HOLLYWOOD FX FEATURES
Computer Platforms / Sold Separately Host Applications Supported Number of Effects & Transitions Video Channels Supported Resolution Advanced Easy-to-use Interface Basic Effect Options (Fly-On/Off, Anti-aliasing, Path & Object Rotation) Standalone (FREEDOM Editor) Lighting Options (Direction, Shine) Basic Shadow Options (Opacity, Distance) Motion Blur Trails Transparency Live Video Preview Smooth / Flat / Wire / Quality / Pixel Blending Cropping Easy AutoScale to CCIR Ratio Hold at Start & End Creation and editing of effects morph amount, object replacement, parenting Envelope key types, spline types, shift, scale, copy Soft & Drop Shadows Create / Save New Effects 3D video layer objects Add 3D multiple morphs objects from an expandable library 2D wipes through chroma key, luma key and alpha wipes Add 3D props libraries Media Controls playback rate, forward, reverse, loop, ping-pong HFX Plug-in Support particle effects, peel, displace, explode, ripple, twist & more Change surface colours and textures Add 3D objects from 3rd Party Modelers Unlimited Levels of Undo Rotate, move, size, paint surface textures Camera controls tracking, move, ambient, focal & depth Add Lights spot, fill, point Full Scene Shadows

COPPER

*MAC - WIN/N Premiere Only 768 x 576 On/Off only On/Off only

BRONZE

*MAC - WIN/N All (See list) 768 x 576 Path/Morph editing only

SILVER

*MAC - WIN/N All (See list) 768 x 576 Up to 50 Available through Club Hollywood Lightwave

GOLD**

*MAC - WIN/Y All (See list) 300 Unlimited Unlimited Advanced Advanced Unlimited Available through Club Hollywood Several
*Macintosh currently available is 3.1 version, 4.0 is scheduled to ship autumn 2000 **Gold scheduled to ship autumn 2000
Pinnacle Systems, Inc. 280 N. Bernardo Avenue, Mountain View, CA 94043 http://www.pinnaclesys.com http://www.hollywoodfx.com Phone 1-800-4PINNACLE 650-526-1600 Fax 650-526-1601 Pinnacle Systems Northern Europe (UK) + 44 (0) Southern Europe & Middle East (FR) + 33 (0) 12 Central Europe (DE) + 49 (0) 0 Benelux & South Africa (NL) +31 (0) 3 Latin America & the Caribbean 954-349-6745 (U.S.A.) South East Asia ++65-284-2336 (Singapore) China (86) 0063 (Beijing) Taiwan (886) 1088 Japan ++2000 Pinnacle Systems, Inc. All Rights Reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Specifications are subject to change without notice or obligation.

www.pinnaclesys.com

31000093
The Choice For Digital Video.
Blazing Fast Effects Unlimited Expansion Detailed Control Professional Quality 3D Compositing* Animation Tools*

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

Windows 95, 98, NT, 2000 Mac 0S 8.0 or higher 90 Mhz Intel Pentium or faster Celeron Power PC 16 or 24 bit colour display 800 x MB RAM (or more) 100 + MB free hard drive space CD-ROM drive
Pinnacle Systems HOLLYWOOD FX

Pinnacle Systems Hollywood FX delivers 3D transitions and effects based on polygon rendering technology, similar to animation programs. With this latest release Hollywood FX now joins the ranks of other high quality DVE on-line switchers and compositors, but goes a step beyond by setting a new level in quality, performance, and price. Copper & Bronze are perfect starting levels for users needing a lot of effects with easy controls to alter them. Instant feedback while designing a composite is crucial for todays projects. Hollywood FXs interface has been designed to allow quick alteration. You want that ball to fly off the top without re-keying, simply rotate the easy direction dial. Silver & Gold allow you to create effects or composites from scratch and save them as new icons. You have soft-edge shadows that cast realistically or you can drop at a defined distance. 3D props like arrows, stars, words etc., to emphasize a point and Chroma & Luma keying. Hollywood FX has four different levels in order to meet the needs of every producer, director and editor. Each level adds more effects & transitions, controls, resolutions, expandability through extensions and most importantly, Speed! Gold level can include a powerful 3D character generator. 3D object import merges the 3D animation world with editing and compositing. Now you can add plug-ins from Club Hollywood for unlimited power and creative control.
The Objects Tab is for editing the path and morph parameters of an object. It is also the centre of Hollywood FX for building new transitions and composites. In here, you load objects, define parenting, apply warps that explode, ripple or peel, and can layer objects together for montages. The selected object is clearly shown via a bounding box, all unselected objects are ghosted. When you want to change the flight, you actually take hold of the object and move it interactively like popular 3D animation programs. To avoid shifts during the starting of the transition, we have provided a Size & Position-to-Full button to ensure you video is CCIR accurate. You also have the ability to make changes directly to the envelope at any point in time, and will instantly see the results in the preview monitor.

