Category: Freeware

YouSendIt Plugin for Final Cut Pro

~ abcoon ~ Leave a comment

yousenditThanks to the Digital Production Buzz for cluing me in on a new plugin from yousendit.com for Final Cut Pro. When I was at the HOW conference in Atlanta in 07 a rep from yousendit.com told me about this. But it was only in development at that time. Here is the info from there site.

1. Start Final Cut Pro and select a project that you want to send.
2. Choose Export > Send by YouSendIt… from the File menu or Control-click on one of your files and choose “Export > Send by YouSendIt…” from the contextual menu.
3. Make any changes to the media assets, then click Export.
4. This launches Express. Enter your email address and password to sign in.
5. After you sign in, enter the email address of the recipient and optional subject and message.
6. Click the ‘SEND IT’ button to send the files. A progress bar will be displayed showing the file upload progress.

I loaded it up to my Macbook Pro and my G5. The G5 didn’t work. The Macbook Pro worked. Interesting because these are the system requirements…

1. Mac OS X v10.4.9 or later
2. Final Cut Pro 6.0.3
3. Hard disk requirement: 1MB

They also have plugins for Aperture, iphoto and Photoshop CS3. I think I would use yousendit with those applications more than FCP. Video files are just to big…but I’m glad to see the progression. Who knows maybe our internet will someday get fast enough where we can send large files without paying large user fees.

Frank Capria posted about this and I agree with his thoughts on it too. Thanks Frank.

FLV In Final Cut Pro

~ abcoon ~ 11 Comments

Bevan, a recently graduated independent filmmaker in South Africa asks… “Apart from frantically finding out where i fit in in this world, I am trying to import flv files into final cut pro or find a way to convert them into something that final cut pro is happy with.”

You cannot import FLV files into Final Cut Pro. But what you can do is download Perian, a free, open source QuickTime component that adds native support for many popular video formats. It will allow you to transfer a flv file into a Quicktime file among many other formats. Check this list out.

picture-1.png

Perian enables QuickTime application support for additional Media Types:

  • AVI, FLV, and MKV file formats
  • MS-MPEG4 v1 & v2, DivX, 3ivX, H.264, FLV1, FSV1, VP6, H263I, VP3, HuffYUV, FFVHuff, MPEG1 & MPEG2 Video, Fraps, Windows Media Audio v1 & v2, Flash ADPCM, Xiph Vorbis (in Matroska), MPEG Layer II Audio
  • AVI support for: AAC, AC3 Audio, H.264, MPEG4, and VBR MP3
  • Subtitle support for SSA and SRT

Another great application to add to this is MPEG Streamclip. If you download this freeware application you can open unprotected DVD files and transfer them to many codecs as well as dropping almost any file and converting it to another codec. To transfer a FLV file to Quicktime just open the application and drop the FLV file on the program and then go into the menu and convert it to whatever you need. You have to download and install Perian before you can do FLV in MPEG Streamclip.

One last thing, you can upload a FLV file to ZAMZAR and they can convert the image for you. Check them out.
Good Luck Bevan, the world is yours to explore.

Celtx Your Complete Screenwriting Software

~ abcoon ~ 1 Comment

I wrote Corporate Assassin episode one on Apple’s Pages. They had a template for a screenplay. I messed around with it and it was literally a nightmare. I couldn’t figure out the keystroke shortcuts, if they have any to begin with. So I had to copy each section and paste it where I wanted it. Not a good way to continue the creative process.

So I was chatting with a talented filmmaking friend, Ajit Prem, and he suggested Celtx. Googled them and downloaded it and wow what a great program for filmmakers. Check out the specs.

CHOOSE YOUR EDITOR
Celtx has 5 dedicated industry standard editors for writing:

  • Screenplays
  • AV scripts, including Documentaries, Advertisements and Music Videos
  • Audio Plays, including Radio Plays and Podcasts
  • Theatre Plays (International and US standard)
  • Plain Text

Each editor has all of the features writers need to keep their fingers moving, like intuitive formatting, text auto-complete, dual column dialog, pagination, script styles, CAPS selection, scene management, spellchecker, embedded notes, find and replace, and PDF generation.

Check out the screenshot. Hell go ahead and download it. It’s free and a great resource. But do give back $omething keep these guys around for awhile.
celtx
screenshot

ReviewBasics Web Application For Telecommuters In The Creative Field

~ abcoon ~ 1 Comment

I got an invite to review ReviewBasics from the VP of sales and marketing. I like to disclose any information such as that if anyone ever contacts me for reviews or praise. I have to say I’m impressed with this web app and I hope that this takes off. This is the kind of web application that corporate clients need to know about so more creative professionals can telecommute from home or from their work office.

