Welcome to a PROWRITE lesson from Pixel Film Studios.
Pro Write allows Final Cut Pro X users to write or draw out their text and images.
From signatures to logos, PROWRITE can make a title sequence both fun and easy to create in Final Cut Pro X.
For this example, we will show you how to create a write on signature.
Let’s begin by selecting a clip or image in the FCPX media library and dragging it to the timeline.
In this example, we are going to use a paper texture as the background for our text.
Now go back to the media library and drag a PNG of our signature to the timeline and place it above the paper layer.
Once, your images are in the timeline, go to the FCPX titles library to locate the Pro Write presets.
Click and drag one of the Overlay presets onto the timeline above the image and make it the same length.
For this example, we will be tracing an image, so we will use a Drop Zone Overlay.
Select the Overlay layer in the timeline.
Click on the Drop Zone icon in the FCPX Inspector.
Then click on the Signature PNG in the timeline and press the blue “Apply Clip” button.
Once the Drop Zone is filled, you can delete the PNG layer in the timeline.
Finally, scan through the brush presets and select the one that best matches the look you want.
Drag the adjustment layer below the Overlay layer on the Final Cut Pro X timeline and make it the same length.
Now it’s time set up our write on animation.
First, select the Brush Preset layer in the timeline.
This will make the on-screen controls appear in the FCPX Viewer window.
Grab the center control point and line it up with the first letter.
Starting from the left, move each puck to trace the letter.
If the object or letter that you are tracing requires more than 8 points, drag another brush preset onto the timeline.
Double click on the refresh button in the FCPX Inspector to see the changes you’ve made in the Viewer window.
Once you have points in their desired locations, use the brush roundness and width parameters to fine tune the tracing lines.
Then use the start and end offset parameters to control the speed of the animation.
Now that we have successfully animated one letter in, let’s repeat this step to with the rest of the letters.
Now it’s time for some Final Touches.
Use the gradient bar in the Inspector to set the color of the signature.
If you would like the gradient to include more than the default amount of colors, you can click on the bar to add more.
Right now our animated text is sitting on a black background.
We will need to compound our brush and overlay layers to reveal the paper texture.
Select the two layers in the timeline, then hold control and click on one of the clips.
Now select New Compound Clip in the pop-up.
Now for some Additional Information.
You can use the Text Overlay preset to type in your signature instead of using a Drop Zone.
Pro Write looks best when used with cursive script fonts.
We suggest downloading a few fonts off the internet.
