|
Pick of
the Bunch - A
cut above...
Current Reading - What
I'm looking at when I'm rendering...
Final Cut Pro & DV - When
is a book a manual...
Editing - Philosophy,
technique and anecdote...
Film-making - That
pre-edit stuff...
Vintage Stuff - Blasts
from the past...
Mags & Web Sites - Look
at the pretty pictures...
|
Pick of the Bunch
Editing Techniques with Final Cut Pro
by Michael Wohl | Peachpit
Press (October 2001)
 Two
great books in one.
If you were only interested in learning & understanding the principles
of editing I would heartily recommend it.
If you were only interested in learning & understanding how to use
Final Cut Pro I would recommend it.
In short, a MUST-BUY.
Amazon Purchase | Preview
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Current Reading
Motion Graphics and
Effects in Final Cut Pro
by Kevin Monahan | Peachpit
Press (December 2003)
 When
you buy this book, you not only get a fully illustrated book, & DVD
ROM containing source material for exercises, you also get Telly's
FX: 8 filters, 2 generators and 2 Transitions - all coded by the
now legendary Graeme
Nattress.
Insert pun about watching Telly...
Amazon Purchase
No preview but you can get a strong taste
of the book at FCPWorld - Kevin's
site.
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Advanced Editing
and Finishing Techniques in Final Cut Pro 4
by Digital Film Tools | Peachpit
Press (October 2003)
 This
book is part of the Apple Pro Training Series - a HD edition is due out
in Oct 2004.
Contents: advanced editing, motion effects, colour correction,
working with audio, titling with Livetype, project management, working
with film and 24p. It includes a DVD.
Amazon Purchase | No
Preview available
See also Digital
Film Tools
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Final
Cut and DV
Read the F***ing Manuals
by Anonymous | Apple (April
2004)
Yep, an obvious choice. But if you're
serious about your craft then you have to understand your tools.
So read all three.
Then wait 6 months and read them again.
Free Download Get the older manuals (as
PDFs) from Apple's Knowledge
Base
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FCP 3 Integrated Manual Indices
by Ben Bryant (February 2002)
 Indexes
from all 3 volumes of the FCP3 Manual (plus What's New) colour
coded and compiled into one PDF.
Rather handy.
Free Download From Ken Stone's FCP
Site (FCP Heaven!)
TOP
Final Cut Pro 4 for Macintosh
by Lisa Brenneis | Peachpit
Press (July 2004)
My copy of her guide to Final Cut Pro 2 is
now dog-eared.
Brenneis' book is particularly good if you find the F***king FCP manuals
intimidating & inaccessible.
And judging by the number of dog ears, the chapter I have found most helpful
is on Trimming Edits. Either that, or my dog has been chewing on the book.
Amazon Purchase | Preview
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Revolutionary Quicktime Pro 5 & 6
by Andy Grogan, Barb Roeder, Bradley Ford, Francesco Schiavon,
Frank Lowney, Jonathan Puckey, Jurgen Schaub, Manuel Minut | DVision
(Friends of Ed) (April 2002)
 FCP's
foundations are built on QuickTime. So this volume will, no doubt,
answer quite a few of your nagging "Why" & "How" questions.
A useful source of inspiration & know-how for experimenting & re-purposing
anything you have shot or edited in DV...
Revolutionary Quicktime Pro 5 & 6 is published by DVision who
have a full range of FCP & editing related titles.
Amazon Purchase | Preview | See
also Transitions
TOP
Final Cut Pro 101 - Essentials
by Dr Rawstock, I presume... | Dr
Rawstock (January 2002)
This 256 page PDF manual from a FCP
training facility was a freebie but now you have to buy it -
for a whole $4 $5.95. Gasp. A smooth
intro and a good refresher to the delights of FCP...
Purchase direct
from Dr Rawstock
TOP
Editing
In the Blink of an
Eye
A Perspective on Film Editing. Revised 2nd
Edition
by Walter Murch, Francis Ford Coppola | Silman-James
Press: 2nd Revision edition (August 1, 2001), AFTRS:
1st Edition (1992)
 Until
recently sound and film editor, Walter Murch (editor of THX
1138 & Apocalypse Now) was only a whispered
legend. Now a minor industry is being built around him...
This book by Walter Murch started as a lecture Murch gave at the Australian
Film and Television School in Sydney in 1988.
The original version's afterword, "The Unbearable Lightness of Video" is
particularly prescient of NLE systems like Final Cut Pro.
Amazon Purchase | Preview | See
Also The
Conversations
IMDB THX 1138, Apocalypse Now, Walter Murch, Francis Ford Coppola
News Cut
to the Chase.
Hollywood Reporter: Final Cut Pro breaks into the
big leagues with "Cold Mountain" and editor Walter Murch.
TOP
When the Shooting Stops, the Cutting
Begins
A Film Editor's Story
by Ralph Rosenblum, Robert Karen Ph.D. | DaCapo
Press; (May 1988)
 An
intimate book on the history and working life of an editor.
