fcpx Build in/out custom text item builds out wrong.

You are right. The Custom title that comes with FCPX is built incorrectly. There is only a Build-in Mandatory marker and the rest of the title is dependent on how much time you allot for the title. The sequencing out is dependent on the In timing and will most likely always end before the end of the title...unless you make the title too short.

You can download a "fix" here:

https://fcpxtemplates.com/?smd_process_download=1&download_id=23116

The *function* of this title was changed to create *flexible* build in/out timings and is always guaranteed to END animations on the last frame.

The controlling parameters for timing are:

In End Offset % [sets the timing in "percent of length of clip"] and,

Out Start Offset %

These two parameters are set to 0% (start) and 100% (end) by default so that "Custom - SC" behaves like Basic until you customize the settings. For however long your title is in the storyline, you can calculate/guestimate how much of the length of the title you need for animations in and out and apply the animation timing as a percentage. On the up side, you can change the rates of animation to suit your tastes. If you have Motion, you can change the default settings to whatever you like.

If you need help installing the title, please see:

https://fcpxtemplates.com/installing-plugins-for-fcpx/

If you have any questions...

I've built my OWN text animation "plugin" in Motion. but that whole workflow is broken. any update to FCPx deletes all of the templates and text anmations I did in Motion, and wipes out saved work!!!! so please do not suggest that as a workaround. I'm hoping to find a way to trick FCPx to start working properly with it's own built in text entities. any ideas?

Sorry, but YOU are doing it wrong but placing the templates inside the application bundle.

You should never do this.

If you place them in the correct locations under ~/Movies/Motion Templates

they will NOT be affected by updating FCP.

I went to see how the Custom title looks like in Motion:

The green things are Markers. The circled ones determine the duration of the build-in and build-out, and they are each 2 seconds long.

I agree that the way the build out is working is not very useful.

As you say, the build-out animation always starts 2 seconds before the end.

I don't see an easy way to make it work in Motion.

But there is a workaround for it in FCP. If you are interested, I can explain.

It is not hard, but it is in fact a workaround, and not a fix.

You say you create templates in Motion and they are removed when FCP is updated. The only way for that to happen is if they are manually placed inside FCP itself - and that is wrong.

There are unfortunately instructions out there that are incorrect and that tell people to open the FCP bundle directly in Finder, and put things inside it.

If you save a template in Motion, it will be placed in the appropriate location. It will NOT be deleted when you then update FCP.

Edward Devlin1 wrote:

I am trying to control the Out duration of this built in element. at 60, which is presumably a 60 frame build out, it looks fine. 2 whole seconds is too much for this build out, so I set it to 30. and that build out happens MUCH earlier in the timeline. 15 frames... MUCH MUCH earlier.

this is not a control for "when the build out starts and how long it is" but that is effectively what it is doing.

I think this is a bug

Templates built in Motion are "elastic" in that they adjust their duration depending on how long you set them in FCP.

If you want a build-in or -out element of your template to have a fixed duration, then you need to set appropriate markers in your Motion project ("Build-In (Mandatory)" or "Build-In (Optional)", etc.).

It is difficult to ascertain exactly what is going wrong without at least a screenshot; even better if you could share your template, so we could test. Where and what are you setting to 60 or 30? This is not clear. Again, a screenshot might help...

Edward Devlin1 wrote:

I can tell you that this is absolutely incorrect. I have not manually placed templates ANYWHERE.

Ok. But then there is no way that one such template is affected by updating FCP.

You can check directly where these templates are located - either in Finder, or directly in Motion: command-click the title of the Motion window and you will see the full path. It will always be something like this (the example is for a title, but it is similar for transitions, generators and effects):