X

436Final Cut Pro User Guide
Advanced editing
Use roles to manage clips and organize
the timeline
Intro to roles in Final Cut Pro
Roles are metadata text and color labels that you assign to clips in the browser or the
timeline. When you import clips (video, audio, or still images), Final Cut Pro analyzes
existing clip metadata and automatically assigns one of five default color-coded roles
(Video, Titles, Dialogue, Music, and Effects) to each clip. For example, if a source media
file has a Music “genre” metadata tag, Final Cut Pro assigns a green Music role to the
imported clip.
You can use roles to organize clips in your events and projects by function or category,
control the arrangement of the timeline, and export separate video or audio files (also
known as media stems) for distribution, broadcast, audio mixing, or post-production.
Because roles are color-coded, you can instantly recognize clips of the same role in the
browser and the timeline. You can also highlight particular roles in the timeline.