Can't import IPhoto video into IMovie

You might want to Generate your iphoto Thumbnails. If you need to do this, imovie should ask you first thing when you start it up.

Once you have done this all you have to do is go to events library and click on "iphoto Videos" and all your videos should show up.

All my iphoto movies are .MOV files and they work fine, so this should do the trick.

-Hooked

I imported a video clip into IPhoto '08 from a Casio camera -- came out in .MOV format. CAN'T import it into IMovie '08 and can't "save-as" into any other format (figuring that might help??)

What is the original audio codec? Many Casio digital camera's use adaptive PCM (ADPCM) which iMovie '08 doesn't like. As to not being able to use the "Save As..." option, do you have QT Pro? The save as option does not "re-compress" the data in the file -- rather it merely stores it in an MOV container which means that if the codec was originally incompatible, it will still be incompatible in the MOV file container. If you have QT Pro, try exporting instead to re-compress the file to a compatible format. If you don't have QT pro, try MPEG Streamclip (free) or GarageBand (included with iLife '08).

Hi there

You are not alone with this problem.
Since the latest updates I am not able to see or copy or import new movies from iphoto to imovie.
Strange: the old movies are still there.

Regards,
Marco

I am having the same problems. all of my old movies are there from before i updated to '08 but now i cant import any video at all and im using the same camera as i was before. the file extensions are .avi's

does anyone know how to fix this?????

I can't import any video files of any kind. I had read that uninstalling Flip4Mac would correct it. Did that, no difference. Still cannot import any video files of any kind. When I started iMovie (for the first time) it imported all the video files from iPhoto, which were wmv files. I'm on a 2.33 15" MBP C2D, OS X 10.4.11 and iMovie 7.1.4.

Everything is greyed out when trying to import.

I think I know what you're running into here. If it is the same thing I was having problems with, this is what I did...

Download the program MPEG Streamclip from www.squared5.com. It is free and easy to use. Once loaded on your computer, just import the movie you shot from your camera into the program. Convert it to the right format needed for iMovie (sorry, I'm at work and not at my home Mac).

Converting using MPEG Streamclip was the necessary step for me. Once I did that the resulting format worked fine in iMovie. I hope this helps!

Thanks for responding. I think I figured out the prob, and yes, it is that none of the codecs used for the mov files in question are importable in iMovie '08. Unfortunately, the files are right from Apple Training Series iLife '08 DVD and Peach Pit Press hasn't posted updated files.

I think I need to open all the files in QTPro and export them. The files are .mov and use codec "DV/DVCPRO - NTSC" but iMovie won't recognize them. If I open it in QTPro and export it as "Quicktime Movie" then iMovie recognizes the new files.

Not happy with Peach Pit Press, but I don't think this is an iMovie bug.

Actually, even though iMovie recognizes the files, when I click "Import" nothing happens. Sigh.

I guess it's good that iMovie at least works with my camcorder, since it does not recognize very many existing video files I have.

I just wish I could do the lessons in this book. ARGGGGGHHHH.

Actually, even though iMovie recognizes the files, when I click "Import" nothing happens.
Technically, a "QuickTime" is any audio and video content you place in an MOV file container. What audio and video codecs did the "Movie to QuickTime Movie..." option default to when opened? DV, AIC, M-JPEG, Photo-JPEG, MPEG-4, or H.264 video with DV, AIFF (Linear PCM, 16-Bit, 40.0 KHz with almost any "Endianess" byte order), Uncompressed, AAC, etc. audio should work. Most other compression formats may cause problems. So, once again, check what compression formats are contined in your "QuickTime" movie export.

Got it. I had it on "Default Settings" when exporting Movie as Quicktime Movie. The files are already .mov files, but greyed out in iMovie. Exporting it as another .mov file from QTPro makes it "not grey" but iMovie won't complete the import because it's still not in a recognizable format for iMovie.