RECOMMENDED

OpenGL 3D display graphics accelerators 2D graphics accelerators 128 MB of RAM 1024 x 768 display

HOLLYWOOD FX

PLUG-IN COMPATIBILITY
Adobe Premiere & After Effects Avids MCXpress, Xpress, Composer, Symphony in:syncs Speed Razor Fast Video Machine & 601 Ulead Media Studio Pro Media 100 & Finish Discreet edit* DPS Video Action Pro/Velocity Panasonic DVEdit, NewsByte Sony ES-3 Incite Apple Final Cut Pro and more (see list at: Hollywoodfx.com)
The Media Tab provides edit controls over the additional sources not mapped from the timeline. You can select trim points, loop playback and crop. Plug-ins for affecting the video e.g. embossing, mosaic are handled here.
The Options Tab is for quick altering of an effect, Hollywood FX has easy rotation dials and simple sliders for adjusting values. Each time you make a change the preview monitor reacts instantly to provide feedback.
Only Pinnacle Systems provides new transitions and plug-ins at any time. Club Hollywood is Pinnacle Systems Hollywood FX.com web-store. New effects, transitions, plug-ins and objects are continually added, so Hollywood FX will never become obsolete!

*Gold & Silver only

The Surface Tab allows for applying video or textures to any object. If you want video to be mapped on the side of a car, simply select the surface and apply an AVI or QT file from the media tab.

The first copy of the title will fly on over the video clip. The last copy of the title will fly offscreen.
The second copy of the title will simply be overlayed on the video clip.
The Timeline, ready for a Hollywood FX Filter
Fly on the title with Hollywood FX: F In the Project window, click on the Edition.FX tab, then double-click on the Plug In Clip Fx folder. F Drag the Hollywood FX 4.6 Filter from the Project window into the timeline on top of the first copy of the title.
Click on this icon to display the Hollywood FX dialog.
Hollywood FX Filter added to first title clip F F F F F
Double-click on the asterisk (*) icon on the title clip to display the Hollywood FX dialog. Click on the Domino effect in the first row of the FX Catalog. Click on Basic Options in the Control panel on the left. Check the Reverse Flight checkbox (this will make the effect fly on instead of fly off). Click Ok to close the Hollywood FX dialog.
After background rendering is complete, you can playback the sequence and see the title fly on with the effect selected. Fly off with Hollywood FX: F Drag the Hollywood FX 4.6 Filter from the Project window into the timeline on top of the last copy of the title. F Double-click on the asterisk (*) icon on the title clip to display the Hollywood FX dialog. F Select the Dive Off effect from the first row of the FX Catalog. F Click Ok to close the Hollywood FX dialog. When background rendering is complete, you can playback the sequence, and you will now see the title fly on, hold, then fly off.

Adobe Premiere

Hollywood FX appears in the Pinnacle Folder in Adobe Premiere. If it does not appear see Troubleshooting for more information. Before adding a Hollywood FX transition, prepare two video sources on the A and B tracks of the timeline, so that there is some overlap between the two video clips.
Addin g a New HFX T ran sition
Two video clips ready for a Hollywood FX transition
T o add a tr ansition to the timeline: F Make sure the Transitions window is visible. If not, select Transitions from the Windows menu. F Drag Hollywood FX from the Transitions window into the Transition track of the Construction window so that it is between the two video clips (the transition should automatically snap to fill the time between the two clips.

