Editing scenario

I'm curious about how to best cut something like this in X. I'm currently editing it in 7 and honestly, it seems like anything trackless would make it a struggle, but I'll toss this out for comment.

This is a typical corporate presentation piece. The type companies run at the end of a large retreat, conference or meeting to congratulate folks on the past year's accomplishments. Components are usually a handful of sync sound bites, 3-4 highly edited pop/hip-hop tracks, animation/graphics, and lots and lots of B-Roll. Since the objective is to show as many people as possible, shot length is often 1-2 secs. and the overall length is usually 6-10 min. for the finished piece. So, often hundreds of B-roll shots. The structure is generally designed as alternating sections of sound bites (music dipped underneath) with sections of B-roll to music, often with music selection changes at the segment changes. Editing the music cues is as much a "DJ" function as it is editing.

The challenges are the things you have no control over. Client requested music, the need to re-arrange, add or remove images and sound bites based on corporate politics and other unforeseen considerations. Client changes their mind, but can't be there during the edit, so reviews and makes changes remotely (FTP, e-mail, sneakernet). Often repeatedly. The music is difficult to work with because it has lyrics and doesn't mix well under sound bites. Client requests music selection changes or clip changes that result in having to completely re-arrange or re-edit music. All of this is a normal part of editing, of course.

So in X, the idea of putting the sound bites on the primary storyline is hampered by the need to re-arrange/add/remove. That's because often you have to change order and placement, but not change the location of the B-Roll shots. When you change the music for a different piece, all B-roll shots (connected clips) have to be re-edited as the beat structure has changed. Doesn't seem to work to put the B-roll shots in a secondary storyline, as that's only connected at one point, so harder to re-edit. You can't work with compound clips, because all changes are interactive to other elements in the sequence.

I'm not saying this can't be done in X, merely that I haven't found a way that works better than with tracks. Auditions are a non-starter, because - 1) don't know what you have to prep in order to use Audition since you don't know what will change, 2) the client is generally reviewing long distance, so no one is there to preview the Auditions, 3) you don't have enough time to build all the permutations that Auditions would require. In 7, I find that I use empty places on the timeline as a scratch pad to park clips while I'm re-arranging elements. I also copy & paste groups of clips between sequences (yes, I know you can C&P clips in X).

In X, it seems like the best approach is to have only a gap/placeholder on the primary storyline and then build everything as connected clips That seems the most workable, but it's an incredibly, inefficient use of GUI space and the timeline is a complete mess.

The bottom line is how do you guys that have done this, tackle a similar project? Especially one in which each and every element in the project can be changed by the client and probably will be. Thanks.

- Oliver

Oliver Peters Post Production Services, LLC
Orlando, FL
http://www.oliverpeters.com