Edit Cinematic mode video in Final Cut Pro, iMovie, and Motion on Mac
Check that Cinematic mode clips are processed in the Photos app, set up your library and project in Final Cut Pro (Final Cut Pro only), then import the Cinematic mode clips into your project.
If you already imported your clips and on-screen Cinematic controls aren't available, remove the Cinematic mode clips from your project. After that, check clip processing in the Photos app, then import the clips.
Editing Cinematic mode video on Mac requires macOS Ventura or later.
Check that Cinematic mode clips are processed in the Photos app
To retain the depth and focus of Cinematic mode clips when editing them on Mac, the Photos app on your iPhone must process the clips before you can import them into your video project.
Open the Photos app on your iPhone.
Tap the Collections tab, then select Cinematic under Media Types.
Tap Process Now at the bottom of the screen. If Process Now doesn't appear, the clips are already processed.
When the Cinematic mode clips are processed, you can transfer them to your Mac.
If you use iCloud Photos, you can also wait for your videos to be uploaded to iCloud Photos to access them on your Mac.
Do the following depending on the app that you're using to edit your clips:
For Final Cut Pro, set up your new library and project, then import from your iPhone or from your photo library.
For iMovie, you can immediately start importing Cinematic mode clips. To preserve the depth and focus metadata in Cinematic mode clips, transfer the clips to your Mac then import them, or import from your photo library.
Set up your library and project in Final Cut Pro
By default, iPhone captures video in HDR. For the best quality, import HDR Cinematic mode clips into a wide-gamut HDR library and (Rec. 2020 HLG) project in Final Cut Pro. If you recorded Cinematic mode clips in SDR, create a standard Rec. 709 project in Final Cut Pro.
If you want to use HDR clips in an SDR project, after importing the clips, convert them to SDR using the HDR Tools effect or by overriding the clip’s color profile.
Transfer Cinematic mode clips to your Mac
You can transfer Cinematic mode clips to your Mac with a USB cable or with AirDrop. If you're using iCloud Photos, you can import from your photo library into your project from within Final Cut Pro or iMovie on your Mac.
Transfer with a USB cable
The fastest and easiest method to import Cinematic mode clips is to connect your iPhone to your Mac with a USB cable, then import the clips into Final Cut Pro or iMovie:
Transfer with AirDrop, then import into Final Cut Pro or iMovie
You can use AirDrop to transfer Cinematic mode clips from your iPhone to your Mac.
In Photos on your iPhone, open the Cinematic mode clip or select multiple clips, then tap the Share button
.Tap Options at the top of the screen, turn on All Photos Data, then tap Done. Turn that option on each time you transfer using AirDrop.
Tap AirDrop.
In the Devices list, tap the Mac that you want to transfer the clip to. Make sure that AirDrop is enabled on the Mac that you're sharing with. For each Cinematic clip that you transfer using AirDrop, a folder containing four files appears on the receiving Mac.
In the folder, look for the MOV file named without the “IMG_E” prefix, then import the clip into Final Cut Pro or import into iMovie.
Import from your photo library
You can access your photo library from within Final Cut Pro and iMovie on your Mac. To make sure your Cinematic mode clips import properly from your photo library, check settings on your Mac for privacy, System Photo Library, and iCloud Photos.
Check privacy settings
Final Cut Pro or iMovie might not have access to your photo library depending on what appears in the app:
If you don’t see the Photos app in the Photos and Audio sidebar in Final Cut Pro.
If you see the Photos app in the Libraries list in iMovie, but don’t see the Cinematic mode clips that you imported into Photos.
Allow Final Cut Pro or iMovie to access your photo library in macOS Ventura or later
Quit Final Cut Pro or iMovie if it's open.
Choose Apple menu > System Settings, then click Privacy & Security.
Click Photos.
Turn on Final Cut Pro or iMovie.
Allow Final Cut Pro or iMovie to access your photo library in macOS Monterey or earlier
On your Mac, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click Security & Privacy, then click Privacy.
Click Photos.
Select the checkbox next to Final Cut Pro or iMovie.
Designate a System Photo Library
If you see the Photos app in the Photos and Audio sidebar in Final Cut Pro or in the Libraries list in iMovie, but don’t see the Cinematic mode clips that you already imported into your photo library, designate the library that you want to use as the System Photo Library.
Check iCloud settings in the Photos app on your Mac
In the Photos app on your Mac, choose Photos from the menu bar, then choose Settings (or Preferences)
Choose iCloud.
If iCloud Photos and Optimize Mac Storage are both selected:
Select the Cinematic mode video clips in the Photos app.
Click the Rotate Counterclockwise button in the toolbar to rotate the image. This ensures that the original files are downloaded locally.
When all Cinematic clips are rotated, choose Edit > Undo. This downloads the original Cinematic video clips into your photo library and preserves the depth and focus metadata created during recording.
After you’ve made these adjustments, you can then import Cinematic mode clips into your project.
If iCloud Photos is selected and Optimize Mac Storage is not selected, or if iCloud Photos isn't selected, then you can import directly into Final Cut Pro or into iMovie from the Photos app.
Enable and adjust Cinematic controls for your clips
Once the Cinematic mode clips are in your project, you can enable Cinematic controls in the app you're using:
In Final Cut Pro, enable Cinematic mode video adjustments, adjust the focus in Cinematic mode clips, and adjust depth of field in Cinematic mode clips.
In iMovie on Mac, adjust Cinematic mode video clips.
Work with Cinematic mode clips in Motion
To work with Cinematic mode clips in Motion, move Cinematic mode clips to your Mac before importing them into Motion, then enable Cinematic mode video adjustments.
If Cinematic controls still aren’t available
If no on-screen Cinematic controls appear on Cinematic mode clips, you might have imported the clips with iCloud Photos and Optimize Mac Storage selected in Photos preferences. Try either of these options:
Delete all copies of the clips in the library and in any project, then import into your project by connecting your iPhone to your Mac using a USB cable.
Import the Cinematic mode clips again from your iPhone or from your photo library.
If Cinematic controls still aren't available, you might have to update to macOS Monterey.