Host Application

Pinnacle Studio 8 Pinnacle Edition/Liquid

Plugin File

Studio\Hfx4.dll Edition\HfxEdt46.vfx EditionFilter\FlHfxEdt46.vfx Premiere6\FxHfxP646.prm Premiere6Filter\FlHfxP646.prm AVX\HfxAvx46.avx

Copy To Folder

Studio 8\Plugins Edition\Plugins\Transitions Edition\Plugins\Filter Premiere 6.0\Plug-Ins\Pinnacle Premiere 6.0\Plug-Ins\Pinnacle

Adobe Premiere 6.0

Avid AVX
Symphony\AVX_Plug-Ins or Xpress\AVX_Plug-Ins etc.
My video editor crashes when I try to use Hollywood FX. This usually indicates a conflict with your 3D graphics card. You should download and install the very latest drivers for your graphics card. I never get a rendered transition, I just get the Hollywood FX Logo. This indicates that Hollywood FX was not able to use OpenGL to render the effect. Check the following items to resolve this problem: Check to make sure the files Opengl32.dll and Glu32.dll are in your Windows\System folder (Winnt\System32). If they are not present, Windows 95 users should download the OpenGL libraries from the Support area of the Hollywood FX website. Windows 98, NT, and 2000 users should check their operating system installation, and reinstall any service packs. Make sure you are using the very latest drivers for your graphic display card.
Click on the Settings button in the Hollywood FX dialog and try changing the Render Type to OpenGL Software Engine. If it is already set to OpenGL Software change it to Portable Software.
When I select video or images in the Media Options panel I get a white object instead of video. Generally this indicates you have run low on memory. If you are doing MultiWindow effects with more than 3 video sources, you should have a minimum of 128 MB of RAM (with at least 256 MB highly recommended). If you are using images you scanned in, you should lower the resolution of those scanned images. I get color/brightness jumps at the start and end of my effect. This is normally because the rendered effect is being recompressed while the surrounding video is not. Many non-linear editors have an option to Recompress Always or to turn off Smart Rendering. If your non-linear editor does not have a Recompress Always option, you can usually solve the shift by adding a Brightness/Contrast filter to both the incoming video and outgoing video clips, but leave the Brightness/Contrast settings unchanged. This will cause the video to be recompressed, but not changed.

Performance

Hollywood FX uses OpenGL, which is the industry standard 3D graphics language for high performance high quality rendering. Over the past few years the 3D accelerators and their OpenGL graphics drivers have improved dramatically, however there are still times that the graphics drivers cause incompatibilities with Hollywood FX. For this reason, Hollywood FX defaults to software-only rendering for the highest degree of compatibility, at the cost of slower previews and rendering. This section describes the steps you can take to improve 3D rendering performance. You should only try these changes once you are familiar with Hollywood FX and have successfully rendered some effects in your projects.

CPU Speed, Bus Speed, and Memory
Your system configuration can make a dramatic difference in performance. By upgrading your CPU to a faster speed, upgrading to a new motherboard that has a 133MHz (or faster) bus, and by increasing memory to 256MB or more, you can dramatically improve the performance of Hollywood FX, whether you have a 3D graphic accelerator or not.

Graphic Card Driv ers

The most important aspect to 3D performance from your graphic accelerator is the driver software you are using. You should regularly check your graphic accelerator manufacturers website for updated drivers. Here are the website addresses of the most popular graphic cards.
3D-Labs (Wildcat, Oxygen) www.3dlabs.com ATI (Radeon) www.ati.com Matrox (G450, Parahelia) www.matrox.com/mga Nvidia (GeForce, Quadro) www.nvidia.com

