Following is an actual email thread from one of our contacts who is mac-based.
Dear Kirk at BetaSPtoDVDcom,
Does final cut pro or final cut studio output to flash format for the web? I have a client who wants a promo video to do double duty--display on the web AND to play on DVD at trade shows and such. But since I have yet to get the software, I thought you may know--maybe even point me to pro vs. studio--vice versa--or even another video editing solution. I'm simply not happy with the image quality of iMovie. I'm guessing the slicker programs will produce TV-quality images. Also, is it possible to grab footage from DVD movies and use them in Final Cut? Y'know--grab some war footage from Saving Private Ryan, or something? Or a full moon shot from a Werewolf movie? S'all fer now. Enjoy the rest of the weekend. Joe ___________ Hi Joe, First of all, iMovie is TOTALLY broadcast quality. If you are not getting great quality, then you either have low resolution source footage, have an old version of iMovie, or have are using some incorrect settings. In fact, iMovie even supports HD!!! So I wouldn't spend the money for Final Cut solely based on the broadcast quality issue. Final Cut can make .FLC files, but it is not great at it and the files are usually bigger than they should be. For making Flash files, I sometimes use a program called Sorensen Squeeze and it works pretty well. As for ripping footage from a copy protected DVD, you are going to need a DEMUXING program. Then you are going to need a DVD ripping program like Cinamatize. Cinematize is a great tool and we use it all the time. It can rip any DVD that is not copy protected. If the DVD is copy protected, then you have to start with the aforementioned demuxing application. The other way is to do it analog style. Just patch cables from the dvd player though a professional video deck or TBC (timebase corrector). Those will strip off the copy protection in real time. One word of caution though... we do not advocate using any copy-protected material unless you are legally allowed to do so!! On the issue of Final Cut Studio vs. Final Cut Express, I would go Final Cut Express. The Final Cut Studio has tons of stuff you will never use like heavy-duty motion graphics and pro sound editing. The learning curve on those tools is huge. Anyway, hope I helped a little. Kirk