Josh Beal: Reconsidering Final Cut Pro X in Hollywood

Next up in the series of presentations from the Faster Together stage at NAB is Josh Beal. He thinks it is time for Hollywood to reconsider Final Cut Pro X as a viable editing platform.

It’s no secret that Final Cut Pro X had a bit of a lackluster response when it first rolled out. However, it has gained a lot of respect in the last few years in for many professionals. A number of feature films, documentaries, and TV series are being cut in Final Cut Pro X all around the world. But there is one place where it still sees very little use: Hollywood.

The Television and Feature Film industry in North America don’t take much seriously other than Avid Media Composer. There are those that dabble in Adobe Premiere Pro, but very few people take Final Cut Pro X seriously.

I received a call from Josh Beal in the latter half of 2017. Josh is a long-time Hollywood editor. He’s worked on shows like Counterpart, Bloodline, and House of Cards. He was calling to inquire about using a LumaForge Jellyfish alongside Avid storage so he could do some work in Final Cut Pro X while working with a team that was entirely on Media Composer. While things didn’t move forward on that particular event, it started a dialogue.

The conversation continued over the next few months. How possible is it actually cut a Hollywood television show using Final Cut Pro X? Where would there be pushback? What workflow issues would arise?

Josh has been working since then to build his case around why Final Cut Pro X should be used to enrich the creative process for editors, and how it could solve technical issues when working with high-resolution media and original audio. At NAB, he gave this presentation on why it is time for Hollywood to reconsider Final Cut Pro X.

Patrick taught FCPX as a Trainer at an Apple Store in Tulsa, Oklahoma when it came out in 2011. He in now an Editor and Assistant Editor in Los Angeles and is Chief Workflow Officer at LumaForge.

You can follow him on Twitter @jpsouthern