Final Cut Studio 2: Motion 3 - Technical Specifications 4/12/11 10:21 AM

Final Cut Studio 2: Motion 3 - Technical Specifications

Last Modified: June 26, 2009

Article: SP542

Final Cut Studio 2 - Part Numbers

Retail MA886Z/A
Upgrade from Final Cut Pro MA887Z/A
Academic MA886Z/A
Additional Information

Final Cut Studio 2 - Technical Specifications

Minimum Requirements to Install All Final Cut Studio Applications

•A Macintosh computer with a 1.25GHz or faster PowerPC G4, PowerPC G5, Intel Core Duo, or Intel Xeon
processor
•1GB of RAM
•An AGP or PCI Express Quartz Extreme graphics card (Final Cut Studio is not compatible with integrated
Intel graphics processors)
•A display with 1024-by-768 resolution or higher
•Mac OS X v10.4.9 or Mac OS X v10.5.5 or later
•QuickTime 7.1.6 or later
•A DVD drive for installation

Available Disk Space

•4GB of disk space required to install all applications (Final Cut Pro, Color, DVD Studio Pro, Soundtrack
Pro, Motion, Cinema Tools, LiveType, Compressor, and Apple Qmaster)
•Additional 55GB required to install all optional templates, content, and tutorials (may be installed on
separate disks):
•9GB for DVD Studio Pro content
•8GB for Motion templates and tutorial media
•24GB for Soundtrack Pro audio content
•12GB for LiveFonts and LiveType animated elements and templates
•2GB for Apple Pro Training Final Cut Studio Tutorials media

Recommended Configurations
The following are recommended for all applications:
•2GB of RAM when working with compressed HD and uncompressed SD sources
•4GB of RAM when working with uncompressed HD sources
•A display with 1280 x 1024 resolution or higher
•4 GB of hard disc space is required to install all of the Final Cut Studio 2 applications
•An additional 55 GB of hard disc space is required to install all optional templates, content, and
tutorials (may be installed on separate discs):

•9 GB for DVD Studio Pro content

•8 GB for Motion templates and tutorial media
•24 GB for Soundtrack Pro audio content
•12 GB for LiveFonts and LiveType animated elements and templates
•2 GB for Apple Pro Training Final Cut Studio Tutorials media

Motion-Specific Requirements
•A standard or built-to-order system configuration with a NVIDIA GeForce 5200, FX Go5200, FX 5200
Ultra, 6600, 6600 LE, 6800, 7300, 7300 GT, 7800, 7600 GT, 8600, 8800 or Quadro class graphics card.
•A standard or built-to-order system configuration with a ATI Radeon 9800, 9700, 9600Pro, 9600XT,
9700Pro, X800, X1600, X1900, or X2600 class graphics card; or a ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 or 9600
graphics card.
•For 16- and 32-bit rendering: a graphics card with at least 128MB of VRAM.

Motion-Configuration Recommendations

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•One of the following graphics cards is highly recommended:

•ATI Radeon C1900 XT, X800 XT, or X1600

•NVIDIA GeForce 7800 GT, 6800 Ultra DDL, 6800 GT DDL, or Quadro FX 4500

•For 32-bit rendering: a graphics card with 256 MB of VRAM or more

*Some features require additional hardware. Capturing HD resolution video using the ProRes 422 format requires a Mac Pro with an Intel
Xeon processor or a G5 Quad computer and a qualified third-party capture card. DV, DVCPRO 50, and DVCPRO HD output requires a
FireWire-enabled camera or deck. SD output via FireWire requires an AJA Io. Please contact your Apple Authorized Reseller for
information.

Motion 3

User Interface
•Unlimited tracks of movie clips, graphics, text, and particles
•Project sizes up to 4K (4K resolution requires a graphics card with 256MB of VRAM or more)
•Color bits-per-channel: 8-bit, 16-bit float, and 32-bit float (Float processing requires a graphics card
with 128MB of VRAM; 256MB or more recommended)
•Customizable nonsquare-pixel support
•Semitransparent heads-up display with onscreen controls for layers, behaviors, and filters
•Onscreen controls for 3D position, 3D rotation, 3D anchor point, skew, four corner pin, and crop
•Enable/Disable float bit-depth viewing independent of project setting
•View color channels and alpha channels independently
•Canvas alignment tools including dynamic alignment guides, 3D grid, and rulers
•Pen-and-tablet gesture-based interface
•Integrated File Browser for fast access to Finder content
•RAM Previews for viewing complex animations at full frame rate
•Save favorite settings, customized effects, gradients, text styles, and more in the Library
•Over 1000 pieces of Apple-designed, royalty-free vector artwork, high-resolution images, and animated
design elements
•Instantly display and access all layers in the project using a single keystroke, similar to Exposé in Mac
OS X
•Customizable toolbar that places your favorite tools at your fingertips
•Create, save, and remap custom keyboard shortcuts
•Show images outside the visible frame boundary for easily adjusting off-screen objects
•Automatically collect media used in a project for easy backup or moving to other locations
•Use Spotlight in Mac OS X to locate Motion projects by searching on any layer name or text string
created in the project

