Publishing parameters to a template
In the previous exercise, we mentioned how easy it was to go back and re-edit a template by sending it back to Motion, making your changes, and simply clicking on Save. You can also choose Save As to create a second template with your alterations, leaving the first untouched. But the former option can be time-consuming and the second can create clutter! What other possible alternative is there?
What if we could publish certain parameters of our lower third from Motion to FCPX so we didn't have to hop back and forth between the two programs at all?
In this exercise, we'll go back to our Blue Green Lower 3rd project file and publish a parameter for the white banner box behind the text, so we can change its color to whatever we want in FCPX!
Getting ready
This exercise assumes you've created the lower third from the previous two exercises.
How to do it...
1. In FCPX, find the Blue Green Lower 3rd title in the Titles browser.
2. Right—click on it and choose Open in Motion:
The original project is loaded into Motion.
3. In the Layers tab or the timeline, click on the Rectangle object to highlight it:
4. Press Command + 3 to open the Inspector tab.
5. Hover your mouse over the Fill Color parameter and notice a disclosure triangle appear on the far right side. This is the Animation menu.
6. Click on it and choose Publish:
What we have done here is tell Motion to send this editable parameter along for the ride, when the template is published to FCPX (or in this case, when the template is updated for FCPX).
But before saving it, we're going to make one more tweak to make sure this parameter is properly labeled.
7. Back in the Layers tab or Timeline, click on the object at the top labeled Project. This lets us see and modify properties for the overall project in the Inspector:
8. Back in the Inspector, click on the Project tab and then on the Publishing tab below it, if these are not already selected. You should see the label Published Parameters, with the Fill Color parameter below it:
9. Double-click on the words Fill Color and type
Banner Colorfollowed by Return:
This step is totally optional as we are unlikely to get confused as we are only publishing one parameter. But as you may be beginning to realize, you can publish tons and tons of parameters, and it can be a very good idea to rename them to avoid confusion in more complicated projects.
10. Hit Command + S to save and return to FCPX.
11. In the Titles browser, find the Blue Green Lower 3rd title and add it to a new clip.
12. Highlight it, open your Inspector, and click on the Title tab. Your published Banner Color parameter will be visible.
13. Click on the disclosure triangle or on the color chip to pick a color of your choice. The background banner will update accordingly. You can now reuse this title clip over and over and choose a different color for the banner background every time.
There's more...
Replacing existing titles in the timeline with modified ones
Perhaps you've already laid down a bunch of titles in your timeline and decide afterwards that you want to make a slight change to the title. You do not have to go and delete every title and start over. Simply follow the steps in the previous couple of exercises to make any of the changes you want in Motion. When you save and return to FCPX, take the updated title clip from the Titles browser and drag-and-drop it right on top of the original title clip in the timeline. You will be given a list of replacement options. You might need to make a judgment call here depending on what sort of change you made, but generally choosing Replace from Start is the safest option. FCPX should keep whatever text you had typed into the original title clip while also showing whatever aesthetic changes were made to the new one, so there's no need to retype everything!
