This document provides an overview of the lesson on retiming and transforming clips in Final Cut Pro X. The lesson covers retiming clips by changing their speed, applying freeze frames, and using the retime editor. It also demonstrates how to reverse clip direction, apply preset speed effects like rewind and instant replay, and transform clips by scaling, positioning, cropping, and applying Ken Burns effects. The goals are to understand FCPX retiming tools and to create keyboard shortcuts for common retiming commands.

1. Apple Pro Training Series
Final Cut Pro X
Instructor: Sam Edsall
Retiming & Transforming Clips
Lesson 10:

2. Retiming & Transforming
Clips
• Understand Final Cut Pro retiming
• Reverse clip direction
• Change clip speed
• Apply freeze frame
• Apply speed changes to selection
• Apply rewind and instant replay
• Transform and crop clips
• Create keyboard shortcuts
Goals

3. Preparing the Project
Start up the FCP External
Drive:
Find your APTS FCP X
drive and double click to
start it up.

4. Preparing a Project
In the Project Library, from
the Lesson Projects folder,
drag the Lesson 10 folder
onto APTS FCP X.
From that folder, duplicate
the Zero to Hero_START to
your HD, then play it in the
Timeline.
-- same one we used before, but
now with markers for things to fix
later.

5. The ‘To Do’ List
Click the Timeline Index
button, or press Command-
Shift-2.
To see a list of to-do items,
at the top of the Index, click
Tags, and then click the
“Show incomplete to-do
items” button.

6. Retime a Clip
In the Timeline, zoom into
the second clip, crowd ots,
and select it.
Choose Modify > Retime,
and look at some of the
ways to adjust clip playback.
Then choose Show Retime
Editor, or press Command-
R.

7. Retime a Clip
In the Timeline Index,
click the reverse marker,
and play the driver prep
red clip at that location.
Zoom the Timeline into
this clip.

8. Retime a Clip
With the skimmer
over the driver prep
red clip, press C to
select it.
Select Modify >
Retime > Reverse
Clip.
Play the clip.

9. Reverse
• Speed segment – green
• Reverse Normal (-100%)
• Green segment bar has faint arrows that indicate
playback direction
Indicators

10. Speed Things Up
In the Timeline
Index, click the fast
driver marker.
Select the clip and
choose Modify >
Retime > Fast > 2x
Play the clip again.

11. Do Two at a Time
Select the crowd
ots and crowd
wide clips.
In the toolbar, click
the Retime pop-up
menu and then
choose Fast > 2x.
Play the clips.

12. Slow Things Down
In the Timeline Index, click
the slow down marker, and
zoom into the flame out
smoke clip at this location.
Select the clip, and press
Command-R to open its
Retime Editor.
Choose Slow > 50% then
play the clip.

13. Make Note to Self
Press Home (Fn ) to move the play head to the beginning of the project.
Press M twice to set a maker at this location and open the Marker window.
Name the marker slow wall, click the Make To Do Item button, and click
Done.

14. Set Your Own Rate
Select the wall low angle clip
and press Command-R to
open the Retime Editor.
Drag the retiming handle
(edge) to the right until the
percentage reads Slow (70%),
and then play the clip.

15. Checking Off the
To-Do List
• Uncompleted task markers
are red
• Completed task markers are
green
To Do to To Done
• From the Timeline index
• Open the marker in the
timeline and mark it as
complete
Checking them off

16. Check Them Off
In the Timeline Index, double-click the slow wall marker.
When the Marker window appears, select the Completed
checkbox, and then click Done.

17. Check Them Off
In the Timeline Index,
click on the red box next
to:
• 200% both crowds
• Reverse
• Fast driver

18. To Do to To Done
• When you select the
Completed
checkbox, the to-do
item is removed
from the to-do index
list and placed on
the Completed list
Completed

19. Creating Holds & Variable
Speed Segments
• Hold a certain part of
a video clip
Freeze it
• Speed of the clip
changes during the clip
• Not a constant speed
Vary its speed

20. Hold That Shot
In the Timeline Index, click
the hold frame marker, and
zoom into the JF holds
trophy clip.
Select the clip, and then snap
the play head at the marker.
-- The play head sets the freeze
frame.

