FCP X: Copying and Pasting Clips
This article was sparked by a conversation with Jeffrey Lyness about how to move clips between projects.
This is the collection of clips we want to paste into a different project — let’s pretend we want to share these clips with multiple projects. This project contains several video clips, a video clip that’s a hold frame (freeze frame), and a connected audio clip. The easiest way to move a clip, or a group of clips, between projects is to use copy and paste.
NOTE: We could also convert this to a compound clip, which is the subject of a different article.
Specifically, select the clip, or clips, you want to copy, and type Command+C (or, you can choose Edit > Copy).
Then, open the project you want to copy the clips into.
Position the playhead exactly where you want the clips to paste and type Command+V (or, Edit > Paste).
The clips will always paste at the position of the playhead, however, depending upon the position of the playhead, one of several things will happen:
* If the playhead is at the end of a project, the pasted clips will extend the project.
* If the playhead is in the middle of a clip on the Primary Storyline, the pasted clips will do an insert edit into the clip on the Primary Storyline and shift all Primary Storyline clips to the right of the playhead to the end of the pasted clips. However, FCP X will NOT cut any connected clips. Instead, it leaves those clips untouched.
For instance, in the screen shot above, the playhead marks where the paste was made. The Primary Storyline clip, indicated with a yellow border, was sliced and moved to the right of the inserted clips. However, the two connected clips, indicated by the red arrows, were not touched, instead, they now overlap the newly-inserted clips.
* If the playhead is after the end of a clip, FCP X will insert a gap (indicated by the red arrow) and paste the clips at the position of the playhead, indicated by the red box.
We also have a new option: Edit > Paste as Connected Clip. This pastes the contents of the clipboard as a series of connected clips, starting at the position of the playhead. (If necessary, this will create a gap in the Primary Storyline to make sure all clips are connected (indicated by the red box).
EXTRA CREDIT
Not only can you move clips from one part of a project to another, or from one project to a second project, you can also copy and paste clips from the Event Browser into the Timeline. However, you can’t copy clips from the Timeline and paste them into the Event Browser.
Related posts:
- Copying and Pasting Filters
- FCP X: Match the Sound of Two Clips
- Match the Sound of Two Clips in Soundtrack Pro
Comments
11 Comments to “FCP X: Copying and Pasting Clips”Trackbacks
Check out what others are saying...-
[...] end a coupe of days ago is now infuriatingly vexing and nonsensical today. according to Larry Jordan, guru of all things Final Cut X and prior, copying & pasting is completely possible. flummoxed, [...]
Hi Larry!,
Alright, so I’m trying to do exactly what you’ve laid out here: copying & pasting clips between different projects… and it just isn’t working. FCP X tells me I have the ability to copy a clip, but when I switch to another project, I lose the ability to paste it. All footage in both Projects was shot with the same cameras, at the same frame rate, at the same quality level (Canon 5DMII, 1080p, 23.98fps). I am absolutely tearing my hair out over this! Without the ability to copy and paste a handful of clips from one project to another, it seems like it means I’ll have to go back to my Events Browser, insert in the original clips, and regrade/tweak everything a second time, something I just don’t have time for. Help! I’m stuck!
Luke:
Well, I hate to write this, but “it works fine here.” I just opened a project. Selected a clip. Typed “Command+C” Switched to the Project Library, opened a different project, typed “Command+V” and all the clips pasted. Selected different clips. Different formats.
It all worked.
Hmmm… Read this article – maybe trashing preferences will help: http://www.larryjordan.biz/improving-fcp-x-performance/
Larry
Ha! I had the feeling that would be the case (of course it works for you; you’re Larry Freaking Jordan). I’ll try out the preference trashing after the weekend and give it another go.
Thanks for the response, Larry. The training for FCPX I purchased months ago has been immeasurably helpful; keep up the great work!
Arrrrrgh. I think you may ask me to move this to a paid support thing, but there’s something genuinely strange going on.
Trashed preferences (like you suggested), opened FCPX, and still couldn’t copy & paste clips from one project to another. Well… sorta’. After I couldn’t C&P the clips I wanted/needed to, I decided to try copying a clip from a random, wholly unrelated project then pasting it into the Project I am working on. Lo & behold, it worked; this random, unassociated clip, from a project that had nothing to do with my actual project at hand, was properly pasted into another project.
So I figured, “well, hm; maybe that goosed something in the system?” Nope. Went back, tried to C&P a clip I actually needed from one project into the project I am piecing together… and nothing. So. I’m not sure what all variables are at play against me right now, but clearly there’s something wonky at work here. I’m happy to provide more details about if you’d like. Thanks for your help so far, Larry!
Hi Larry, thanks for all your teaching.
I have the same problem with pasting clips in FCP X.
For some unknown reason, I can no longer past clips. I have tried repairing permissions. I have reinstalled FCP X, but nothing works.
Is there a fix?
thank you for your help. Ricky
Ricky:
Hmmm… I don’t know if there’s a “fix” because on the two systems I’m running FCP X on, I haven’t had this problem.
Are you in 10.6 or 10.7?
Larry
Hi Larry thanks for your reply,
I’m in 10.7
I just tried trashing my FCPX preferences, and I managed to copy and past one clip, but now when I try to copy and past any other clip It just keeps pasting the same first clip, even after restarting FCPX.
thanks for your help. Ricky
i had someone else stumble on my personal blog entry about this and they’re having the same exact problem. methinks it’s time to submit a bug report to Apple. there’s no reason copy/paste should work for some things and not others.
There are certain “problem files” that prevent C&P from working. In my case they were .caf that I pulled directly from AppleLoops library.
Anything out of the ordinary will hider C&P, so check your timeline. I think audio files are the main culprit, but you can C&P parts of the timeline as an experiment until you narrow down the problematic files…this is what I had to do.
Whole day lost, thanks Apple.
the new update has fixed my problem.
thanks for your help. Ricky