Apple Announces Cinema Tools for Final Cut Pro

April 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Apple today announced Cinema Tools for Final Cut Pro, a new software package that enhances Final Cut Pro 3's 24 frames-per-second (fps) editing capabilities with support for film cut lists and 24-frame edit decision lists (EDLs) for high-definition (HD) video. The 24-frame EDL support allows off-line HD projects to be finished using significantly more affordable Final Cut Pro-based HD finishing systems, such as Pinnacle System's CineWave HD."With support for 24-frame EDLs and cut lists, Cinema Tools for Final Cut Pro makes HD and film editing more accessible than ever before," said David Moody, Apple's senior director of Applications Marketing. "Final Cut Pro's support for 24-fps editing enables video and film professionals to affordably create content for digital cinema, regardless of the resolution they are working at."

"Apple's Cinema Tools for Final Cut Pro is the link that allows CineWave to be used as the ultimate finishing system for all types of wide screen creative work, whether originating in film or 24P HD," said Laurin Herr, vice president, Broadcast and Professional Division at Pinnacle Systems. "By enabling efficient workflows from film to video and back to film, or between off-line and online HD systems, Cinema Tools for Final Cut Pro expands the range of CineWave HD project support by providing 24P tools at a fraction of the cost of competitive solutions."

Cinema Tools technology was used to edit two upcoming Miramax Film releases, "Full Frontal," from Academy Award winning director Steven Soderbergh and "Blue Car," an audience favorite at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival.

Cinema Tools for Final Cut Pro is the ideal solution for filmmakers who shoot and finish with 35mm or 16mm film, but want to take advantage of the cost and time benefits of digitally editing on a Final Cut Pro system. Cinema Tools converts "telecined" content to its native 24-frame rate for editing, then generates a 24-fps cut list for negative conform.

With its support for 24-fps EDL import/export, Cinema Tools for Final Cut Pro not only provides video professionals with an affordable path to online HD finishing, but also the EDL conversion capabilities required to create high-definition 24P universal masters used to efficiently meet the needs of varying international distribution formats.

Pricing & Availability
Cinema Tools for Final Cut Pro will be available in May through the Apple Store (http://www.apple.com/), Apple's retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers for a suggested retail price of $999 (US).

System requirements include Final Cut Pro 3.0.2, Mac OS X version 10.1.3, a Macintosh computer with a 300 MHz or faster PowerPC G3 or G4 processor with built-in FireWire, 256MB of RAM, QuickTime and 10MB of available disk space for installation.

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