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User profile for user: EastcoasterWestcoaster
EastcoasterWestcoaster Author
User level: Level 1
81 points

Project suddenly empty/timeline gone!

I'm pretty new to FCPX. I've been editing a video for a few days, the project runs about 5 minutes. I went into another project to copy-paste some titles and bring them back into the new/current project... and the timeline is blank. I'm suspecting that I did something outside of the actual "project" slate up top. Screen shot of what I'm seeing is attached below. This was previously a full timeline with titles, transitions, lots of edits. If it helps, something similar happened with my last project: I had synchronized a handful of clips and edited with those on the timeline, but for some reason the only way o get the timeline back in that project was to double click on the "Sync'd clips" clip in the Library.


I don't have any sync'd clips in this project, so I tried double clicking on each clip in case it "contained" the timeline - but no luck.


I also tried loading the backups from the every-15-mins backup folder, and none of them contained my timeline.


I've tried Window>Show in Window and timeline is checked.


I never deleted anything from the timeline so I feel like it has to be there somewhere, I'm just not finding it. I've seen similar posts on other forums but without a solution.


To extra clarify, when I go into the folder the the date on it in the left pane, clips are definitely there - but the timeline is just... gone.


If anyone knows the trick to getting it back... can you help? I don't want to lose 3 days of work. Ugh.


Kirby

Posted on Oct 7, 2023 4:25 PM

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User profile for user: Tom Wolsky
Tom Wolsky
User level: Level 10
152,015 points

Posted on Oct 7, 2023 5:03 PM

Yes. It sounds as if you have made a fundamental error in FCP. You created a project but you didn’t open it. Instead you opened a clip or a sync clip and edited into that clip container.


You can copy the contents of the clip and paste into a project. It’s kind of a mess as you will still have clips that contain content they shouldn’t.


For an excellent introduction to FCP start with Steve Martin’s 60 minute intro. For a more in depth introduction use the Izzy video tutorials. The version is a bit dated but the principles are the same.


Learn FCP in Under 60 Minutes - YouTube


Final Cut Pro Tutorial | Izzy Video

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User profile for user: Tom Wolsky
Tom Wolsky
User level: Level 10
152,015 points

Oct 7, 2023 5:03 PM in response to EastcoasterWestcoaster

Yes. It sounds as if you have made a fundamental error in FCP. You created a project but you didn’t open it. Instead you opened a clip or a sync clip and edited into that clip container.


You can copy the contents of the clip and paste into a project. It’s kind of a mess as you will still have clips that contain content they shouldn’t.


For an excellent introduction to FCP start with Steve Martin’s 60 minute intro. For a more in depth introduction use the Izzy video tutorials. The version is a bit dated but the principles are the same.


Learn FCP in Under 60 Minutes - YouTube


Final Cut Pro Tutorial | Izzy Video

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User profile for user: EastcoasterWestcoaster
EastcoasterWestcoaster Author
User level: Level 1
81 points

Oct 7, 2023 4:54 PM in response to Tom Wolsky

Tom, I've actually looked at a number of your responses over the years for some answers. Thanks for chiming in.


Those other "Henriette's" are backups that I tried loading in. The Project slate "Henriette" is blank.. it's always been blank. This is why I disclaimer that I'm new to FCPX... I've fully edited a couple videos the past couple weeks, but that Project slate is always blank. Double clicking it doesn't put anything in the timeline. For example: this image shows a project called "Bellino" which when I click on the library is blank in the timeline.


But if I click on the the Oct 2 synchronized clip collection, the timeline fully populates with my entire complete edit.


With the now-blank "Henriette" project, none of the clips "contain" the full edit timeline. No sync'd clips in that one, it's just clips.


OH WAIT - I just closed all the libraries and re-opened the main one I usually use, and it contains an Oct 4 "Henriette Sync'd" clip. When I click on that, the timeline is back! Which is great, but... I don't understand what I did wrong. I'm guessing this is something fundamentally incorrect when I started the project. I imported clips into the library, then started editing... but when I did sync those Henriette clips, they didn't insert themselves into the timeline: they just made that "Henriette sync" clip with the paperclip upper left. And double clicking on that inserted the sync'd clips into the timeline and I edited from there.


Am I missing something fundamental at the project-creation level, where perhaps all of this stuff is supposed to live inside of the slate "Henriette"?


This may actually be a super rudimentary problem... but if you know what I did wrong, and if it has a name so I can google around for info about it, that would be super helpful. With a new software sometimes I don't know what to call something to know what to google for when troubleshooting it!


Kirby







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User profile for user: EastcoasterWestcoaster
EastcoasterWestcoaster Author
User level: Level 1
81 points

Oct 7, 2023 5:09 PM in response to Tom Wolsky

AHHH - I knew something was wrong but didn't understand what. I need to figure out how to operate inside of a project slate rather than... whatever it is I'm currently doing. It felt like it was a structural thing.


Thanks so much for the suggestions and for chiming in. I'm in a time crunch on something and I obviously missed a key foundational concept somewhere. This stuff can feel like being lost in the wilderness - kind souls who assist are gold. Thank you sir.


Kirby

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Project suddenly empty/timeline gone!

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