AVI to Final Cut

[acearchie]

I recently filmed two friends cycling 1,000 miles in the UK. They had helmet cams which recorded each of their efforts for 10 days. The little cameras recorded VGA AVI files and I was wondering best how to use them in Final Cut.

I have currently around 300gb of AVI's and realise that converting them into AIC or PRORES is going to quickly use up all my hard drive space.

Each clip is 30 mins long?

I'm just a bit clueless as where to start. I obviously don't want to use all the footage but there are a couple of falls and arguments that I aim to get into the final film.

Basically can anyone help me out with my workflow?

Cheers.

 

[powerhouse7]

The best way to import all that footage in FC for importing and editing would be to first log all your footage so you can then only import (and/or convert) the footage you need to use. This will make editing much easier/less frustrating and keep project files to a minimum, even if it does mean going through and watching all your footage with a pen and paper.
Hope this helps!
Good Luck!

 

[jetlife2]

You will be fine

When you Import AVI to FCE or FCP you are not making another copy of the raw video file. Just a set of "bookmarks" to that raw video.

As an example I have a project where I am using a single 40gb AVI file. I "imported" it into FC and now a reference to it is in the browser window. Then I copied and pasted 18 times and set different in and out points within the footage. This let me then entirely rearrange my 18 segments in a sequence. BUT I do not have 18 copies of the 40GB file...just a small Project file (200kb in fact!) that references the raw video multiple times.

It is on the Output (rendering step) that you will start to write large amounts of new video.

Make sense?

Thanks

 

[martinX]

I'd do it differently.

I'd use MPEG Streamclip to cut it into bits.

1. Open the AVI in MPEG Streamclip
2. Open the Batch window as well
3. In MPS, set in I and O point, go to File, Export, Quicktime Movie and select the appropriate codec (probably ProRes), name it and send it to batch
4. Repeat.
5. Do this for all the AVIs. Click "Start" on the MPS Batch window
6. Place all those resulting QuickTime movs into a folder along with your FCP project
7. In FCP, import all those clips
8. Start working in FCP.

I'd do it this way to avoid having to use AVIs in FCP directly.

 

[acearchie]

When you Import AVI to FCE or FCP you are not making another copy of the raw video file. Just a set of "bookmarks" to that raw video.

As an example I have a project where I am using a single 40gb AVI file. I "imported" it into FC and now a reference to it is in the browser window. Then I copied and pasted 18 times and set different in and out points within the footage. This let me then entirely rearrange my 18 segments in a sequence. BUT I do not have 18 copies of the 40GB file...just a small Project file (200kb in fact!) that references the raw video multiple times.

It is on the Output (rendering step) that you will start to write large amounts of new video.

Make sense?

Thanks

I realise this the problem is that the AVI file will not natively play in Final Cut and must be transcoded into AIC or PRORES etc. so that I can play back in real time without rendering.

I think that I will have to watch through the entire footage (Around 100 hours) at probably 8x or 16x as it is only cycling and playback in real time when they stop or it looks like something interesting happens.

It will be tough as there might be good "chit chat" whilst the boys are visually on the bikes just cycling along but I do not have enough time to sit through nearly 100 hours of footage. It's a tough one!

 

[martinX]

but I do not have enough time to sit through nearly 100 hours of footage. It's a tough one!

The problem with offering to edit 100 hours of footage is you have to watch 100 hours of footage. Maybe more than once

A finished minute takes an hour to shoot and 10 hours to edit...

If it was me, I'd follow the pop song mantra: short, sweet and under 3 minutes. I don't reckon anyone is going to watch much more than that. Around three minutes made up of about 10 or so twenty second grabs set to popular/topical/boppy/thematic music (an example of "thematic" would be "Bicycle" by Queen).

Job done. Or let them select the footage

 

[acearchie]

The problem with offering to edit 100 hours of footage is you have to watch 100 hours of footage. Maybe more than once

A finished minute takes an hour to shoot and 10 hours to edit...

If it was me, I'd follow the pop song mantra: short, sweet and under 3 minutes. I don't reckon anyone is going to watch much more than that. Around three minutes made up of about 10 or so twenty second grabs set to popular/topical/boppy/thematic music (an example of "thematic" would be "Bicycle" by Queen).

Job done. Or let them select the footage

Sadly I've offered to make a documentary. I was also filming from a van intermittently so I will interlace it with that.

Thanks again for the help.

 

[jetlife2]

Must be a different codec

I realise this the problem is that the AVI file will not natively play in Final Cut and must be transcoded into AIC or PRORES etc. so that I can play back in real time without rendering.

I think that I will have to watch through the entire footage (Around 100 hours) at probably 8x or 16x as it is only cycling and playback in real time when they stop or it looks like something interesting happens.

It will be tough as there might be good "chit chat" whilst the boys are visually on the bikes just cycling along but I do not have enough time to sit through nearly 100 hours of footage. It's a tough one!

My AVI file is HD-AVI and will play natively in FC. I guess all AVI codecs are not the same in this respect. I am now officially out of my depth as I know enough to know that there are multiple kinds, but not enough to advise you further!

 

[martinX]

Sadly I've offered to make a documentary.

Watch the footage and find the story.

 

[martinX]

My AVI file is HD-AVI and will play natively in FC. I guess all AVI codecs are not the same in this respect.

AVI (like MOV) is a container in which you can put video (of varying codecs), audio (also of varying codecs) and other stuff (of various types). Having an "AVI" gives no information about the codecs used and thus no information on whether or not it will play on a particular system can be gleaned.

FCP is a Quicktime-based MOV editor. Always has been, ever since Macromedia made it. While it may be able to read other containers, it works best with MOVs. As an example, a MOV with the DV codec in it works much better than just a DV file.