Creating Motion Blur for Final Cut Pro using Motion 5

Motion Blur in FCPX?

Final Cut Pro does not come with a built in Motion Blur Effect. There are several sites where you can purchase a plugin that ads this effect, or if you have Motion 5, you can easily create your own. Check out the video below for a full tutorial on creating a publishing a Motion Blur Adjustment Layer in Motion 5 for use in Final Cut Pro. If you prefer reading over watching a video, scroll down for a full step by step guide.

If you don’t own Apple’s Motion 5, or do not have time to make your own Motion Blur Adjustment Layer, you can download the plugin created in this guide below.

Creating Your Own Motion Blur Adjustment Layer

A Step by Step Guide

1. Open Motion and create a new Final Cut Title Project

• set it to the highest resolution and frame rate you plan on using

2. In the Layers Window, select and Delete the Text Layer

Select the Project Layer, and in the Inspector, Select the Properties Tab

4. Scroll down to the Motion Blur Section and set the Samples and Shutter Angle amounts

• Samples

  • samples number tells motion how many frames to look at when creating motion blur

  • higher number will give you more detail, but take longer to render

  • I recommend leaving this at 8

• Shutter Angle

  • Shutter Angle sets the amount of motion blur

  • 180º for most natural looking motion blur

  • higher for more motion blur

5. In the top of the Canvas Window, open the Render drop down menu

6. Make sure Motion Blur is selected

7. Move the playhead to the end of your timeline

8. Press Shift M to add a marker

9. Press Shift Command M to edit the marker

10. From the Type dropdown menu, select Project Loop End

Publishing the Motion Blur Adjustment Layer to Final Cut Pro

The Motion Blur adjustment layer is now ready to be published for use in Final Cut Pro. To publish and have this effect available in Final Cut Pro follow the steps below:

1. From the Menu Bar select File, and Save As…

2. Give your template a name, select the Category and Theme for your adjustment layer

3. Click Publish

Your Motion Blur adjustment layer is now ready for use in Final Cut Pro. You will find it in your Titles and Generators browser, in the category you chose when publishing your effect. Apply it to your project by connecting this adjustment layer above your clips in the timeline. Since this effect is an adjustment layer, it will affect all the layers under it.

Installing the Downloaded Adjustment Layers

If you downloaded the Motion Blur adjustment layers above, unzip the file, and copy and paste the uncompressed folder in the following location:

Home>Movies>Motion Templates>Titles

Check out the video below for more information:

In Final Cut Pro, you will find the Motion Blur adjustment layers in the Titles and Generators browser, under Motion Blur category. Add these to your project, above your clip, and adjust the available parameters in the Titles Inspector. Enjoy!