Flashes of Chaos

I'm an editor who relies big-time on shortcut keys. They are faster, they take advantage of more of the software's features, and on top of that, they show that you're a real pro! Here are some shortcuts that I find don't get as much love as they should: 5. Override Connections  The Tilde key (~), used in conjunction with the trim tool (T) This is called the ‘Override Connections’ command, and it basically freezes any connected clip while you trim a clip in the main storyline. Connected clips are one of the biggest complaints from editors first trying out FCP X, because they take some getting used to. This can be a way around that struggle
4. Lift from Storyline / Overwrite to Primary Storyline Command + Alt + Up-Arrow / Down Arrow Another way to move clips around without getting shafted by those pesky connections is to remove them from your primary storyline. In their place will be a black slug. I use this multiple times in any project.  If you overwrite on top of a clip…

Periscope has taken off. On no other social media platform can you go face to face with celebrities… or ‘nobodies’ (and I use that term as affectionately as possible!), watch them doing anything, or nothing, like you can with Periscope. The Android version is finally out, and that made me very happy.
First Impressions Periscope is not the platform for a polished broadcast, or for anything you want to last for more than a day. It IS a great way to engage directly, win the affections of your audience, and find out what’s on their mind. 
Drawbacks? As a viewer, there is no direct way to search for content. However, it was made to work with your Twitter account. A workaround for searching for feeds is to do a twitter search for #Periscope plus whatever keyword you want to use. If a particular user comes up in that search and it looks like they might be interesting to you, then follow them on periscope, and get notified when they broadcast.  
Observations As a broadcaster, you want to gi…

Simple is good. A former colleague, Chris Carfi, taught me a lot of things about operating in a startup environment. One of the things that I appreciate about his style is that he can communicate the objective succinctly and clearly to me. On this particular project, when I came to him with the usual questions (How long does it have to be/Who is the audience/etc), not only did he have the answers, he also had a script, most of the assets, and a GoDaddy style guide ready to go. He made it clear that there were a few elements we'd have to create - and with the style guide in hand, that was no problem.
By giving clear objectives and trusting me to give him something he was looking for, it made my job a lot easier. It removed all of the hurdles that would have slowed down the path to getting to a first draft. There was no, 'hold off until we can see what joe in graphics says', instead I was confident that as long as the style guide was followed, any changes would likely be min…