Movie maker by Nicolew58

Technology Training Support Services Microsoft MovieMaker Creating and Editing a Movie

Ball State University

Barbara Wills bwills@bsu.edu 285-3530

The Correct Way To Save Movie Maker Project Files There is a correct way to save your projects, and you should know how before you start editing for the first time … especially if you ever want to back up your video project, transfer it to another computer, or re-edit your project in the future. When you first save a project, the program generates a project file on your computer’s hard-drive. You can name and save this project file anywhere you want. You will want to create a project folder on your computer hard drive before you begin the project.

But what exactly IS this project file?? The project file is a “linking file” that keeps track of every item in your project. This includes every video clip, music song, picture, and voice track … the project file knows where each of these items are located on your computer, how they are laid out on the movie timeline, and what effects and transitions should be applied to each.

However, these video objects are not actually “embedded” within the project file. If you examine the project file itself, you’ll see that it is only 1 meg in size … while your project may contain several gigabytes worth of video files. That’s because the project file only ―links‖ to the actual multimedia files. Because of this, you really need to organize all your files if you ever want to re-edit your project.

Why is this? Suppose that sometime in the future you decide to give your computer a ―spring cleaning‖ and reorganize some of your media files. You can damage a project if you inadvertently move or delete a file that is used in one of your videos. The next time you open up your project, the application won’t find the media file ―where it expected to find it‖ and your project may be forever ruined. To avoid this problem and keep your project intact, I recommend creating a new folder for each of your video projects. You should then save every asset into this folder before you import them into the project. This folder should include your captured video, background music; pictures, voice narration, and the project file itself. With all your files together like this, there is no chance of a file being inadvertently deleted or moved. Plus, this method allows you to easily transfer your entire project to another computer (or backup onto an external hard drive) … all you have to do is copy and paste this single folder. Don’t underestimate the importance of organization when it comes to video projects. Unless you stay on top of things, your hard drive can quickly become cluttered with random video clips and pictures, and you won’t know what’s safe to delete. Organizing each of your projects into its own folder will save you a lot of trouble and heartache down the line.

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Introduction to Movie Maker 2 The Organization of Movie Maker 2 Next, open Movie Maker 2. Select the Start button in Windows and Movie Maker will appear in the programs list. When you first open Movie Maker, save the new file as a project. File > Save Project As Be sure to save in your project folder your created in My Documents. You will see the steps to create a movie under Movie Tasks which is in the task pane on the left of the Movie Maker window. If tasks pane is not open, mouse click on the tasks icon in the toolbar. The steps are in ordered to assist you in creating a movie. There are several options to bring in Video. The video will be added to a collection. This is Movie Makers method of helping you organize project files. Collection View, select the Collections Icon from the Movie Maker tool bar. As you create your movie, you will be moving between the list of Tasks and the list of collections (where you can view your assets).

Steps to Creating a Project File and a Movie File 1. Import Digital Files or Assets: a. Capture from Video Device b. Import Video File types that can be used in Movie Maker are: .asf, .avi, .m1v, .mp2, .mp2v, .mpe, mpeg, .mpg, .mpv2, .wm, and .wmv. Movie Maker can not use Quick Time files (.mov). If you have Quick Time files, you will have to purchase software to convert these files to one of the supported file types. c. Import pictures Pictures are still images such as .jpg files (recommended). Barbara Wills University Libraries

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ÂŠ 2006 bwills@bsu.edu

d. Import audio and music If you have Windows Media player, you can RIP your music from CDs. Movie Maker supports such files types as .MP3, .WAV, and .WMA. Note: If the files you import end up in multiple collections, you can open a collection and drag and drop all of the files into the same collection. REMEMBER: Be sensitive to copyright laws!

2. Build a Movie by Adding Movies and or Images to the Timeline a. Add Video Clips Storyboard View -

This view gives you an easy interface to add video clips and transitions. Or – Timeline View -

This view gives you more control over audio, the second audio track and titles. b. Create your own Clips Double click on the video to display it in the preview window. At the point where you want to clip (cut) the video, mouse click on the create clip icon in the bottom of the preview window. c. Creating Video Transitions You can make your movies look more polished and professional by adding video transitions. A video transition controls the way one clip or picture in your movie moves to the next. You can add a transition between any combination of video clips, pictures, and titles on the timeline or storyboard view. It is easier to add transitions in the Storyboard View. Transitions are stored in the Video Transitions folder in the Collections pane. d. Adding Video Effects to Your Movies A video effect determines how a video clip, picture, or title looks in your final movie. For example, you might have video that would look great if it had a classic, old–time movie look. With Movie Maker, you can add one of the Film Age video effects to give it that old–fashioned look. A video effect is applied for the duration of the video clip, picture, or title. You can add any of the video effects that appear in the Video Effects folder in the Collections pane. Barbara Wills University Libraries

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e. Add Titles and Credits Movie Maker includes features that make it easy to add titles and credits to your movies. You can add any text that you'd like, including the title of your movie, your name, the date, and the names of the actors. You can also place the titles anywhere you want—at the beginning or end of a movie, before or after a clip, or even overlaying a clip. You can also specify the length of time that the title will appear. f. Add Narration (Voice Over) to your Movie You can easily add a voice-over to your movies. Adding narration lets you use your own words and voice to describe the scene that viewers are seeing. To add voice narration to your movie, you need a microphone installed on your PC. Once you’ve assembled the elements of your movie on the storyboard, you are ready to start your narration: g. Add Music to your Movies Adding a soundtrack is a great way to enhance the meaning and excitement of the movies you create. It's easy to add favorite songs, evocative mood music, or any other audio you'd like to include as part of a soundtrack. Once you’ve assembled the elements of your movie on the storyboard, you’re ready to add music. You can adjust the volume of the music you add in relationship to and the volume of the audio on the video clip. For example, or you can turn the audio track on the video clip all the way down so that only the music is heard, or adjust the levels so that both are audible. h. Save as a project You always want to save your movie as a project BEFORE you save as a movie. Save the project file often, in case your computer locks up or other problems occur. Your project file is your work in progress and where you can easily make changes in your movie. You will not be able to easily edit your movie file, but you will be able to edit your project file. i. Save as a movie Note: Always publish your movie to the project folder on your computer. j. Place your video file in your iWeb account The Movie will play in Windows Media Player. Windows Media Player is available as a download for Macintosh Users.

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