I exported my lessons video clips as MPEG4, Default Settings and I am able to see the mp4 files in iMovie, even though they look like crap compared to the originals are now 4:3 instead of 16:9. Balls. This is ridiculous. I just want to complete the lessons in the book. Why would they publish a book with lessons that don't work? Why did they post fixes for one lesson and not this one?

I can't help but think that something is wrong on my system and iMovie is not doing what it is supposed to do.

Shouldn't DV files work in iMovie? The source files are .mov with DV/DVCPRO - NTSC codec. Isn't that one of iMovie's supported codecs? Funny, iMovie can import .avi files from my iPhoto library, but of the dozens of .mov files I already had on my system, iMovie can't import a single one of them without first re-compressing via QTPro.

I just tried the Save Movie as Quicktime Movie again. It saved out using H.264, but iMovie won't recognize it.

It seems like MP4 is the ONLY codec I can get iMovie to recognize when importing movie files. That can't be right, can it?

I exported my lessons video clips as MPEG4, Default Settings and I am able to see the mp4 files in iMovie, even though they look like crap compared to the originals are now 4:3 instead of 16:9.
Then don't use the default settings. Set dimension and frame rate to "current" setting used in original file. Set video data rate to same data rate as original source file. Set audio for 64 Kbps/channel at 44.1 KHz sampling rate or 80 Kbps/channel at 48.0 KHz sampling rate. If you're really having problems, simply export to iPod or TV presets.

Shouldn't DV files work in iMovie? The source files are .mov with DV/DVCPRO - NTSC codec. Isn't that one of iMovie's supported codecs?
As I previously stated, I would normally expect a DV file to be compatible. A DV stream file contains DV video with DV audio and should be iMovie '08 compatible. Since you keep saying the DV (video) is in an MOV file container, I keep telling you that an MOV file container may contain any "valid" audio compression format and not just ones that are iMovie '08 import/edit compatible. So once again, I am reminding you to check your MOV file audio compression format to be sure it is iMovie '08 compatible. If it is, then check to see if it contains an incompatible data track. For instance, iPhoto slideshows are not iMovie '08 import compatible because they contain a "Tween" track. If your "tutorial" files also contain a "Tween" track, they will not import either.

I just tried the Save Movie as Quicktime Movie again. It saved out using H.264, but iMovie won't recognize it.
One more time... H.264 is a video compression format. What audio compression format did you use?

It seems like MP4 is the ONLY codec I can get iMovie to recognize when importing movie files. That can't be right, can it?
It probably isn't. We are rapidly reaching a point where it would be much easier to tell what is going on if you you would simply trim a snippet from one of your problem files and either e-mail it to me or post it to a server for downloading and examination.

Yeah, sorry, I know it could still be the audio. I've just convinced myself it's my system. I emailed you a sample file. Thanks.

I've just convinced myself it's my system. I emailed you a sample file.
Got the file. Looks good. Drop imported it to iMovie '08 without any problem. Also plays fine in QT Player and QuickLook. Appears you have a problem with your system or the application. You may wish to create a secondary account and see if it will import to an Event using the secondary account. If it works, I would assume that the application is good and the problem is in your system account. If there is no change, I might look into the possibility of the application being corrupted or incompletely updated.

FYI:
Forgot to mention that while the file is correctly encoded to the DV data matrix and flagged as 16:9 for iMovie, the display of your file is incorrect in the QT Player -- playing at 720x480 (1.5:1 aspect) rather than the correct 853.33x480 (16:9 aspect). Just an FYI since the file correctly imported/displayed in my copy of iMovie '08 which relies on the aspect flag rather than the "current size" setting.

Created secondary account, copied files over to new account, same result. Cannot import them into iMovie under secondary account. Problem is system-wide.

Do I uninstall iMovie (trash the program) and reinstall from the original iLife '08 DVD?

I still wonder if any QT plug-ins, like Flip4Mac or DivX, might have corrupted something. I guess if reinstalling iMovie doesn't work, I'll remove those next.