Is it possible to import and edit 4K video on Mac trough iMovie, FCE, and FCP X? Read on to find out an answer. This post demonstrates a way of converting 4K files to AIC/ProRes .mov for editing in Apple iMovie, FCE and FCP X maintaining original quality.
What’s the best workflow for 4K files and iMovie 8/9/11?
It is said that the new iMovie that came with Mac OS X 10.10 Yosemite can now handle 4K video files, including stabilization, exporting to 4k files, cropping down to 1080, and other simple edits like Ken Burns, etc. Is that true? How about 4k video in iMovie 8/9/11?”
4K has become a new standard in the video industry for films, TVs. In the Windows world, there are various editing packages claimed to have 4K-support, like advanced packages published by Adobe, Sony, Grass Valley, or Avid, also some relatively simple and inexpensive ones (e.g. PowerDirector 13, Sony Movie Studio 13, Pinnacle Studio), but “transcoded editing” is still required for a fast and fluid workflow, especially for Mac users. To be able to work with 4k video on Mac iMovie, FCE and FCP X smoothly, it is quite necessary to convert 4K video to Apple InterMediate codec for iMovie/FCE, and encode 4K to ProRes 422 for FCP X or its former version FCP 6 and 7.
To process 4k video conversion on Mac, a professional 4K Video Converter for Mac is required and HD Video Converter for Mac is a smart choice. This app is capable of converting 4K, 2K, Full HD 1080p/1080i, HD 720p and SD video files in format of AVCHD, MTS, M2T, M2TS, TS, MXF, MKV, H.264, P2 MXF, AVI, MP4, WMV, MOV, M4V, etc. to any formats you request. You can download a demo to see if it is able to do what you want in simple steps with good quality.
How to convert 4K movies for iMovie, FCE, and FCP X editing?
The steps:
Step 1: Open up HD Video Converter for Mac as a 4K Video Converter for Mac. When its main interface comes up, click ‘Add File’ to load your source media.
Step 2: Select output format for your editing program
To convert 4K movies to AIC MOV for iMovie/FCE, from ‘Profile’ list, choose ‘Apple InterMediate Codec (AIC)(*.mov)’ as output format under ‘iMovie and Final Cut Express’ column.
Note that the AIC codec is also accepted by Final Cut Pro (HD 4.5 through 5), but rarely used in Final Cut Pro as of Version 6 since it now uses the ProRes codecs instead of the Apple Intermediate Codec.
To transcode 4K movies to ProRes MOV for FCPX, you need to select ‘Apple ProRes 422 (*.mov)’ as output format under ‘Final Cut Pro’ column. The ProRes codec is suitable for editing in FCP X and its former version FCP 6 and FCP 7.
Important: If you’ve loaded a number of video clips to do batch conversion, please do remember ticking off ‘Apply to All’ option before you start.
Step 3: Custom video and audio settings (optional)
If necessary, you can click ‘Settings’ button and go to ‘Profiles Settings’ panel to modify video and audio settings like video encoder, resolution, video bit rate, frame rate, aspect ratio, audio encoder, sample rate, audio bit rate, and audio channels. 3D settings are also available.
Step 4: Begin 4K video to MOV Conversion on Mac
When ready, click ‘Convert’ to start format conversion. Once the conversion process is complete, you can click ‘Open Folder’ button to get the generated AIC MOV files or ProRes MOV files for editing in iMovie, Final Cut Express or FCP 7/6/X with optimum performance.
Tips:
If you don’t want to wait for the entire conversion process, you can tick off ‘Showdown computer when conversion completed’ and go away to do other things.
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