Montage Ideas

I've been asked to create a number of montages from video footage.

Each montage is to be about 5m in length and will be on difefrent facets. I have no problems with the content or in assembling it, etc, but I'm short on ideas for the transitions between clips and this is what I need help with.

One montage I'm almost finished with involves 10s clips of speakers and the cut-over is a second of the blink filter and looks quite nice. However, the montage I'm working on now has clips of people varying in duration from 2s to a maximum of 6s and come from numerous sources of differing quality.

So, can anyone suggest possible transitions I can use and if overly complicated a pointer at how I can get started would be cool.

Many thanks in advance and apologies if this is the wrong topic.
Stubster

Final Cut has lots of transition effects. Many other are available as 3rd party plug ins. It is hard to say what would be interesting and appropriate without knowing the material and the audience. Transitions that are great for a sitcom might be awful for a drama.

Generally it is nice if the transition is suggested by the content. Nice too if it fits the music if there is any. Your flash cuts, for example, work well on drum kicks in the music.

It is never a good idea to try and get the entire catalog of effects into a single video. Think of how distracting power point presentations are that use every text transition available, one after another.

Try and use a type of transition as a sort of chapter marker. One type for major topics and an different, but related one for sub topics.

Finally enjoy going through what is available and fiddle with the controls. That is a lot of the fun of a program like FCP!

-Vance

Thanks Vance - I apprecitae the reply and the suggestions.

I've been through some of what's available but my creative juices weren't getting excited so hence my visit here. To see if I could get re-excited!

The main problem I'm having in getting my head round is that the clips are all very short and the biggest issue is what music to use. We'll get there I'm sure of it, but struggling today!

Stubster

Once you pick the music the transitions may come more easily. In a montage type edit it is often best to start with the music, or at least a cut with the same tempo as what you will be putting in. It make cutting a lot easier. Of course when it changes you will do a significant amount of tweaking to put your cut and transition back on beat.

-V

Here's some links for effects and transition plug-ins for both Motion and FCP:

[www.noiseindustries.com]
[www.chv-plugins.com]
[www.dvgarage.com]

Maybe you'll find some inspiration checking these out.

Inspiration for a Montage with apologies to "Team America."


Show a lot of things happing at once,
Remind everyone of what?s going on (what?s going on?)
And with every shot you show a little improvement
To show it all would take to long
That?s called a montage (montage)
Oh we want montage (montage)

And anything that we want to go from just a beginner to a pro,
You need a montage (montage)
Even Rocky had a montage (montage)

Always fade out in a montage,
If you fade out, it seem like more time
Has passed in a montage,
Montage

Michael Horton
-------------------

Haha. nice Mike.
)

I use luma flashes (there are some nice filters that come with FCP like glow, star effect, etc..that are key frameable) and "mini-montages" which are basically some really fast cuts of broll, motion, camera movements etc...in between my principle shots. A fellow editor just cut a tease that used a bunch of short dissolves between really short shots (short as in 5-10 frames max with 3 frame dissolves.) We do sports so I'm not sure what works for you?

If you don't own (or haven't seen) this movie and you aren't easily offended then get it!

Classic...



For instant answers to more than one hundred common FCP questions, check out the LAFCPUG FAQ Wiki here : [www.lafcpug.org]

Thanks everybody - plenty to be getting my teeth into.

And nope, never see that film Ben.

I watched it again on Sunday... and had to sing along to the montage song for which my girlfriend kept saying Shhhhhhh - which made me laugh cus its another great moment in the film!

Good luck with the montage!



For instant answers to more than one hundred common FCP questions, check out the LAFCPUG FAQ Wiki here : [www.lafcpug.org]