Prev iew Performance

Almost any good 3D accelerator will dramatically improve the performance in the Preview Monitor window. You must enable OpenGL Hardware in the Preview Settings to benefit from your accelerator.
T o enable acceler ated pr eview r ender ing: F Click on the Hollywood FX Settings button at the bottom of the Hollywood FX window. F In the Preview Settings area, select the OpenGL Hardware Engine from the Preview Type dropdown menu.
Click OK to return to the Hollywood FX window and try the new settings.
If you encounter problems with the preview after enabling on-screen rendering, you should immediately return to Hollywood FX Settings and select the OpenGL Software or Portable Software Engine. NOTICE: It is recommended to perform test these rendering changes using the Easy FX editor that you can launch from the Start Menu.
Final Rendering Performance
The most recent 3D accelerator cards (Radeon from ATI and GeForce from Nvidia) have made dramatic improvements in texture loading performance, which is critical to Hollywood FX rendering performance. If you have a recent graphics card and the newest drivers, you may see anywhere from 2X to 5X improvement in rendering times if you turn on acceleration for final rendering. To enable acceleration for final rendering, you must change to Hardware rendering.
T o enable acceler ated Final Render ing Per for mance: F Click on the Hollywood FX Settings button at the bottom of the Hollywood FX window. F In the Render Performance area, select the OpenGL Hardware Engine from the Render Type dropdown menu. F Click OK to return to the Hollywood FX window and try the new settings. If, after making this change, your effects do not render properly, you should immediately return to Settings and change the Render Type back to OpenGL or Portable Software.

Advanced T utorials

Before following these tutorials, you should fully read and understand the previous portion of this guide.

Keyframe Editing with Env elopes
This tutorial demonstrates the way you can keyframe any option in Hollywood FX to create advanced results.
Hollywood FX uses the term Envelope to describe a set of keyframes that describe how an options value will change over time in Hollywood FX. Pr epar e for the T utor ial and Select the FX: F Create a new project in your host application. F Add two video clips and create a two second transition between them. F Add Hollywood FX as a transition between the two video clips. F From the Hollywood FX dialog, select the Tumble 2 transition in the Flying Windows group. The Envelope Editor is normally hidden when you first begin using Hollywood FX (to keep life simple). T o display the Envelope Editor : F Click on the Envelope Editor button at the bottom of the Hollywood FX dialog.
The Envelope Editor Button
The Envelope Editor will appear. We are going to modify the Tumble 2 transition by making the tumbling video dissolve as it tumbles into the distance. We will do this by creating an envelope for the objects Dissolve option. Select the Object and Option: F Click on the SoftFB 1 object in the Control panel. F Click on the Dissolve slider in the Object Options panel so that it is highlighted. Notice that the word Dissolve under the slider is highlighted in green. This is an indicator that it is the current option that can be modified in the Envelope Editor. Whenever you select a control that can have an envelope in Hollywood FX, it will be highlighted in green.
Hollywood FX makes it extremely easy to create envelopes by simply clicking and dragging in the envelope window. We want to create an envelope for dissolve that makes the object disappear over the entire length of the transition. T o cr eate a simple envelope: F Click-and-drag in the envelope window at 100% in time, and 100% in value. Drag the keyframe you create all the way to 100% value and release the mouse.
Click here to create your first keyframe.
A second keyframe is created automatically at time 0%

move. Lets change the 100% keyframe so that the object will be in its final position. You will actually move and adjust the sphere object by clicking and dragging in the preview window, so read the following directions very carefully. T o change the last keyfr ame: F Click the Next button in the Envelope Editor, so that the 100% time keyframe is selected. F Click on the Scale tool button in the Object Options panel. F Click-and-drag in the Monitor window to interactively scale the sphere object. Drag to the left until the object is about one quarter its original size (you can watch the scale values and stop scaling when the scale values reach about 0.25). F Click on the Move tool button in the Object Options panel. F Click-and-drag in the preview window to interactively move the sphere. Move the sphere towards the top of the preview until it is offscreen. F Click on the Perspective button in the Monitor panel to switch to perspective view. F Right Click-and-drag in the preview window to move the sphere along the Z axis. Move the mouse up until the object on the screen moves all the way behind the backdrop video object, and the shadow is no longer visible. F Click the Camera button in the Monitor panel to return to camera view. Now if you play the preview, you will see that the sphere simply shrinks and disappears towards the top of the screen.
How your keyframes should look after modifying the last keyframe
Now we will create two more keyframes for the top and bottom of our bounce (then we will use the Envelope Editors copy function to duplicate the bounce). First lets create the top of the bounce. T o cr eate a new keyfr ame: Move the current time slider to time 10%. F Click on the Scale tool button in the Object Options panel. F Click-and-drag to the left in the preview until the objects scale values are around 0.25. F Click on the Move tool button in the Object Options panel. F Click-and-drag up in the preview until the object is at the very top of the preview.
The new keyframe is created automatically at the current time when you change the positioning.
How things should look at the top of the bounce
Notice that a new keyframe was automatically created for you as soon as you began changing the objects positioning. This eliminates the tedious process of manually creating keyframes that some programs require. You simply move the current time slider to the time you want, and begin editing. Now, create the bottom of the bounce. T o cr eate the bottom of the bounce: Move the current time slider to 20%. F The Move tool should already be selected in the Object Options tab, if not, click on it.
Click-and-drag down in the preview until the object is at the very bottom of the preview.

