tance to your movies.
By Joseph O.Legaspi
Do you have the filmmaking aspirations of
a Scorsese, Kubrick or Ed Wood? Or do
you simply want to make more sophisticat
ed home movies? There are two major soft
ware packages that can make you the film
auteur you aspire to be: iMovie 2 for Apple
Macintosh, and
Windows MovieMaker
for PC. iMovie 2
comes standard with
the Power Mac G4,
G4 Cube and iMac
DV (Digital Video), and is available as a
download on apple.com. Windows
MovieMaker is included in Windows ME,
and can be downloaded from the Windows
Media Player web site (microsoft.com)
onto any PC running Windows 95 or later.
There are numerous advantages to
movie-making software. Eliminate the clutter
of your VHS library by editing and compil
ing a “highlights” video of all your vacation
footage. Editing software also gives you an
edge in class or work presentations. If
you’re a member of a service organization,
club or fraternity, a film of your group’s
activities is a persuasive recruiting tool.
iMovie 2 automatically transfers video
and audio from your camcorder to your
Mac through a FireWire cable. You can then
edit your video clips, arrange them in
sequence, trim unwanted footage and add
special effects like fades and dissolves. You
can also create your own title page and
closing credits. For emotional depth, apply
Top ten
1. Citizen Kane (1941)
2. Casablanca (1942)
3. The Godfather (1972)
4. Gone with the Wind (1939)
5. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
6. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
7. The Graduate (1967)
8. On the Waterfront (1954)
9. Schindlers List (1993)
10. Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
Source: American Film Institute/variety.com
a sepia tone or use soft focus—Barbra
Streisand and Warren Beatty don’t have
monopolies on this.
As a next step, enhance your desktop
movie with musical
soundtracks or sound
effects imported from
MP3s or your CD col
lection. You can do
voice-over narration
I with your computer's microphone or an
| external one. When the fruit of your cine
Lcv matic labor is realized, view it full screen,
it"' or transfer your movies back to your cam
corder and watch it on TV. Saving your
masterpiece as a QuickTime file will enable
you to email it to friends and family, place
it on a CD-ROM or publish it on your web
site. (To post on the Internet, you need
iTools, available free at apple.com.)
Windows MovieMaker possesses many
of the same features as iMovie 2. It’s able
to transfer, edit and store videos. With its
'Wlndow*ft?f
Millennium
Uititw
high-compression features, it’s possible to
store more than 20 hours of video per
gigabyte of hard drive space. You can also
incorporate audio files into your desktop
films, view your movies in Windows Media
Player (a feature of Windows ME and a free
download from microsoft.com), send them
via email and post them on the Internet.
iMovie 2, however, offers more sophisti
cated special effects. Editing clips on iMovie
2 is more precise. While Windows
MovieMaker strengths are in trimming and
cleaning up your pre-existing video footage,
iMovie 2, a more user-friendly system,
encourages play and experimentation.
Besides, iMac with iMovie 2 is less expensive.
If you’re ready for the next level, Final
Cut Pro is the latest rave of digital movie
enthusiasts. The Macintosh-only software is
capable of performing the same tasks as
Avid, the standard film-editing system.
Keep in mind, this software is for advanced
Apple products courtesy ofApple.com
users and takes time to learn. There are
also older programs like Premiere, Film
Composer and AfterEffects.
The Internet is replete with sites provid
ing information and assistance: start with
cyberfilmschool.com, moviemaker.com,
indiewire.com orfilmlogic.com. Embark
on a digital movie-making journey. No class
or film degree necessary. •
System requirements for Windows
MovieMaker:
Pentium 150MHz processor or better
32 MB of RAM or better
295MB free hard-disk space
CD-ROM drive
IEEE-1394 interface adapter (same as
FireWire)
For Macs:
300-MHz or faster Power PC (G3 or G4 )
Built-in FireWire Port
FireWire 2.4 or later
At least 64MB RAM (128MB
recommended)
CD or DVD drive
200MB available disk space
links to iMovie 2 tutorials, go to
.steamtiinii9ls.ni
and search using keyword “iMi
Related wed sites
Filmfilm.com
Calling all budding filmmakers and direc
tors: Do you have what it takes to be
the next big shot? Filmfilm will host your
film’s web pages, create links to your
film’s web site, and if you’re really ahead
of the game, post a crew call. Now’s
your chance to get that worldwide audi
ence you’ve been dreaming about.
Camcity.com
Web cam mecca. From straight and nar
row business web cams to the down
right weird, this site represents the
whole cyber-stream spectrum.