iMovie won't import .mov files

I've just started a thread about this. I thought I was going mad.

I have movie files that play perfectly well on every other application preinstalled in my Imac that should play them, but I can't import them to Movie9, these aren't some ripped DVD pirated attempt, they are simple Mpeg movies (that what they are described as in finder) I haven't had a Mac long an thought I might be missing something, but it appears Apple are having a right laugh.

The only solution I have to the increasing disappointment this machine returns is to sell it for a lot less than I paid to some other unsuspecting poor individual or do the right thing for society and burn it.

Why can't manufactures do the right thing for the consumer!. We don't all want to pirate DVD and illegally down load stuff we just want to use and display our media professionals.

Sorry everybody, rant over.

try converting them to .mov files by using MPEG streamclip. free from Versiontracker.com

http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/51380

use it to "export to Quicktime"



rr

Thanks RR

I just down loaded this and it does work, I'll play a bit more and try to complete the project I started later.

I've put the matches away for the moment. thanks again for the feed back.

I just posted a new post about this.

I believe that the recent updates of OS X, iMovie, iPhoto, and Quicktime have done something to the "readability" of the .mov file package for HD quality videos.

Here is a list of the recent updates:
OS X 10.6.3
iPhoto ver8.1.2 (424)
iMovie ver8.0.6(821)

My old .mov files that are already archived on both iPhoto and iMovie will no longer play.

It isn't the files themselves, as when played with other software video packages, they play fine.

Something was changed with the Apple iLife stuff that has changed what they deem is a proper .mov file. I guess we will have to wait and see.

Thanks!!

I had exactly the same problem, but I seemed to have got round it by accident.
After exporting the original .mts file to the .mov file which iMovie wouldn't import, I opened QuickTime and exported that .mov file into a QuickTime .mov file.
It took a while, but iMovie quite happily accepted this file and it seem to work fine!!

I think using toast doesnt let imovie import the .mov file because of the way it does the sound. If I remove the sound the video file will go in. Mpeg streamclip does not mess with the sound. But it will not convert a mts file to being with.

it works if i convert with toast then convert again with mpeg streamclip. FOr some reason imovie doesnt like the toast one but will accept the mpeg one. with the same exact settings.

OK I HAVE THE FIX. IN TOAST GO TO PREF AUDIO VIDEO THEN ADD CHAPTER MARKERS TO NONE! toast adds text to the file when adding chapters. Then any thing converted into a .MOV file can be added into imovie

Good call. Seems chapter markers do stop iMovie importing a dot MOV.
So us luck Toast owners have a solution..... Shame iMovie itself seems so flaky as to need one.

I have an Imac running OS10.4..(+ iLife o8) and a PowerbookPro running OS10.6.. (+ iLife 09).
I also have a Panasonic SDR H250 video camera that I've used in the past very successfully with both machines to edit material using iMovie.
Now neither Mac nor software package will recognise the video files, which are in .mod and .moi format. I've tried converting them using MPEG Streamclip 1.9.2, but at every attempt it advised me that I need the MPEG Playback Component which I have to BUY from the Apple store.
What has changed? Other forum contributors have hinted, but no-one has confirmed, that Apple have upgraded the iMovie software and somehow cut out users of some cameras (in order to boost sales of Final Cut???). If so, this is outrageous - is it possible for anyone to confirm that this is indeed the case? And if that is so, does that mean we all now have to fiddle with these workarounds to achieve something which was always blissfully simple - and which endeared me to Macs in the first place?

This drove me nuts too - you can export from iMovie, then try to import back to combine projects - and it refuses - greys out the file in Finder.

The Chapter markers are indeed the key.

The fastest solution is to use Quicktime7 (not any later versions - it's the last one which had editing/cut/paste functions and is still available for download if you google it).

In QT7, open the mov file.
Click Window / Show Movie Properties
This shows the components of the file. There should be a name entry, a video track and a sound track ONLY.
If there is a chapter track, or other text track, click it, hit delete.
Click File/Save (or Save As if you want to leave the original file intact).

Now, back to iMovie09, and the newly saved file should import OK.

Of course, you now need to reinstate the chapter markers...

I've had a variation on these problems.

Took lots of shots using a small Kodak HD camera, which records mov files and is supposed to be highly Mac compatible.

I imported off the camera to iMovie, converting to the recommended "large" format. But the weird thing is, it only seems to convert some of the files, normally the longer ones, and put them in an event folder. So it's only imported about a fifth of the 400 shots, and not bothered with the rest.

Even weirder was what happened when I tried importing the mov files again to a new event folder, this time from an external drive rather than the camera itself (I'd loaded them on there originally when planning to work from a PC). This time it converted about a third of them - so added several it didn't convert the other time, but still couldn't be bothered with most of the files.

I'm confused by the lack of consistency, and why it's having problems with mov files that open quite happily when I click on them directly (even on a PC).

Any advice on this much appreciated. Thanks.

SO this Bleeped faced apple is turning Billgates on us !!!
I switch to mac because it was so much better and user friendly

And after 1 year "asdofighsljhgdjfkg" Button smash, THIS !!!

so it is true that they Gimped iMovie after few updates ?

Gaijin73 wrote:
I have had to convert a lot of my .mts files to .mov because the computer could not find the camera all of a sudden. I used Toast 9 to convert in full HD since my Canon HF11 records Full HD.

I coverted all the files from .mts to .mov in order to import into iMovie, but iMovie refuses to import them.

I click File, import movies, but all the files are not selectable.

What format am I supposed to use if I want to import into iMovie 09?

Any suggestions

Download PavTube MTS Converter for MAC.I'm using Pavtube to convert the HD video taken from Sony Handycam.The software seems to do a decent job. I've had good results converting the .mts files to .mov, with the settings h.264, 1200, 1280*720, 25fps, aac. The files look good on my Mac running Adobe Premiere, edit easily, and convert well to DVD format. The user interface is friendly. I like it tells me how long it will take so I can walk away and come back later.
Go here: http://www.pavtube.com/mts-converter-mac/

I had trouble with this too for a while. I kept trying with converting mts files to a format/codec imovie accepts. HDV, MOV, MP4 with AIC, H264, and many others. I was using toast 9 to convert, and as I noticed, it doesn't mess up sound, the problem is with the video. The only way I got it to work was in a very simple option: Apple TV - High quality.
Hope this helps