Chapter 8 INTRODUCTION TO EFFECTS 203 will never need to be changed, match-framed back to an original source, or used for an EDL, then you can use video mixdown. Video mixdown (under the Special menu) takes any section of video between marked points, whether it has effects on it or not, and turns it into one new media file. This new media file has no timecode (which timecode would it use if you had 15 layers?) and breaks all links to the original media. This is why match-frame-to-original- source clips will no longer work and EDLs will no longer reflect the original source timecodes. Video mixdown should be used only for finishing and for something that you will be using as a single unit over and over, like the graphics bed for an opening sequence you use every week. Once all the effects are rendered, a video mixdown is as fast as copying the media to another place on the drive, an insignifi- cant amount of time. If the effects are not rendered before the mixdown, they will be rendered first as part of the video mixdown process so don't forget to count on the rendering time in your calculations. This workflow encourages rendering first and video mixdown later when everything is signed off. A video mixdown will significantly improve the performance of