Peel Options

Lets try making some options changes to see what they do.
T o modify Per cent of peel completed and Angle of Peel: Clear the Tie transition amount to effect transition checkbox. F Clear the Tie peel direction to flight direction checkbox. F Change the Angle of Peel spinner to 45 and the Percent of peel completed slider to 50.
Angle of Peel of 45 and 180
The Percent of peel completed controls how far the peel has progressed. This can simply be tied to the total transition time, or can be keyframed individually to create interesting effects, like partial peels. Now lets play with the Peel Radius. T o modify Radius of the Peel: F Move the Radius of Peel slider back and forth to see the result. When finished, leave the Radius at approximately.25.
Radius of Peel of.10 and.50.
Finally, there is a checkbox that controls whether to perform a roll (which is the default) or to actually peel without rolling.
T o Peel instead of Roll: Click on the Peel instead of roll checkbox.

Roll and Peel

Now lets quickly create an interesting keyframed effect where the peel spins around the object as it peels. T o star t keyfr aming the Angle of Peel: F Clear the Peel instead of roll checkbox. F Check the Tie Transition Amount to Effect Transition checkbox. F Move the Angle of Peel spinner to 0. F Move the current time slider in the envelope window to 0%. F Click on the Create button in the Envelope Window to create a keyframe at time 0% with the Angle of Peel currently at 0. You have now created the first keyframe, with the angle starting at 0 degrees. T o complete the keyfr aming: F Move the current time slider in the Envelope Window to 100%. F Move the Angle of Peel spinner to 180 degrees. You have now created the second keyframe, and if you play the preview you will see the object peel as it flies off, and the peel rotates around the object. Remember that plugins in Hollywood FX can be combined. You could attach a Ripple at the same time the object is peeling, or even attach a second peel to the same object.
Two Peels attached to the same object

T ra i l s

Checking this will turn on trails. Any moving objects will leave trails behind them as they move.

Pixel Blen din g

Turning on this feature will cause the rendering engine to perform advanced pixel blending, smoothing out images in the FX. This feature is especially useful when you zoom in on a piece of video. Pixel Blending will eliminate the normal blockiness of the zoom.

Advanced Options

Once you have selected an FX from the FX Catalog, you can change rendering options for that FX. T o Display the Advanced Options Panel F Click on the Advanced Options item in the Control panel
The Advanced Options Panel

Shadow Controls

Sh adow T ype
When shadows are turned on, they can be controlled with more precision using the Shadow Controls. These radio buttons control the type of shadow that is generated. Cast. Cast shadows treat the backdrop image like a piece of paper that all other objects cast shadows onto. The closer an object is to the backdrop, the closer its shadow is to the object. Drop. When drop shadows are selected, shadows are always drawn at a specified distance from an object. Full. PRO Turn on full scene shadowing. With this option objects shadow themselves and each other for the most realistic look.
Hollyw ood FX Users Gu ide Opacity
This slider controls the darkness of the shadows. The higher the value, the darker and more opaque the shadows are. The lower the value, the more transparent the shadows are. Generally a value from 30% to 50% produces a very realistic shadow.

D i st an ce

This slider controls the distance of shadows from their objects. The greater the distance, the farther the shadow is drawn from the object. This slider is particularly useful for Drop shadows. Remember, the direction of the shadow is controlled by the Light Direction dial.

