Final Cut Pro libraries

Browse an FCP library inside ReelChest. Tags, ratings, and curation roundtrip back.

If you already live in Final Cut Pro, you don't have to point ReelChest at raw folders. You can add an FCP library directly, do the search, transcript, and curation work over here, and let the keywords and ratings flow back. This article walks through the whole thing, with the caveats.

How it actually works

ReelChest doesn't read an .fcpbundle file directly (that's FCP's own database; we don't crack it open). What we read is FCP's exported XML. So the entry point is a separate "Add Final Cut Library…" section in the sidebar, not the regular Add Source flow. There are two ways to bring one in:

1. Drag from FCP. With FCP open, drag the library from FCP's sidebar onto the drop well in ReelChest's "Add Final Cut Library" sheet. FCP hands us the XML directly through its own pasteboard format. Fastest path.
2. Export XML, then pick the file. In FCP, File → Export XML on the library or an event. Save the result. Back in ReelChest, click "Add Final Cut Library…" and pick the .fcpxmld bundle (or .fcpxml file) you just made.

Once it's added, the library shows up in the sidebar with disclosure-expandable events under it, just like a folder source has subfolders.

What we read from the library

• Events. Each event in the library becomes a sub-row in the sidebar. Expand to see clips.
• Clips. Every clip referenced in the events arrives as an asset in the grid, same as a folder source.
• Keywords. Imported as tags. Range-scoped keywords (the ones FCP pins to a part of a clip, not the whole thing) keep their range so they can be exported back accurately.
• Favorite / Reject. Stored on the clip as Favorite or Reject, separately from ReelChest's 1–5 star rating. Two systems coexist on the same asset.
• Media references. Whatever path the FCPXML carries, original or proxy. We resolve through the library's bookmark and any covering source bookmarks you already have.

What we don't read

Honest list:

• Projects, sequences, timelines. ReelChest is curating clips, not editing the timelines you've built in FCP.
• Smart collections, keyword collections. FCP's XML doesn't carry these; nothing to import.
• Transcripts, roles, custom metadata. Same reason. The XML doesn't expose them.

Supported formats inside an FCP library

Same codec rules as a folder source. The clips in your library are the same files you've been editing, so they'll be whatever FCP was working with. Some specifics:

• ProRes proxies referenced by the library come in the same way as the originals. They're separate assets in the grid.
• Internal media (camera archives bundled into the library, generated stills, motion templates, optimized media FCP made for itself) is not surfaced. We only see what's in the XML's clip list.
• "Convert for editing…" works on FCP-library assets. Right-click a clip with the amber badge, pick a ProRes flavor, and the sidecar lands next to the original (or in ReelChest's app folder if the original location is sandboxed).

If you've been working in FCP with optimized media, the originals might still need converting for ReelChest's preview pipeline. Codec compatibility shows in the inspector and on the tile badge, same as for a folder source.

What roundtrips back to FCP

When you Send to FCP from a library asset (or send a paper-edit / mosaic that uses library clips), this is what we write into the new FCPXML:

• Tags become keywords. Every tag on the asset gets exported as an FCP keyword.
• Color labels become keywords too. They're encoded as color:<colorname> so you can spot them in FCP's keyword list.
• 4-star and 5-star ratings become Favorite. FCP only has two slots (Favorite and Reject), so we promote anything ≥ 4 stars. The lower ratings don't carry.
• Original asset UIDs. If a clip came from FCP originally, we preserve the UID on export so re-importing doesn't create a duplicate clip in your library.

What does not roundtrip:

• Reject is not writable. FCP imports of Reject come over read-only. We don't write Reject back.
• ReelChest's own ratings (1, 2, 3 stars). Below 4 stars there's no FCP-side equivalent.
• Transcripts, paper-edit metadata, mosaic settings. FCP doesn't have a place for these.

The roundtrip is one-way at any given moment: ReelChest writes to FCP on Send-to-FCP only. There's no automatic sync.

Refresh is manual

This is the caveat that bites people, so I want to be loud about it. FCP libraries do not auto-rescan. Auto-rescan cadence (the daily/weekly setting in Library settings) only applies to folder sources.

When you change keywords, ratings, or anything else in FCP, ReelChest doesn't see those changes until you click Refresh from disk on the library row in the sidebar. That re-reads the XML you imported and reconciles. If you imported the library by drag-from-FCP, refresh requires re-exporting the XML in FCP first (drag imports don't have a file path to refresh against).

The pattern that works: do a curation pass in ReelChest with the library in a known state, send the metadata back via Send to FCP when you're done, then refresh on the next session if FCP made changes you want to see.

Settings worth knowing

• Settings → Transcripts → "Transcribe assets from FCP libraries (can be slow)." Off by default. FCP libraries tend to be large, and transcribing every clip can take real time. Turn it on per-library when you actually want it.
• Settings → Final Cut → "Prefix imported FCP keywords with fcp:." Off by default. Flip it on if you want a clear visual line between keywords that came from FCP and tags you've added in ReelChest. The prefix only applies on import; it doesn't strip on re-export.
• Settings → Final Cut → "Show developer info in inspector." Off by default. Surfaces the FCP UID and a few diagnostics. Useful if you're debugging a roundtrip mismatch.
• Settings → General → "Hide offline media in FCP libraries." Off by default. FCP libraries often reference media on drives that aren't always mounted; flipping this on hides the offline ones from the grid.

Caveats and things to watch

• FCP holding the library open. ReelChest doesn't detect when FCP has the library locked. Re-exporting XML while FCP is editing usually works, but the safest pattern is to make changes in FCP, save, then refresh in ReelChest.
• iCloud Drive libraries. Sandbox restrictions can hit. Local drives are more reliable.
• Multiple libraries. Add as many as you want; each appears as a separate sidebar row. We don't dedupe across libraries, so the same clip in two libraries appears twice.
• No event-level send. When you Send to FCP, ReelChest creates a new event named by you, not back into the original event the clips came from. Worth knowing if you're trying to keep events tidy.

When this workflow makes sense

If your editing already lives in FCP and you want to add ReelChest's transcript search, paper edit, and mosaic on top of an existing project, this is the path. You stay in FCP for the actual cut; you use ReelChest for the parts FCP doesn't do well (long-form transcript search, script-driven mosaic assembly, designed captions).

If you're starting fresh from raw footage, a folder source is simpler. The FCP-library path pays off when there's already an FCP library you don't want to abandon.