21. Hold That Shot
Make sure the clip is
selected.
In the toolbar, from the
Retime pop-up menu,
choose Hold, or press
Shift-H.
Render, then play the new
speed settings.

22. Time the Freeze
Play the clip again, and stop
playback after you hear
Antron Brown say, “Cause
you take the Wally home.”
In the Retime Editor, drag the
Hold retiming handle right to
the play head.
Play this clip.

23. Trim the Clip
Lose the tail:
Move the pointer over the end
of the JF holds trophy clip.
When the End point trim icon
appears, drag left and snap the
edit point to the play head
location.
Play the clip.

24. Setting a Range for
Speed Change
• Specifies a range
within a clip so you
can set a new speed
for just that range
• Interesting effects like
fast-slow-fast, normal-
fast-normal, etc.
The Range Tool

25. Set a Speed Range
In the army prep clip, skim
from the first marker to the
second.
-- the range for the speed change.
Select the Range tool R, and
select a range from the first
marker to the second marker.
Change the speed to Fast 8X.
Render and play the clip.

26. Tweak the Speed Effect
In the third speed segment of the army prep clip, drag the end
frame of this segment to change its speed to 80%, and play the
clip.

27. Tweak the Speed Effect
In the army prep clip, skim
across the end of the first
segment and the beginning of
the second.
Press the Left or Right Arrow
keys, if necessary, to find
precisely where the man
begins to turn away from the
car.
--Better to start the faster speed
segment before he turns so it will be
less noticeable.

28. Tweak the Speed Effect
In the Retime Editor for
the army prep clip, click the
triangle next to the speed
percentage, and choose Change
End Source Frame from the pop-
up menu.
When the tiny filmstrip icon
appears, drag it left or right and
watch the Viewer until you see
the frame of the man before he
turns.

29. Optical Flow
• Option that makes speed
changes flow as smoothly as
possible
• Creates the smoothest possible
speed change by adding frames
Keeping it smooth
• Simpler method of smoothing
frames
• Less processor intensive
Frame Blending

30. Optical Flow
Select the army prep clip.
In the toolbar, from the
Retime pop-up menu, choose
Video Quality > Optical Flow,
if necessary.

31. Applying Preset
Speed Effects
• Speeds up or slows
down over time
Speed ramping
• Simulates the
automatic rewind of a
clip or clip segment
Rewind

32. Applying Preset
Speed Effects
Play the first clip in the
project, wall low angle.
If the clip Retime Editor is
not open, select the clip, and
press Command-R
Click the Retime pop-up
menu in the Toolbar, then
choose Speed Ramp > from
0%, and play the clip.

33. Applying Preset
Speed Effects
Play the crash clip.
Select the clip and press
Command-R.
To apply a speed ramp, from
the Retime pop-up menu,
choose Speed Ramp > to 0%.
Play the clip again.

34. Applying Preset
Speed Effects
Undo the previous speed
change by pressing
Command-Z.
With the crash clip still
selected, from the Retime
pop-up menu, choose Instant
Replay.
Play the clip.

35. Applying Preset
Speed Effects
Undo the previous speed
change by pressing
Command-Z.
With the crash clip still
selected, from the Retime
pop-up menu, choose Rewind
> 2x.
Play the clip.

36. Tweaking the
Rewind Effect
Undo the previous speed
change by pressing
Command-Z.
Press R to choose the Range
tool.
Snap the Range tool to the
marker above the clip and
drag to the end of the clip to
set the range.

37. Tweaking the
Rewind Effect
From the Retime pop-up
menu, choose Rewind > 2x.
Now the replay occurs right
after the crash.
Play the clip and adjust the
sound effect as necessary.