Softn ess

Hollywood FX lets you create soft-edged shadows. Simply increase the softness value to create a softer shadow. Note however, that the higher the softness value, the greater the rendering time.

Trail Count

Determines the number of trails that are drawn behind each object when trails are turned on.

Motion Blur Controls

When motion blur is turned on, you can control the specific look of the blur using the motion blur controls. Note: Motion blur can greatly increase rendering time.

Len gth

This determines how far the blur smears. This value is the percent of the total distance from frame to another in the FX. The higher the value, the longer the smear. Hollywood FX always renders an accurate intraframe blur, unlike other products which simply create a fixed distance blur. This determines how many copies of the object are drawn to create the blur. The higher the number the smoother the blur appears. Increasing this number also greatly increases rendering time.

Cou n t

Hold Times
These controls let you hold at the start or end of an FX. This is useful on certain MultiWindow FX where video windows fly on screen, and you might want them to stay on screen for a certain time, playing video.

Advan ced Option s Start

This controls the hold time at the start of the FX. The value is a percentage of the total time of the FX in your timeline. For example, if you were doing a fly off transition, and set this value to 15%, then the A video source will stay on screen for 15% of the total time, then will fly off during the last 85% of the total time of the transition. If you have the Envelope Editor open, you will be able to see the change in the transition percent values when you adjust this slider. This controls the hold time at the end of an FX. The value is a percentage of the total time of the FX in your timeline. For example, if you reversed a normal transition so that the B video source flies on and set this value to 15%, then the B video source will fly on during the first 85% of the total transition time, and hold onscreen for the last 15% of the total time. If you have the Envelope Editor open, you will be able to see the change in the transition percent values when you adjust this slider.

Media Options

When you select a Media item in the Control panel, the Media Options will be displayed in the Item panel. The Media Options panel gives you the ability to map video and image files onto the 3D objects in an FX. Usually, Source 1 and 2 come from the host applications timeline and normally you will not remap those. The Media items are most often used to map additional video sources for MultiWindow FX, when the host application does not provide that video.
Different video/image files can have different field/frame orders.
Use the Select buttons to replace any Media with video from the host application, or from an image or video file.
Create interesting playback effects with these controls. Use cropping to remove video blanking or create interesting results.
Use the slider and In and Out buttons to trim a video source.

The Media Options panel

Media Selection

Select T rack

If you wish to select a video track from the host application, you can do so by clicking this button. A list of available host video tracks will be displayed. Using this button you could repeat Source 1 or Source 2 instead of having a separate Source 3 in a MultiWindow transitions.

Select File

This button displays a file requester, letting you select a single image, a sequence of images, or a video file. To select a sequence of images, simply select the first image in the sequence (each file of the sequence must be
numbered sequentially). Hollywood FX currently supports targa, bitmap, and png images, as well as Video for Windows and Quicktime video files.

Mix w ith origin al percen tage
This slider allows you to overlay the blur on top of the original image to produce more interesting results. The higher the number, the more of the original image you will see. Use this dropdown to select different types of blur. Box This is a quick blur that provides good results. Gaussian A slower blur, produces finer results. Directional Allows blurring in a specific direction using the Direction spinner.

Blu r T ype

B l u r C h an n el
You can select an individual color channel to blur. This can create interesting color effects on the incoming video.

Filter - Chroma Key

The Chroma key filter is a simple keyer that allows you to quickly key out Green or Blue backdrops from video to allow keying of video that is mapped onto 3D objects in Hollywood FX.

Chroma Key Options

Select Blue or Green to key out blue or green backdrops.
Plu gin s R e v e rs e K e y
This checkbox will reverse the key, so that everything except the blue or green areas are removed.

T h resh old

This slider controls how much of the picture is keyed out. The higher the number the greater the range of color that is keyed out.

Fin e Adju st

This slider controls the fine adjustment of the key around edges of differing colors.

Filter - Luma Key

The Luma key filter is a simple keyer that allows you to quickly key out dark or light areas of a video source.

Luma Key Options

R e v e rs e K e y
This checkbox will reverse the key, so that everything light areas are keyed out rather than dark areas.