Karen and Rosenblum track the history of editing, and include everybody
of note from Robert Flaherty and Sergei Eisenstein through to Sidney Lumet.
Rosenblum also discusses his work with Woody Allen - he edited many of
Woody's early films, such as Bananas & Annie
Hall.
This book shows how an editor's career doesn't just involve sound and
images but also building creative relationships with film-makers.
Amazon Purchase | Preview
IMDB Bananas, Annie Hall, Ralph Rosenblum Robert Flaherty, Sergei Eisenstein,Sidney
Lumet, Woody Allen
TOP
Transitions
Voices on the Craft of Digital Editing
by Erik Andersen, Stuart Bass, Ben Bryant, Patrick Gregston, Paul
Hirsch | Dvsionaries (June 2002)
A
flashy, over designed book - busy layout reminds me of the early days of
Wired. Suffers from "pull out quote disease" where the highlighted
quotation happens long after it appears in the body text.
Amazon Purchase | Preview
Review by
Marisu Fronc on Creative
Cow
TOP
The Conversations
Walter Murch & the Art of Editing Film
by Michael Ondaatje | Knopf
(September 2002)
 Mmmmm.
This was my Christmas 2002 stocking stuffer... Stacks of insight & enlightening
anecdote from sensei Murch. But why he doesn't he ever talks about his
work on First Knight?
Murch likes to edit standing up.
Amazon Purchase | No
Sample Chapter available
Review by
Marisu Fronc on Creative
Cow
IMDB Michael Ondaatje, Walter Murch, First Knight
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Film-making
 Digital
Moviemaking
All the Skills, Techniques, and Moxie You'll
Need to Turn Your Passion into a Career (The Filmmaker's Guide to the
21st Century)
by Scott Billups | Michael
Wiese Productions; 2nd edition (April 2003)
AMAZONPurchase | No
preview available| See also his website Pixelmonger
TOP
The Making of Kubrick's 2001
by Jerome Agel | New American
Library (January 1971)
 This
is a book that I just keep coming back to. It details the making & reception
of 2001 from every conceivable angle - its short story, philosophical
and
scientific origins through to detailed accounts of all phases of its
production. Not to mention being stuffed with photos, and a broad sample
of the many confused letters and reviews that resulted from 2001 screenings.
It even includes the Mad Magazine parody.
Will we ever see such a big budget provocative film-making again? Maybe
not, but now we, like Moonwatcher the ape, have the tools in our hand.
Amazon Out of print but you can still
read these Reviews | Out
of Print
IMDB 2001: A Space Odyssey
TOP
Screenwriting
Updated
New (and Conventional) Ways of Writing for
the Screen
by Linda Aronson | Silman-James
Press; (March 2, 2001)
 This
book's first three chapters should be compulsory reading
for anyone who has to be creative on demand. Aronson not only
nails it, but has simple strategies to avoid, er, being cliche.
Her screenwriting analyses are excellent.
Amazon Purchase | Preview
TOP
Grammar
of the Film Language
by Daniel Arijon | Silman-James
Press: Reprint edition (September 1991), Focal Press: (April 1976)
 Don't
EVER lend this book to ANYONE. You will never see it again. Which
is a pity because you will want to look at it, often.
Written in 1976, this book has over 600 illustrations covering almost
every conceivable shot and sequence. A modern classic it first appeared
as part of the Focus range of books.
If you can't get to film school then start with this book...
Did I mention you should never EVER lend this book to ANYONE?
Amazon Purchase | Preview
TOP
Vintage Stuff
Computerizing the Movies
Discover Magazine August 1984.
 An
article that shows the dawn of Non Linear Editing -
of course, it started with George Lucas and EditDroid...
READ ON... 1 HTML
page
TOP
 Titling
Yes, there was a time when you had to send out for titles!
An extract from "How to make good movies" -
a classic Kodak movie making manual from the 1950s.
READ ON... 17
Scanned Pages
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Mags & Web Sites
Magazines
DV Magazine
http://www.dv.com/
I like their sound production articles. To read any of the content you
need to register with the site.
Inside Film
http://www.if.com.au/
A local (Australian) film industry magazine that's not afraid of the word "digital".
Res Magazine
http://www.res.com/
A magazine whose beat is "Film, Music, Art, Design, Culture".
Yep, producing a magazine like this would mean you could write off anything as
a business expense! I wish.
TOP
Web Sites
SimplyDv.com
http://www.simplydv.co.uk/
Succinct, knowledgeable reviews of DV hardware.
Internet Movie Database
http://www.imdb.com/
A long standing internet resource that becomes more comprehensive with
every passing year.
TOP
Currently listing only titles I have read. More titles will
be added soon.
Filmography links and data courtesy
of The Internet Movie Database. |
Final Cut Pro links 