38. Transforming an Image
• Size, location, angle, etc.
Motion properties
• Hide unwanted elements by
sizing and repositioning the
clip
• Reduce the size of the clip
so other images can appear
like a split screen
Tricks

39. Transform Tools
• Scale, position, rotate a clip
Transform
• Cuts off any and all sides of a
clip
Crop
• Skews and distorts clip corners
Distort

40. Stacking Clips
• To display two or more clips
together onscreen, they must
be placed, or stacked, on top
of each other in the
Timeline.
• Generally you see only the
uppermost clip in the Viewer.
• By making the clip smaller or
moving it to one side, you
can also see the clip or clips
beneath it.
Layering

41. Check out a Stacked Shot
In the Project Library, from
the Lesson 10 folder, open
the Mobileviz
Minutes_v2 project into the
Timeline, and play the
project.
The first half uses stacked
clips while the second half
uses Ken Burns effects.

43. Transforming an Image
Return to the Project Library and, from the Lesson 10 folder,
duplicate the Mobileviz Minutes_START project to your HD
and open the project on the Timeline.

44. Transform an Image
Zoom into the first
clip, mocap hookup.
Position the play head at
about 00:00:01:15 where you
see more of the woman’s
head.
Select the clip, and in the
Viewer, click the Transform
button, or press Shift-T.
-- various onscreen controls appear
in the Viewer image area

45. Transform Tools
• Drag your pointer on any corner handle
Resize
• Drag your pointer inside the clip
Position
• Drag your pointers on the handle
extending from the center anchor point
Rotate

46. Transform an Image
Move your pointer to the
lower-left corner of the
Viewer image area.
When you see the diagonal
resize pointer, drag the handle
toward the center to make the
image about half-size.
--Dragging a corner handle
proportionately scales the image.

47. Transform an Image
Move your pointer inside the
clip’s image area, and drag up
and right.
Position and resize as desired.
When you finish using the
onscreen controls, click Done,
and play the clip.

48. Transform an Image
Move the play head to an
early frame in the second
clip, mocap strap stilts, and
select the clip.
Activate the Transform
controls, drag any corner
handle inward to reduce the
image size, and then drag the
image to the left of the Viewer
so the stilt is prominent in the
frame.

49. Try Some Other
Transform Tricks
Cue the play head over and
select the camera focus clip.
Try out these transform tricks:
• Drag, Option-drag, and
Shift-drag an edge handle.
• Drag, Option-drag, and
Shift-drag a corner handle.
• Rotate the image, drag the
handle extending from the
center like a steering wheel.

50. Use the Inspector
With the camera focus clip
still selected, open the
Inspector, and click the Video
tab.
Scroll down if necessary to
see the Transform section for
this clip.
Click the Show button to
reveal the Transform
parameters.

51. Use the Inspector
To reset the Transform
parameters, click the Reset
button (the curved arrow).
In the Viewer, use the
Transform onscreen controls
to scale and position the
image @2/3 size in the lower
right.
Click Done when you finish.

52. Trimming & Cropping
• You can remove portion of an image you don’t want to see by trimming
or cropping the image
A little off here, a little off there
• Removes portions on a side-by-side basis – does not maintain aspect ratio
Trimming
• Removes portions of a clip while maintaining aspect ratio
Cropping

53. Trimming an Image
Select the mocap strap
stilts clip and move the play
head to 00:00:03:00
In the Viewer, click the Crop
button, or press Shift-C.
While Trim is selected, drag
the right handle to the left to
remove the overlap and click
Done.

54. Trimming an Image
Select the camera focus clip
and cue the play head to
about 00:00:05:15
Drag the top-left corner of the
image down and to the right
to remove the overlap and
click Done.

55. Cropping an Image
Select and cue the play head
over the mocap sensor
rail clip.
In the Viewer, and choose
Crop as the crop type.
Drag a selection to exclude
the two men standing on the
left side of the image & click
Done.