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Imagine that you are a freelance editor and just finished working on a project and you want your client to view your work. Sure you can post it on youtube and send him a link and make it private. What are they going to do? Comment about what changes need to happen before you get paid? Well I guess you can. But if you use ReviewBasics, you can upload the video file to their server and create a work space for multiple users to come in and play the video. At any moment in the timeline they can stop the playhead and create a comment box or marker so when you go back and see the comments you will see at what time they made a comment. That is huge, you never want to hear, “Hey could you make the shape rectangular instead of obtuse triangle?” Then you have to go back and find where the hell that obtuse triangle is. Not with this ingenious web application. You now know exactly where the corrections need to be made.

Go to the site and sign up right this instant, it is in beta mode at the moment and they are really receptive to feedback. A couple of shortcomings in which you can maneuver around. To upload video to their server it needs to be a FLV file. Most people do not have the capability to convert movie files to FLV files. Luckily ReviewBasics directs you to Zamzar. A site where you can upload your video file in pretty much any format and they will transfer it to any file you wish. I have no problem going that route while this service remains free. Another thing they are working on is live instant messaging while you are reviewing files or your file is being reviewed. Of course you could go to Skype and chat with your colleagues while they go over your work. But to incorporate it with the site would be niceee!!

Now this service isn’t just for web video. You can also review websites, illustrations, and documents. Just set up an account upload your files and leave directions for the reviews to follow. They even have a sweet walkthrough tutorial for everyone that signs up so anyone can do it. Go ahead and view the Video Review they have set up. I love it and will use this web application. Any potential job offers want to test it out with me?

Cool Freeware Applications For Filmmakers

~ abcoon ~ Leave a comment

I have to give Free Geekery credit for this great find. He list 15 freeware and shareware programs for the Mac and PC that any filmmaker could use. I’ll show you my favorite in each category. Check out the site for the remaining software tools. I’m download a few of these. Thanks for the email Geekery.

Pre Production

Celtx [19.57MB | Freeware | Win All/ Mac/ Linux] Celtx is a program that takes the screenwriting process to the next, and slightly geekier, level. Not only does it come complete with screenplay editor, but it also the ability to collaborate with others through publishing to a website or file share access. It also manages several other aspects of the pre-production process like budgets, schedules, storyboards, prop and wardrobe needs, and a personal calendar.

Production

Blender [11 MB | Freeware | All platforms] I know there are some people out there who scoff at the idea of pencil drawn animation. Not to worry, there is plenty of free 3D animation software for the taking for those opposed to such old school devices like pencils. The best of these 3D programs is Blender. Blender does a lot for what it costs. In fact, Blender offers features similar to those offered by high end and high price software. Geeks will revel in creating animations, rendering textures, digital sculpting, and many, many other cool features.

Post Production

Audacity [2.1MB | Freeware | Win All/Mac/Linux] Audio editing equipment can be pricey, but you’re in luck when programs like Audacity exist. If you’re not a sound expert, not to worry – the program comes complete with tutorials. From there, you can record and edit audio, cut, copy, splice, mix, and add effects. The great thing about Audacity is that there are no limits on the number of tracks or the length of any track, except, of course, within the limits of your computer hard drive.

Cool Plug-in For Final Cut Pro In The Near Future

~ abcoon ~ Leave a comment

Cool news from HOW conference in Atlanta,yousendit.com is working on a plug-in for final cut pro to export footage to the web? Not sure but check this out.

http://www.veoh.com/videodetails2.swf?permalinkId=v616237SEhYmmcf&id=956950&player=videodetailsembedded&videoAutoPlay=0
Online Videos by Veoh.com

They are also going to have a desktop application able to send up to 10gb available later in the year. I guess the only thing we the consumers are waiting on are our slack ass Internet providers. We need faster tubes!!!

Useful FLV Player Application

~ abcoon ~ 2 Comments

One of the most frustrating things working with flv files is that you have to upload it to a server and then put the code on a webpage and upload it just to preview it. At least that is what I have been doing for quite some time until I read an article in the March edition of Mac | Life. Automagic Software has a freeware program called flvThing which plays Macromedia Flash Video files otherwise known as FLV files. This is a stand alone application in which you can now watch any flv file on your desktop. Finally, very cool. Thanks Automagic Software, great product.