pro X 10.0.6.

With Final Cut Pro, you can work directly with R3D files, created by RED cameras, instead of using the QuickTime files. This means that when you import a FCP X XML sequence in Smoke, you can relink the sequence to the R3D files, providing you with the best image quality.

Another benefit of using the R3D files is the RAW parameters set in Final Cut Pro X are saved by FCP as an RMD file. This file can be read by Smoke on import.

To read FCP X Color settings for R3D files, you have to select an RMD option from MediaHub Browse for Files Format Specific Options Colour Settings box for R3D files.