FCP post production gurus needed.

Hi everyone,

I have a situation where I have exported a sequence as a quicktime using H264 compressor and there are all of shudders, the video plays backward for a fraction of a sec, and even double images that come through on the exported file. I have also exported it as a .mov using dv/dvcpro ntsc compressor, and also as various forms of wmv, and as an avi and it still does it in the same places. I have exported using the compressor and also quicktime conversion. The sequence plays fine in the timeline and the wierd thing is that if I import the quicktime back into FCP it plays fine on the viewer. I have also brought the file over to a fellow video guys studio and tried to play it on his super computer with scuzzy drives and tons of juice and it still does it. I have done all of the transitions by hand, I even created a new sequence, albeit within the same project, and re-assembled the f@#*er all over again and it still does it! I don't want to go through the hassle of starting the whole project all over, however, if I must I must. Its no big deal with a 3 min project but if it happen in a longer one I just may do something that I would regret later. I would still like to understand what is going on.

any suggestions?

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I see what you mean about the stutter. I'm sure that there are others who can give more expert advice on how to proceed, but here's what I'd try if it were my sequence. You say that it plays well in the timeline. Have you double-checked your sequence settings to make sure everything's set the way it's supposed to be? Try creating a new sequence, then copy and paste all the clips from your currrent sequence into the new one. (This may *possibly* eliminate any issue that might be from the original sequence.)

If you don't see any glitching from the timeline, export the entire sequence using "Quicktime Movie>Current Settings" and make sure the "Make Movie Self-contained" box is checked. Then force open that file in Quicktime Player (otherwise it will open in FCP by default) and see if it plays smoothly. If it does, drop that clip into Compressor, and try one of the presets (to eliminate any problematic manual settings). Try "Web Streaming (Quicktime 7 compatible)>H.264 LAN Streaming" to get a size similar to that on your webpage.

One other thought. Have you tried to export a different clip from a different sequence with the settings you're currently using? In other words, is this just happening with the big sequence that's giving you all the trouble, or is it happening across the board with any export using your current settings?

Hope this has been of some help?

Mary Lynn

Well Mary Lynn....it worked! Thank you so much. I had already re-assembled the sequence in a new timeline with an easy setup and no dice. The trick was to take the file that I had exported using the quicktime movie creator and run it through the compressor. I didn't do that to start with because if you re-import the file back into FCP, it doesn't give you the option to export using the compressor, so I just had to open the file in the compressor, and "presto". The key to it all was forcing the file open with quicktime player and seeing that it could work. I still don't understand what the heck is happening to my origional sequence, but I'm happy. I'll leave the bad one up so if anyone knows whats up, please let me know or feel free to just hypothesize.

thanks again Mary Lynn