The New Final Cut Studio

I started this post some weeks ago but never got round to completing it as I thought I'd have much longer to write it...

So there's been news that a selected group of industry heavy weights have been invited to Apple HQ to see the next version of Final Cut Pro. Apparently it's "jawdropping."

Good. Hopefully the loooong silence and wait have been worthwhile...

You only have too look at iMovie 11 and the iPad version and you'd guess that something cracking is coming for more professional users. The moment I saw iMovie 08 I said to colleagues that I thought we might just've seen the direction that FCP would be taking. Of course that was derided. I generally am so I'm used to it.

Core Everything.

You can bet that this release with be a showcase for all the core technologies in OS X that have appeared in OS X and iOS releases, OpenCL, AV Foundation and Grand Central etc etc

Face Detection

The Trailer generator that has recently arrived in iMovie 11 is probably just a subset of a much grander set of tools for rapid pre-viz and assembly editing to appear in the new FCP Suite.

MultiTouch

Having seen the iPad2 demo of iMovie I think touch will be an important factor in the new release utilising the Magic Mouse, Magic Trackpad or even an iPad. It just looked so natural. I can see using a Wacom for fine control and a Magic Trackpad for gestural navigation an interesting proposition, nah, a much better proposition than anything that has gone before!

Media Management

Think Aperture...The new FCP will almost certainly be the video version of Aperture for media management. I expect that tape based workflows will not be catered for and perhaps FCP7 will be used in a "Classic" role just to help get "obsolete" media into the new system.

HTML5

I have a feeling that HTML5 output will be included, Apple has bet on HTML5 and H264 in all of its delivery platforms but they haven't yet provided an application to deliver a finished project. Think interactive Keynote presentations neatly wrapped in HTML5 that takes the place of the current DVD Studio Pro application. Think of all those interactive podcasts, product demos, iAds and the ilk that you could spit out and probably deliver straight to iTunes. Disc based media delivery is not going to be catered for (it doesn't make money for Apple), DVDSP hasn't seen an update for years so a modern replacement based around HTML5 is due. Let's call it HTML5 Studio Pro or iTunes Studio Pro. :)

I almost never buy CDs anymore and I'll never buy another DVD or Blu-ray but even though I enjoy renting film downloads from iTunes I miss the DVD additional content. I finally think we'll be getting that and an application to generate those additional features which will spit out a neat download "package."

FCP is currently getting all the speculative attention but I think the successor to DVD Studio Pro is going to be an astonishing development and after the presentation all the discussion will be on the content delivery.

Motion & Color & Phenomenon

I think these applications will be absorbed into the main application, so we're not really looking at a suite more of an interactive media composing über application for want of a better description, a "Phenomenon."

Apple have often been accused of arrogance, what's the betting the whole application/suite was known as Phenomenon rather than just the replacement of Shake? "Jaw Dropping!" remember. Anyway I'd expect a fully fledged compositor in a serious modern media composing application and a RT Shake would fit the bill.

I fully believe the new Final Cut Studio, if that's what it is even called, will be a revolutionary product probably too revolutionary for many right at this moment in time. Remember when the iPad 1.0 was released how quite a few seasoned pundits absolutely did not get it? Think that revolutionary x10. I hate the phrase but a "paradigm shift" away from traditional media delivery catered for by Avid and Adobe.

Think online delivery (iTunes packaging types), think tapeless, think thoroughly optimised RT everything and most importantly Think Different. Think Flash is DEAD.

I hope Apple does deliver the above because that's what I want and need. These are my hopes for the future of digital media creation and more importantly it's what my clients want.

I have been kicking around a business idea for a couple of years but I haven't been able to join all the dots together from production, post-production, delivery and reception. I'm think the answer is coming in the form of the new FCP Suite combined with HTML5, iTunes and iDevices.

Not too long to wait...

Edit:

Having watched the Editors' Lounge casts (http://vimeo.com/channels/editorslounge) I think my predictions above are inline with what others (more learned) are expecting. I definitely agree that Apple is "skating to where the puck will be," I mean, they are in a wonderful position of being able to determine where the puck will be as they, after all, are setting the agenda with post PC devices, in fact, they are the puck.

They have changed my media consumption in a very short space of time. My 1st gen Apple TV has completely changed how much satellite TV I watch and the number of DVDs I hire from Blockbusters. The new version is designed to connect the iPad and iPhones to the TV. Instead of the Apple TV containing all the media you're going to watch the iDevices carry that around and are then relayed to the TV. You can see why Apple want to develop software to specifically target broadcasting....on their own terms.

Steve Jobs has said that standard model of broadcasting is a barrier to entry and it has been difficult for them to break into that market (with the AppleTV) as they don't control the content nor the wires. In this new model they control the content via iTunes and the wires are cut in favour of iTunes to iPad to AppleTV delivery. You can bet a whole new broadcasting paradigm is truly within our grasp. The shear popularity of the iPhone and iPads means there are the audience numbers to make it possible for companies like mine to think seriously about IP delivery.

Flash is DEAD... Can you see why Flash was never going to get onto the iPad or iPhones?

I'm sure the experience with the App Store (Mac and iOS) will play some part int he plans. Imagine being able to have an in-podcast purchase, every time a viewer purchases a product sponsored through a podcast Apple get a slice which is very similar to how the in-App purchases work. The beauty of this system is that the player knows where you are for example, you watch a Trailer a window pops up asking you if you want to be reminded when the film arrives at your local cinema or even book the tickets for you. The benefits of being able to drive business accurately this way far out performs standard broadcast TV's ability to do the same.

There has to be a reason for the huge new Apple data-centre! Apple will also be able to control the media generation for the network if the so desire and at the very least the new FCP Suite will give their customers a head start in providing highly engaging interactive content that drives business.

So the new FCP Suite is just another cog in the iTunes and iDevice broadcasting network.

Flash is DEAD...