In the light of the ongoing criticism surrounding Final Cut Pro X, the latest iteration of Apple’s video editing software for professionals (so says Apple, disgruntled users says it’s a glorified “iMovie Pro”), MacRumors points at some interesting revelations by former Shake product designer Ron Brinkmann who was on the original Shake development team. When Apple acquired the company, they kept Brinkmann to work as the project’s product designer until the company silently phased out the famed video compositing software in 2007.
In a nutshell, Brinkmann says Apple doesn’t really care about the professional video editing market anymore, “not enough to focus on it as a primary business”. He says Final Cut Pro X fell victim of Apple’s focus on simplicity, ease of use and headline-grabbing features for the broader audience. As a result of that focus on consumers, he says, “if you’re really a professional you shouldn’t want to be reliant on software from a company like Apple.” He also describes a high-level meeting Steve Jobs held with top video pros from Hollywood:
