How to Use the 4 Keyboard Shortcut to Cut and Switch to Multicam Angle 4 in Final Cut Pro

Keyboard shortcut: 4

When you edit a multicam clip in Final Cut Pro, the number keys turn your keyboard into a live camera switcher. Press 4 and Final Cut Pro performs Cut and Switch to Viewer Angle 4: it cuts the multicam clip and switches the new section to angle 4 of the current bank. You don't need to blade first. The cut and the switch happen in one keystroke.

What the 4 Key Does

A multicam clip holds all of your synced camera angles in a single clip in the timeline. Pressing 4 while you play or park the playhead in that clip adds an edit and makes angle 4 the active angle from that point on. The keys 1, 2 and 3 do the same for the other angles, so you can cut a whole interview or performance just by tapping numbers.

How to Use It

  1. Create a multicam clip from your synced angles and add it to your project.
  2. Show the Angle Viewer so you can see every camera at once (View > Show in Viewer > Angles).
  3. Start playback in the timeline.
  4. When you want to cut to the fourth camera, press 4. Final Cut Pro cuts and switches to angle 4 on the fly.
  5. Keep going with 1, 2, 3 and 4 as the action moves between cameras, then stop playback and review your edit.

Tips

  • Switch without cutting: If you only want to change the angle of a section you already cut, select it and press Option-4 instead. That switches to angle 4 without adding a new edit.
  • Banks matter: The numbers refer to the angles in the current bank of the Angle Viewer. If your multicam clip has more angles than the Angle Viewer shows at once, switch banks to reach the others.
  • Refine later: Your live cuts don't have to be perfect. You can roll an edit point afterward to fine-tune exactly when each angle change happens.

Once you get used to it, cutting multicam with the number keys is one of the fastest ways to edit in Final Cut Pro.

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