Final Cut Pro libraries tend to get very big, taking up a lot of space on our hard drives and being a problem when they need to be archived.

Virtually all Final Cut Pro library management programs focus on the contents of library files: within these files are the original media, transcodes, render and analysis files.

FCPX Diet version 1, the original software, was a very inexpensive program designed to be easy to use and very effective: it allowed you to delete unnecessary files by simply dragging and dropping libraries onto it.

Footage

Photos

Music

Sound Effects

Motion Graphics

Documents

And much more…

As you can see, the Final Cut libraries are only a small part of a much more complex and articulated process and project.

Smart relink

If we drag a source file directly to the Final Cut Pro timeline, it will be copied to the library, a duplicate that has two problems:

1. It takes up space

2. Being inside the library it is “hidden”.

FCP Diet 2 notices this and deletes the file inside the library, replacing it with a link (“alias”) to the original file which is outside the library, therefore under our control.

This also frees up disk space.

Imported files

Even if there is no original copy of the file outside the library, it still takes up space, and is not under our direct control.

FCP Diet 2 simply “moves out” the original media into a visible folder over which we can have complete control.

Collect external media

Sometimes, by distraction or always in good faith, it can happen to reference in Final Cut Pro a file that is outside the project folder, maybe even on an external disk.

This could be a big problem if you move from one place to another carrying only the video project folder and forgetting the assets that are on the external disks.

FCP Diet 2 takes care of this too: when it encounters a reference to an external file, it simply copies it into the project folder, so that this is absolutely consolidated.

Find unused media

We often make use of a lot of large media, perhaps downloading many more clips from stock sites than we actually end up using.

In practice we have a lot of disk space occupied by files that will never be used.

FCP Diet 2 searches for all media files (allowing you to select the type: images, audio, video and setting a minimum size threshold) that are not referenced by the Final Cut library.

These files are either deleted directly or moved to a folder so that we actually know what we are deleting.

Find duplicate files

When you are working in a team on a project, perhaps under tight deadlines, you may find yourself copying the same file twice to two different locations in your project folder.

This results in an absolute waste of space.

FCP Diet 2, also allowing you to choose which file types to search for and the minimum size, takes care of this too: deleting all copies except the original, and adding an “alias” reference of all copies to the file kept intact.

All references remain unchanged, everything works, but the space occupied decreases!

FCP Diet 2

FCP Diet 2 is a complete, powerful, intelligent and effective program for managing Final Cut Pro libraries.

Not only that, it allows you to keep entire projects consolidated, and it does it with a very simple interface where all you have to do is drag a folder and press a button.

Try FCP Diet 2 for free for 7 days with all features activated.

File Formats

FCP Diet 2 handles the following file formats:

Video: QuickTime, MPEG-4 (M4V, MP4)

Audio: Wave, AIFF, MP3, MPEG-4 (AAC, M4A)

Images: JPEG, PNG, TIFF, PhotoShop PSD