I have downloaded several USDZ files and can't get them into FCP.
They don't drag and drop . . . the green + sign appears but the moment I drop them they spring back into the downloads folder.
A couple of years ago I could get such files to work.
Any suggestions?
Mac mini, macOS 26.2
I know these work in Motion, I dont remember them ever working directly in FCP unless you used MO2
https://www.youtube.com/live/tFNjh8vbufE?si=6HyVlrtVbI2fKIKK&t=6619
you can build it in motion and save it out as an effect, but direct import of USDZ models into FCP is not available.
MO2 was a plugin by MotionVFX for handling 3D models in Motion and Final Cut Pro.
Are you sure it was in Final Cut Pro that you used these files?
As far as I can remember, never used USDZ files on its own... Motion yes...
mO2 was a Motion add-on from MotionVFX that was amazing, but it is now dead. Been dead for over 3 years with a promise of mO3, which has never materialized. FCP never supported USDZ, that's Motion only. And you can't do anything with that USDZ model except move it around. You can't do anything with textures, or shapes or anything. Very super limited. I miss mO2, I used it daily, and there was a sizable community behind it.
Well, after a lot of trial and error, I could see the image in Motion.
Thanks, claude_210. You are of course correct. The problem is just that it is not clear how to place the camera, but by messing around with the camera and the object's position, rotation and scale one eventually can see it (and then, of course, this can be used as a generator inside FCP as well).
You absolutely need to have at least one camera in your Generator template. Otherwise FCP grabs some kind of top and usually unsuitable default view. Publishing some attributes of your cameras in Motion makes it handy to adjust your view from FCP.
FWIW, I cannot see this image correctly in either Preview or Motion (and, hence, not in FCP either).
This is what I see in Preview:
MO2? Is that Motion?
The web says you can just drag and drop them in the browser or timeline.
I'm sure that's what I did not long ago. They look as though they are going to be accepted with the green plus sign but the moment they are dropped they move back to the downloads folder.
If I try to use the Import window they are greyed out.
FCP has full disk access . . . when I used USDZ before I was on a pre-FCP 11.2 version so I wonder if the latest versions have changed things.
Ripple Training is the best Motion tutorials around. Very worth doing.
If you ever had mO2, you could drop 3D models of several formats into their plugin in FCP. It's a shame Apple didn't buy that from MotionVFX. It was amazing to work with real 3D models inside of Motion. Made Motion a million times more useful and valuable. But Apple has no interest in Motion being anything more than a template maker for FCP. Very short sighted on their part, IMHO.
I have published the 3D model as a generator and it appears in FCP but I cannot rotate it in 3D space like I could in Motion.
Is this normal . . . any rotation has to be done in Motion as it can't be accomplished in FCP.
I have an additional question. One of my models is a 3D 360° image of a room interior but when imported into Motion it appears as an external view of cube. How do I "get inside" to show the interior?
Incidentally, although the USDZ files don't work natively in FCP they do in Preview. I can rotate them in 3D space with no problem except for the room example above.
Sorry I cannot really test any these until later, but: did you Publish the rotation parameters of the object from Motion? And the camera? If you did, then you should be able to at least manipulate those in FCP from the Inspector.
Thanks everyone.
Inserting a camera and publishing the attributes has helped but the enclosed room has still evaded me . . .
https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/the-king-s-hall-d18155613363445b9b68c0c67196d98d
The most surprising fact is that whilst FCP rejects native USDZ files, Preview can manipulate them beautifully.
Why is that?
I get the same result in Preview.
Thanks for the Motion settings Luis . . . I will now try to replicate them
Ben: A full course of tutorials would be the answer if I were 70 years younger but now I only delve into Motion once every few years and forget most of what I have learned. When I first got Motion in FCP 5 I spent some time (a few days!) on the basics but all that has dissipated long ago.
Partial success!
At first it did not work so I started fiddling blindly with the camera and got the settings in the screenshot below.
However, the motion is comparatively limited giving a view of 3 sides only.
On the website you can rotate to see all 4 walls.
I've cracked it . . . at least for "normal" objects that are not the interiors of cubes.
No need for a camera either as long as all the adjustable parameters are published.
Thanks to everyone who chipped in.
Can't import USDZ files into FCP.
