Skills Audit: Livetype and Soundtrack Pro

The task of creating a title sequence to a thriller requires many different elements. Not all these elements can be provided by Final Cut Pro, so we learnt how to use two different programs called Livetype to create the titles and Soundtrack Pro to create the soundtrack to the title sequence.

Livetype allows you to type in a simple title and manipulate it. You can change the font, colour, size, background, movement and transition of the title to give it life and make it stand out within your sequence.

Soundtrack Pro allows you to edit pre-existing musical loops and fit them to purpose. For example, you can take a loop of strings and add synthesisers to it to create the tension your film may require. Within Soundtrack Pro, you can change the key and tempo of the pre-existing loop to fit with other loops. You can also apply filters to the sound and add effects like reverb and delay to it to enhance the sound of the loops.

Here is a soundtrack that I made when experimenting with Soundtrack Pro. My inspiration was the TV drama 'Life On Mars' and the cop show genre. I believe this stimulus was helpful in creating a suspenseful soundtrack, as in a cop show you know that something is about to happen but you are never entirely sure what. I thought this stimulus would be a good starting point as it is taking a different approach to the thriller genre in general.


I thought that both programs were very effective in creating a title sequence, as they are both very versatile programs. You can adapt just about anything that already exists within the program to fit your purpose.