56. Set Up a Stack
With the mocap sensor
rail clip still selected, click the
Transform button in the
Viewer.
Scale the image down a bit,
but leave it centered in the
Viewer.
-- notice that when you switched
from crop to trim, you lost your
crop effect (Hmm..)

57. Set Up a Stack
In the Viewer, click the Crop
button.
From the top left of the
Viewer, choose the Trim
option.
Trim the top of the image to
just above the rail in the shot.

58. Set Up a Stack
Click the Transform button,
and then drag the mocap
sensor rail clip’s image to the
top third of the Viewer.
Click Done.
Return to the beginning of the
project, and then play what
you’ve achieved thus far.

59. Adding the Ken Burns
Effect
• Producer of PBS
documentaries
• Mastered the art of
moving stills
Ken Burns
• Animates the crop
effect on stills or clips
The effect

60. Create a Ken Burns Effect
In the second portion of
the Mobileviz
Minutes_START project, play
the trailer cu clip.
Position the pointer over the
middle of the clip, and select
it.
-- The natural downward tilt of the
camera gives this shot some
movement but it doesn’t emphasize
Mobileviz much.

61. Create a Ken Burns Effect
In the Viewer, click the Crop
button, and choose Ken Burns
as the crop type.
Two crop selections appear.
One is green and labeled
Start, the other is red and
labeled End.

62. Create a Ken Burns Effect
Drag a corner handle of the
red End selection and position
it over the letters VIZ in the
Mobileviz name.
As you drag, an arrow
indicates the direction in
which the zoom will occur.
Play the clip.

63. Create a Ken Burns Effect
To refine where the clip ends,
position the play head toward
the end of the clip in the
Timeline, and select the clip
again.
Drag the End selection to an
improved location, and replay
the clip.

64. Create a Ken Burns Effect
Select and cue the play head
over the start of the trailer int
action clip.
Activate the Ken Burns
controls in the Viewer, if
necessary.
Reframe the green Start
selection around the monitor
on the left side of the image.

65. Create a Ken Burns Effect
Click Done and review the animation of both clips.

66. Creating Keyboard
Shortcuts
• In FCP, you can
make changes to the
default keyboard
layout in the
Command Editor.
If it isn't there,
make one

67. Creating Keyboard
Shortcuts
To open the Command
Editor, choose Final Cut Pro
> Commands > Customize,
or press Command-Option-K.

68. Creating Keyboard
Shortcuts
Make a Back-up:
In the upper-left corner of the
window, click the Command
pop-up menu, and choose
Duplicate.
When the rename dialog
appears, enter your name to
personalize the new
command set, and click OK.

69. Creating Keyboard
Shortcuts
To search for a specific
command, such as reverse
clip, click in the search field.
Enter reverse clip.
In the keyboard area, click the
R key.
--Notice on the right side of the
window, a list appears featuring
commands that use the letter R
along with the combination of
modifier keys.

70. Creating Keyboard
Shortcuts
Find an empty slot, such as
Command-Control-R, and
drag the command from the
Command list onto the
shortcut’s empty slot.
To save this layout with your
newly created keyboard
shortcut, click Save.

71. Shortcuts in Lesson 10
• Show/hide Timeline IndexCommand Shift 2
• Show/hide Retime EditorCommand R
• Reset speedCommand Option R
• Create 2-second hold at play head locationShift H
• Show/hide Video Animation menuControl V

72. Shortcuts in Lesson 10
• Open the Command EditorCommand Option K
• Activate Transform properties in ViewerShift T
• Activate Crop properties in ViewerShift C
• Set a keyframe at play head locationOption K
• Reverse speed on selected clip or rangeCommand Control R

73. Apple Pro Training Series
Final Cut Pro X
Instructor: Sam Edsall
Retiming & Transforming Clips
Lesson 10: