Location of Apple Motion Templates

By Alex on November 24, 2009 9:01 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

By default, Apple Motion stores the Final Cut Pro Master Templates that you create in your user's Application Support folder:

[User Home]/Library/Application Support/Final Cut Studio/Motion/Templates

The Final Cut Pro Master Templates that install with Final Cut Studio are in a similar Application Support folder, except at the root (Macintosh HD) level of the disk:

/Library/Application Support/Final Cut Studio/Motion/Templates

Each Master Template package, as you'll notice, consists of a folder corresponding to the Master Template's Theme, plus up to three Master Template files sharing the same name. The .motn file is the actual Motion project, while the .mov and .png files correspond to the preview thumbnails you see in your Motion Template Browser.

The cool thing about Master Templates, in case you didn't know, is that they separate motion graphics content from the motion graphics software itself. Build a lower-third once in Motion, and you or your FCP editors can update it per package directly in Final Cut Pro.

After the jump, workflow strategies for using Master Templates ...

As a corollary to this separation of style and content, Master Templates allow you to "ripple out" changes to your motion graphics' style across every single Final Cut project where they are used. This can be a fantastic thing or it can be a miserable thing, depending on your intentions.

To edit a Master Template directly in Motion, simply right-click (Ctl+click) the Master Template in your Final Cut Pro timeline, and select "Open in Editor." Now, if you intend to update every single instance of that Master Template in all of your projects, go ahead and make your changes and hit Save. If not, be sure to Save As before you make your changes, then (optionally) save the modified project as a new Master Template. You may need to restart Final Cut before you see the new Master Template in your Effects menu.