How to migrate iMovie projects from old Mac to new Mac?

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mknapp1952 Author

Level 1

9 points

How to migrate iMovie projects from old Mac to new Mac?

I'm migrating from my 2009 iMac running High Sierra to a new Mac Mini running Tahoe. I want to migrate my old iMovie projects to the new system. How do I go about this? (Note both Macs are on the same local network with a good fast connection between them, and I can access the file system on each, remotely, so no need for USB sticks etc)

iMac 27″, macOS 10.13

Posted on Jul 2, 2026 1:39 AM

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Answer 1

M-UK

Level 4

1,108 points

Jul 2, 2026 1:55 AM in response to mknapp1952

Hi,

Migrating iMovie projects from a 2009 Mac to a new Mac requires handling the significant version gap between iMovie '09 and the modern iMovie 10+.

Consolidate Media: On the old Mac, select the project and choose Edit > Consolidate Project Media to ensure all associated video and audio files are included.
Transfer Files: Copy the iMovie Events and iMovie Projects folders (located in the Movies folder) to an external drive formatted as Mac OS Extended or APFS.
Import to New Mac: Paste these folders into the Movies folder on the new Mac.
When you launch iMovie, it should automatically prompt you to import the older library files, converting them to the current format.
Alternative for Specific Projects: If you only need specific projects, create a new iMovie library on an external drive, move the project into it, and then transfer that single library file to the new Mac.

Note: iCloud syncing is not supported for iMovie libraries on Mac, so physical transfer via external drive or Migration Assistant is required.

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