Re: my beef with transcriptions in fcp - warranted?

I believe Premiere has a time code filter you can apply to clips, so you see the clip's timecode as it plays. Find yourself a good transcription service that can either transcribe timecoded video, or simply add a beep at one minute intervals and have the transcriptionist note the beep in the transcript - you can then add the approximate times to your transcript, import to excel or whatever.

I am starting such a project with about 8 hours of interviews and may try this method, and will no doubt blog about it.

As far as making notes within an editing app, if an Avid is not feasible, you might work out a system using text slates, or even screen shots of 1 minute chunks of the transcript imported and superimposed over the video segments, as if you are working with index cards or whatever convention you use on your paper edit.

Here's another idea. Given the 1 minute chunks of video/transcript - you can easily break up video on a timeline into 1 minute clips, to match the transcript. Then rename the clips with the numbering system.

Then edit your transcript to rough out your desired video edit, maintaining the clip numbering.

Then rearrange the clips on your timeline to match the paper sequence. You will still have to manually view the edit and trim your edits to match the sequence in your script, but it may be a way to eyeball the edit without having to manually find the rough edit points.

Now if only this could be done Minority Report style with a touch screen - the way Lightworks was supposed to revolutionize the computer user interface back in the 80's.

Let us know what works, and i too will report back with my process.

Mike