imovie won't import mp4 although shows in iphoto

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imovie won't import mp4 although shows in iphoto

I am trying to import a number of mp4 files into imovie to convert them to a DVD that is readable on a home DVD player for our dance studio. I have loaded 9 files without issue into imovie all with the same extension .mp4 without issue. They were all transferred over from the same CD source at the same time, however two of the files refuse to import in. These two mp4 files are also from the same source as a few files that did correctly transfer over. I can see them in iphoto after importing, however the thumbnail is black. They do play in quicktime when I click on them. While in imovie I have tried importing from both the iphoto direction and directly from the desktop where I also have the file saved. Neither has worked. The computer appears to be importing them but then when it is done saying it is importing there is no file to be found in imovie. I have rebooted the computer three times. Quit and restarted imovie a number of times and even turned off the computer overnight all to no avail.

I am beyond frustrated at this point. I know my computer is a bit of a dinosaur. I have new software to be upgraded and loaded soon but am unable to do that before needing this project completed. I am runig OS X 10.5.8 and IMovie is '08 version.

It is so long winded I didn't even know how to google search my solution. Sorry I'm not hugely computer savy and still new to Mac so my apologies if I worded this incorrectly

Hope I've provided enough information to help me.

Thanks!

Jen

imac, Mac OS X (10.5.7)

Posted on Jun 5, 2013 2:28 PM

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Answer 1

Jun 5, 2013 3:45 PM in response to dncr77777

You say these videos will play in QuickTime Player? Then can you do the following?

Play the video in QuickTime Player. Type the letter i while holding down the Command key. This should open the QuickTime Inspector. Tell us the dimensions of the clip and tell us everything listed next to the word FORMAT in the Inspector. If you prefer, you can post a screen shot of the Inspector.

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Answer 2

Jun 5, 2013 3:47 PM in response to AppleMan1958

Let me add that you should be able to drag and drop the MP4s directly into iDVD without going through iMovie. That may be an option for you if you do not need to edit the videos.

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Answer 3

dncr77777 Author

Level 1

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Jun 5, 2013 6:54 PM in response to AppleMan1958

1920 x 1080

AVC Coding, 1920 × 1080, Millions

AAC, Stereo (L R), 48.000 kHz

Is the info for the first file

1920x1080

AVC Coding, 1920 × 1080, Millions

AAC, Stereo (L R), 48.000 kHz

Info for the 2nd file.

Where do I grab and drag from? I tried from the desktop where the file is and that doesn't work for me.

I have osx 10.5.8 and imovie '08

I don't need to edit these two particular files.

However something else I have a question about.

I decided to just export the 9 other dances that did export and selected large file size as in the past that has worked to allow it to play on a dvd player. Which is what my final goal of this entire process is. I exported and then burned the DVD.

Unfortunatley the DVD will NOT play in my DVD player at home nor at the dance studio where these are ultimaltely to be played.

Boy doing this favor for the studio is killing me. I've spent hours and hours working through this and am so frustrated!

Thanks again for any guidance you can provide.

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Answer 4

Jun 5, 2013 7:26 PM in response to dncr77777

It seems that those specs would work, although you are on a really old version of OSX and iMovie. I am rusty on those old versions. Maybe someone else who is still running them will have an idea.

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Answer 5

Jun 6, 2013 3:59 AM in response to dncr77777

One more thing. Back in 2008 when iMovie 08 was introduced, there were hundreds of cameras in the market and not a lot of standardization in how they recorded video. Back then, iMovie used iPhoto as the capture tool for those cameras, and used iMovie to capture from camcorders. The videos were available in iMovie through iPhoto.

In iMovie, look in your Event Library. There should be an iPhoto event. Within this event, you should see all the clips that iPhoto could handle. You can use them in iMovie Projects from here.

Having said that, there may be some more recent cameras that iPhoto in 2008 did not know about.

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Answer 6

Jun 6, 2013 4:29 AM in response to dncr77777

dncr77777 wrote:

I exported and then burned the DVD.

Unfortunatley the DVD will NOT play in my DVD player at home nor at the dance studio where these are ultimaltely to be played.

Hi Jen,

It appears that you have burned a data DVD. This type of DVD won't play on standard DVD Players as it's not in the required format. To burn a DVD that will play, you need to use a DVD authoring program, such as iDVD (possibly you have a copy of this). If you don't have iDVD (look in the Applications folder), there are other alternatives - see this User Tip by Karsten Schluter:

https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3711

A free app named Burn is mentioned in Karsten's article. It's very basic and easy to use (but lacking the features and power of iDVD). Another option is miDVD (free) or miDVD Pro (about $10) - both available from the App Store (but also very basic).

Sorry I can't help with the other part of your question.

If you need help with iDVD please ask here.

John

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