Learning to Read an EDL
An EDL contains the same basic clip information as a Final Cut Pro sequence, but
the presentation is very different. Because EDLs originated with linear, tape-to-tape
editing systems, each event is described in terms of a source tape and a record
(or master) tape.
Note: This section describes components of an EDL using the CMX 3600 EDL format.
Other formats may vary slightly.
In an EDL, each clip in your sequence is represented by a line of text called an event,
which has a unique event number. A clip in an EDL is defined by a source reel name and
two pairs of timecode In and Out points. The first pair of timecode numbers describes
the source tape (or clip) In and Out points. The second pair describes the timecode
location where that clip should be placed onto a master tape (or Timeline).
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Tip: To better understand how an EDL describes edit information from your sequence,
try exporting a simple sequence with just a few cuts to an EDL, and then compare your
Final Cut Pro sequence to the EDL.
Event 2
Event 1
Event 3
Event 4
Event 5
Tracks
Transition
Reel name
Event number
EDL title
Drop frame mode
of source tapes
Drop frame mode
of master tape
Record In
and Out
Source In
and Out
Chapter 10
Importing and Exporting EDLs
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