Final Cut Pro: Error 12 message when performing Media Manager operation on clip with long file name

Issue or symptom

Performing a Media Manager operation on clips that have long names may result in this alert message:

"Media Manager File Trim Failed
The attempt to Trim '(your_clip_with_long_filename)' failed with an error code of 12. You can retry this operation, skip this file, or abort the operation entirely."

In the specific case described in this article, the error message will refer to an error code of 12.
Product affected

* Final Cut Pro

Solution

In the Finder, rename the media files so that is contains 32 or fewer characters (or, 15 or fewer double-byte language characters). This character limit includes spaces and the filename extension.

Note: Renamed files may be reported as offline and need to be reconnected in Final Cut Pro.
Additional information

This can occur if you choose the following Media Manager options on a clip that has a long name (such as "This is a clip of cupcakes that look really yummy"):

* Media: Use existing
* "Delete unused media from selected clip" is enabled
* "Duplicate selected clip and place into a new project" is disabled

This can occur with clips that have filenames (in the Finder) of 33 or more total characters, including spaces and the file extension.

With double-byte language characters (Japanese, for example), this can occur with clips that have file names (in the Finder) of 16 or more characters, including spaces and the file extension.

This document will be updated as more information becomes available.
Related articles

* 305734: "Final Cut Pro 6: "Media Manager File Trim" issue resolved by Mac OS X 10.4.10 Update"