Cu toff

This slider controls how much of the picture is keyed out. The higher the number the greater the range of brightness that is keyed out.
This slider controls the fine adjustment at the edge of the cutoff brightness, giving a softer edge to the key.
Filter - Directional Wipe
This filter allows you to quickly wipe away a source image in any direction you choose. This filter can be especially interesting on video that is mapped onto complex objects.

Directional Wipe Options and example

Wipe Direction

This spinner controls the direction that the image is wiped away. When checked (the default) the Wipe Percentage is automatically tied to the total transition time, so that the wipe will finish at the same time as the transition. When cleared, you will be able to use the Wipe Percentage control to manually control the wipe. When checked, the Wipe Direction is controlled by the Light Direction spinner in Effect Options. This makes it easy to tie lighting and wipe together. When checked, a border will be drawn along the edge of the wipe. You will be able to select the color, size, and softness of the border.
T ie w ipe percen tage to tran sition
T ie direction to ligh t direction
En able a border on th e w ipe

Border Color

When a border is enabled, you can click this button to select a border color from the Color Selection dialog.

Wipe Percen tage

When Tie wipe percentage to transition is cleared you can use this slider to manually control the completion of the wipe. Use the envelope editor to keyframe interesting new results.

Plu gin s Softn ess

This slider controls the softness at the edge of the wipe. The higher the value the softer the edge of the wipe.

Border Size

When border is enabled, this slider controls the thickness of the colored border. The higher the value, the larger the border.

Filter Edge Wipe

This filter allows you to quickly wipe away a source image using a framed border with optional soft and curved edges.
Edge Wipe Options and an Example
If borders are enabled, click this button to change the color of the wipes border. When checked (the default) the Wipe Percentage is automatically tied to the total transition time, so that the wipe will finish at the same time as the transition. When cleared, you will be able to use the Wipe Percentage control to manually control the wipe. When checked, a colored border is drawn around the edge of the wipe. You can control the color and thickness of the border.

T ie X an d Y frequ en cy togeth er

Frequ en cy

These sliders control the number of waves in the ripple. The higher the number, the more waves. If Tie X and Y frequency together is checked, you will see a single slider to control the total frequency, otherwise you will have two sliders and can control the frequency for X and Y individually.
You can get very interesting results by setting the frequency in one direction to 0, while maintaining a higher value in the other direction.

Offset (X an d Y)

These two sliders control the center of the ripple. Use these sliders to adjust the center of the ripple.
T ie Ph ase to tran sition
When checked, the phase is automatically tied to the total transition time so that the plugin ripples over the total time of the transition. If you clear this checkbox, you can manually control the phase using the Phase slider. This slider controls the timing of the ripple, and makes the ripple seem to move. When Tie the Phase to the transition is cleared, you can use this slider to manually control and keyframe the ripple. This controls the type of ripple that is generated. Droplet This generates circular waves from the center of the ripple. Aligned Ripples This generates uniform smooth bumps along the surface of the object. Crazy Ripples Creates irregular bumps that increase in height towards the outer corners of the object. Offset Ripples Creates wild bumps-on-bumps across the face of the object. Corner Waves Creates curved waves around the outside corners of the object Waves Creates long straight waves, like ocean waves coming to shore. Bumps Creates distinct regular bumps that rise up from the flat surface of the object. Ying Yang Creates a single sharp mountain that rises from the surface of the object. Bounce Creates a single ripple out from the center like a balling bouncing onto an elastic surface.

Ph ase

Fu n ction
Black Hole Pulls the polygons of the object in and creates a hole that spreads.

Defau lt Settin gs

This button reverts all settings to their defaults for the selected functions. This button sets all values to 0. This is useful for the beginning of an effect when you dont want the ripple to show immediately.

Clear all valu es to 0.0

Warp Swirl
This plugin will swirl the faces of an object. It can create a whirlpool-like effect with video mapped on an object. You have separate control over the outer portion of the swirl (near the outside edges of an object) and the inner portion of the swirl (near the center of the object).