3D Compositing Environment
•Position, rotate, and intersect multiple layers in 3D space
•Combine multiple layers into 3D groups for hierarchical 3D animations
•Add, animate, and cut between multiple cameras
•Unique Walk-Camera intuitively operates like a first-person video game
•Adjust the camera's near and far soft clipping planes to avoid object "popping"
•Apply Camera behaviors for easily creating and modifying complex camera moves
•Quad split view for displaying multiple orthographic and perspective views
•Inset viewer for quickly checking alternative views while making adjustments
•Multiple light sources including ambient, directional, point, and spot
•Enable particles, Replicator elements, and paint strokes to animate in 3D space
•Create 3D text behaviors for character-by-character animations with full 3D position and rotation
control
•Create 3D motion paths for layers, cameras, and light sources
•Apply behaviors like throw, orbit, and vortex with 3D attributes
•Isolate any layer to a Front view for easily modifying masks or editing text

Timeline Editing and Layering

•Layer list view makes it easy to change the stacking order of any layer, group, filter, or animation
behavior
•Grouping for applying compound transformations and filters
•Common "bring to front" and "send to back" functions
•Opacity and blend mode display for quick access on every layer and group
•Create drop zones for easy drag-and-drop image replacement
•Clone layers for linking instances of images that inherit properties automatically
•Solo tracks for easier viewing and refinements

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•Composite with premultiplied or non-premultiplied alpha channels

•Mini-Timeline built into the Canvas that displays a single track for the currently selected layer, group,
filter, or behavior
•Trim, slip, slide, and retime audio and video clips via the mini-Timeline
•Retime clips using frame blending, motion blur blending, or optical flow
•Cache optical flow retiming analysis to change speed at any time without reanalyzing
•Full Timeline with drag-and-drop editing to choose between compositing and assembling multiple clips
•Insert and overwrite editing directly into the Timeline
•Display and edit audio tracks in the Timeline or in the Audio Editor
•Markers that can be placed in the Timeline or on a specific clip with notes

Animation
•Unique behavior animations for creating natural phenomena like wind, gravity, and vortex
•Sophisticated simulations like attract, repel, and orbit, which create multilayered 3D animations
•Text sequencing for automating complex title animations in 3D space
•Auto-animated Parameter control like oscillate, wiggle, and more
•Retiming behaviors automate ramping in and out of speed changes
•Audio behavior for syncing animations with audio tracks
•MIDI behavior for triggering parameter changes via any MIDI device
•Shape behaviors allow for tracking points on a shape or creating random wiggling animated shapes
•Complete keyframe-based animation tools
•Keyframe Editor with Bezier, Linear, Constant, and Ease In/Ease Out interpolations
•Copy and paste keyframes from different tracks and parameters
•Keyframe settings for ping pong, repeat, and progressive
•Record Animation feature with keyframe thinning for recording animations in real-time
•Draw keyframes in the Keyframe Editor using freehand pen tool
•Squish, stretch, and move groups of keyframes using a transform box
•Save curve sets for quick access to common parameters
•View animated curves for easier navigation
•View keyframes in the Timeline for quick positioning
•Enable/Disable keyframe and behavior-based animations to easily compare different results

Particle Engine
•Sprite-based particle engine with accelerated performance
•Over 200 particle presets for easy access to sparkles, fire, smoke, and more
•Animate particles in 3D space with "Face-Camera" control
•Apply multiple objects or video clips as emitters
•Apply additive blend mode for intense glowing results
•Animate emitters and cells independently
•Save newly created particles in the Library for reuse in other projects
•Choose between point, line, rectangle, circle, box, sphere, and more for emitter shapes
•Control birth rate, life, speed, angle, spin, scale, and gradient colors for particle cells
•Scale particles over their life or add behaviors like orbit and vortex for amazing 3D results with little
effort

Paint Effects
•Paint with pressure-sensitive vector-based brush strokes
•Select from over 100 customizable brush styles from traditional to abstract
•Modify brush width, color, opacity, jitter over the stroke path
•Automatically draw on and draw off with full customization
•Edit brush strokes as Bezier or advanced B-spline paths
•Rotate the stroke in 3D space with "Face-Camera" control for volumetric 3D strokes
•Assign pressure and speed to brush properties when using a pen and tablet
•Enable dynamics on paint dabs for particle paint type effects
•Apply Replicator-like sequencing animations that can cause the paint stroke to ripple through 3D space

Replicator Tool
•Automatic replication of any graphic, text object, or movie file along defined patterns
•Over 200 Replicator presets that can be completely customized and resaved
•Animate replicated patterns in 3D space with "Face-Camera" control
•Save newly created Replicators in the Library for reuse in other projects
•Choose between line, rectangle, circle, burst, spiral, wave, box, sphere, and more for Replicator
patterns
•Define the number of rows, columns, and 3D ranks that fill or outline the pattern
•Control pattern size, cell size, angle, scale, and gradient colors for Replicator cells
•Change the offset for rows and columns, causing them to shift position across the defined pattern

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•Control origin of animation from various points of the pattern

