APPLE’S FINAL CUT PRO X

On Tuesday night, Apple provided a “sneak peek” at the next version of Final Cut Pro. Dubbed Final Cut Pro X and scheduled for release in June 2011, the new version is by far the most substantial upgrade the video editing software has received in years. Written from the ground up with a new interface, Final Cut Pro X will (most importantly, and most overdue, in my opinion) take advantage of powerful hardware through 64-bit memory addressing, multi-processor support, background rendering, and more. In addition, there are a lot of other incredibly exciting new features included. I would go so far as to say that in some respects, FCP X looks to offer a drastically revamped approach to the editing process. I won’t delve into all of the additions, changes, and tweaks here, as much of the information given is subject to change (and all over the internet) but let’s just say that FCP X is shaping up to be very impressive.

However with any update to software so pivotal to our everyday lives comes both excitement and concern. Advances in technology that may allow us to do our work better and more efficiently are thrilling to say the least! At the same time, there are risks. There are glitches. There are bugs. There is time spent to adapt existing skills to a new interface. My approach to this sort of situation is to proceed cautiously, particularly with something so pivotal to our work. I plan to gather as much information as possible, and when the update is released, I’ll wait. I’ll talk to early adopters about their experiences. I’ll read about other editors’ problems and their successes. I’ll give it a try myself, and get comfortable with it. And finally, I’ll take the plunge and integrate it into my workflow. My priority is that our clients are unable to detect even a hiccup when the transition occurs.

There’s plenty of uncertainty surrounding the next iteration of Final Cut Pro, but at the end of the day my outlook is very positive, and I cannot WAIT to take it for a spin. Most importantly, here at 522 we’ll handle the transition smoothly, and aim to provide our clients with even higher quality work, more efficiently, as a result!