How to Create a Custom Title in Motion for FCPx

Question

I would like to make something like the "torn edge" title in Fcpx with the following animation; it would move up from the horizon at the bottom of the screen, display the appropriate text for its position in the movie timeline and then drop down and disappear, reversing the same motion as it did at the beginning.  No music or sound would be used when the motion happens, but that might be an interesting addition.
What steps would I do to make this happen.  I'm new to Motion and want to do some fast track learning.
Would I create the image that I want to animate in photoshop and import it? Or am I way off base?
Thanks.

Answer 1

Why go through the trouble? Just use the Torn Edge title and add the animation to it. Start by right-clicking on the Title in the Title browser in FCPX and select Open a Copy in Motion.
All you need to do is add the animation keyframes to the "components" group (Position > Y). Everything in the title, including the text objects will "follow".
If you'd like, you could add Build In and Build Out Optional markers giving you the option which animations you want to include. To add "timing" markers, no layers can be selected (so click in the layers list on a space where nothing is listed.) Move the playhead to the frame where the animation ends for the animation in and type M, then type Command-Option-M and from the popup Edit Marker dialog, select Type: Build In Optional. Move the playhead to the frame the animation out starts and do the same except select Type: Build Out Optional.
When you're finished, Save As if you want to name it something other than Torn Edge copy. You will need to create or select an existing category (but you can ignore the Theme option.)
It should just take you a few minutes to make the modifications you desire.
If you would like to "reveal" the text objects instead of having then move up into position, Move the Title Text Here and Subtitle Text Here folders out of the components folder into a New Group (select both objects and drag them over the top group in the layers list and position the mouse over towards the checkbox column -- a new group will be automatically created containing the two text objects). Select the Group object and Command-Shift-M to add an image mask. Into the source well, drop the components folder and turn the components folder back on (adding something as a mask causes it to be turned off automatically.)
To really sell the effect, option drag the components group above the text group and turn off "Tan bg" and "PaperTorn". (The animations will be copied as well and will match the original group.) You need another copy of the Torn edge to pass over the text...
You could Save As this variation for yet another separate effect.