•Add random scale and angle setting for more natural replications
•Apply additive blend mode for intense glowing results
•Set color of replicated objects from a single tint to a user-defined range
•Add Replicator Sequence behavior for wavelike animations over various patterns

Title Design
•Vector-based text engine for creating clean type at any size
•Format text using size, rotation, slant, tracking, kerning, and more
•Animate individual text characters in 3D space using customizable text behaviors
•Select from common set of blend modes, including normal, multiply, screen, and add
•Customize text styles with control over the face, outline, glow, and drop shadow
•Type-on and text on a path layout/animation options
•Text field in Inspector that makes it easy to edit text even if text is obscured in the Canvas
•Fill text with solid or multipoint gradients
•Apply static images or video clips as textures to text faces
•Control textures using hold frame, offset, wrap modes, and opacity
•Support for Asian, Cyrillic, and other Unicode system fonts
•Support for Apple LiveFonts for unique font animations

Tracking and Stabilization

•Match move using single-point tracking or four corner pinning
•Create tracking data that can be referenced by multiple objects
•Track a filter’s onscreen position controls
•Offset tracking for creating a single track from multiple offsets
•Tracking behavior highlights best potential tracking points, eliminating guesswork
•Advanced tracking algorithm maintains accurate analysis when patterns rotate or skew
•Smart retry resets search region automatically for less user intervention
•Provide directional hints for fast-moving regions by using Look-ahead feature
•Stabilize using traditional point stabilizer or optical flow analysis
•Automated optical flow stabilizer bypasses selecting points and time-consuming setup
•SmoothCam optical flow analysis removes jitter and rocking from handheld shots while retaining overall
camera moves
•Adjust amount of smoothing applied to transforms, rotation, and scaling in real time

Accelerated Filters and Effects

•Over 130 accelerated filters for real-time interactivity
•More than 10 blur filters, including Gaussian, Channel Blur, Radial Blur, and Defocus
•Simple and bevel borders
•More than 15 color correction filters, including Color Balance, Gradient Colorize, Color Reduce, and
Threshold
•More than 25 distortion filters, including Basic 3D, Refraction, Insect Eye, Glass Distortion, Ripple, and
Scrape
•Stunning glow effects for Light Rays, Bloom, Aura, and more
•PrimatteRT chroma keyer
•Stylize filters like Vignette, Color Emboss, Half Tone, Line Art, and Tunnel
•Unique kaleidoscope and tiling filters
•Time-based filters for echo and strobe effects
•Video filters for deinterlacing and broadcast-safe colors and luminance
•Generators that automatically generate patterns, noise, colors, and caustics
•Support for GPU-accelerated third-party FxPlug filters

Masking Tools
•Bezier or advanced B-spline masking tools
•Create ovals, rectangles, and arbitrary freehand shapes
•Control opacity and edge feathering
•Combine masks using mathematical operations
•Track entire shapes or control points using tracking behaviors
•Create image masks from alpha, luminance, or RGB values of a second image

Audio
•Support for AIFF, WAV, MP3, VBR MP3, and AAC (MPEG-4 Audio)
•Edit audio tracks in the Timeline with trim, slip, and move
•Retime audio tracks with pitch change
•Scrub audio tracks for frame-accurate positioning

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•Control balance, gain, mute, and solo individually

•Use master audio controls for global audio adjustments
•Keyframe audio volume in Audio Editor
•Trigger parameter changes based on audio frequencies or transient hits

Integration and Third-Party Support

•Open Timeline data from Final Cut Pro, including cuts, layers, transforms, and retiming data
•Open Motion directly from the Final Cut Pro Timeline, bypassing import/export steps
•Create master templates in Motion that retain editable text and drop zones in Final Cut Pro
•Animations from Motion automatically update in the Final Cut Pro Timeline when changes are made in
Motion
•Round-trip editing between DVD Studio Pro and Motion, making it simple to create and modify Motion
menus without intermediate rendering
•Send audio from Motion to Soundtrack Pro Waveform Editor; sound design changes in Soundtrack Pro
automatically update in Motion
•Drag and drop Motion 3 native project files into Adobe After Effects 6.5 or 7.0, without rendering
•Preview projects on a broadcast monitor using AJA I/O or Blackmagic devices
•Import vector PDF graphics or Photoshop layered documents
•Import OpenEXR files (Float processing requires a graphics card with 128MB of VRAM; 256MB or more
recommended)
•Support for third-party FxPlug plug-ins
•Support for Core Image Unit plug-ins

Export
•Export to HDV, H.264, MPEG-4, and other QuickTime-supported codecs
•Export as movies or image sequences
•Export as 16-bit or 32-bit floating-point OpenEXR format (Float processing requires a graphics card
with 128MB of VRAM; 256MB or more recommended)
•Support for progressive and field-based rendering
•Accelerated motion blur with customizable shutter
•Save custom export settings for easier selection
•Render back to the Timeline

1. Copy protection requires that you output your project to a replicator. Macrovision requires that users work with a Macrovision-
certified replication facility or execute a Macrovision usage agreement. Check with your replicator for costs and minimum quantities

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