Swirl Options and example
T ie sw irl to tran sition
When checked, the swirl will automatically increase over the entire time of the effect. When cleared you can manually control and keyframe the inner and outer swirl amounts. When Tie swirl to transition is checked, these buttons determine whether the outer swirl or inner swirl is adjusted over the time of the effect. Use this slider to control the distance from the center of the swirl to the outer edge of the swirl.
In n er an d Ou ter bu tton s
Hollyw ood FX Users Gu ide X an d Y sliders
Use these sliders to move the center of the swirl. You can animate these over time to make it look like the swirl is moving (like the eye of a storm moving). A swirl is calculated along a 3D plane. Use these buttons to change which plane the swirl is calculated over.

Sw irl Plan e

Amou n t of Sw irl
These two spinners control the amount of swirl at the inner and outer edges of the swirl. Moving this in opposite directions will create more of an overall swirl. Keyframing these values over time can create interesting results.

Warp - Twist

This plugin lets you twist a 3D object along any axis. It uses the pivot point of the object to determine the center of the twist. The farther a point is from the center, the more it is twisted. You can quickly twist the object along any or all axis.
Twist Options and Example

T w ist Amou n ts

Move the sliders to twist the object around that Axis. Normally you will only twist around a single axis, but you can get interesting results by twisting around more than one axis at a time.

Export HFZ

The Export HFZ tool is designed to let you easily share your custom creations with other Hollywood FX users. When you export an effect as a.hfz file, Hollywood FX compresses the effect itself, along with any of your own objects and images that are used in the effect. There are a few of important rules when using Export HFZ: You cannot Export any of the original effects that come with Hollywood FX. Export HFZ is for exporting your modifications and custom-created FX only. If you modify an existing effect, you must first use Save FX to save the effect with a new name before using Export HFZ. Export HFZ will not include any original objects that come with Hollywood FX (or with any Pinnacle effect packs) in the.hfz file. If you use objects from additional effect packs, the user who installs your.hfz file must have the same additional effect packs installed to be able to use your effect.

T o Expor t a modified or custom-cr eated effect: F Click on the Export HFZ button in the Toolbar. F A file requester will appear asking you to name the.hfz file. Change the default name and location if desired, then click Ok to create the.hfz file. The.hfz file name will default to the name of the effect. Export HFZ will create.hfz files in the Hollywood FX\Share folder by default. T o install a.hfz file on any system with Hollywood FX 4.6 or higher : F Double-click on the icon of the.hfz file. The HFZ Installer will load and install all of the files in the.hfz file. Click Ok to close the dialog when finished.
The Export HFZ file requester and the HFZ Installer

Import 3D

The Import 3D tool lets you import Lightwave 5.x 3D objects (other object formats may be supported in future updates, see the readme file for more information). Import 3D supports importing simple objects, as well as importing multiple objects to become morph targets. Within the Hollywood FX installation folder, you will find the Lightwave Content folder that contains sample objects and images to use. Within the Images folder, you will find the MAPxxx targa images. These are important because they can be used as proxy images when created your own 3D objects. Wherever you use these images, the Importer will replace them with Host Track video references. So, if you want an object to display Host Track 1 (the first video source in a transition), simply map MAP001.tga onto the surface, and when you import the object, it will be replaced with Host Track 1. When creating objects that you will import into Hollywood FX, you should follow these rules: Objects should consist of 3-point and 4-point polygons only. It is recommended that you only use 3-point (triangles) polygons to make sure that all polygons are convex. If you want to use the object in Pro-ONE for realtime, you should use as few polygons as possible. As a general rule, the entire effect should have less than 1,500 polygons to ensure that it will playback in realtime. Hollywood FX uses only a subset of the features of Lightwave surfaces. Generally you can adjust base color, transparency and luminosity. For textures you can use any of the normal projection mapping modes (Flat, Sphere, Cylinder) from Lightwave 5.x. To create morphing objects, first create the master object, then create morph targets from the master. The morph targets must have the same number of points as the master.
The 3D Object Importer dialog

Con ten t Folder

You should select the root folder where your Lightwave 3D content files are stored. By default this is the Lightwave Content folder that is installed with Hollywood FX. This folder is needed so that the importer can find the images associated with an object.