Getting a .mov video out of a Keynote recorded slide show in just 13 steps and 3 programs

The problem: When exporting a recorded slide show with audio track from Keynote to QuickTime, the audio track does not come over, leaving you with a silent movie still timed as in the original.

The solution: Keynote + QuickTime + iMovie + QuickTime.

First things first: This is a permanent problem in Keynote. Do not believe otherwise. There is no fix, only a multi-step workaround.

Second: AppleCare knows nothing about this. I spent more than an hour on the phone with three different representatives. The first had to research if audio tracks were even supposed to export (they are). The second put me on hold to research the problem (i.e., web search), and after five minutes or so came back to say, yes, there are a lot of forums out there describing the same problem but none offering a solution, and immediately punted me to the third. The third, a Senior Keynote Technician or similar-sounding title, said he’d never heard of such a thing, also went away to search the Web, and came back to say, yep, Keynote will not export audio from a recorded slide show. (It exports with audio from self play, but you lose all timings, so that makes it essentially useless.)

However, the third tech did try a work-around that worked. I’m going to share it here. The end result is the QuickTime movie you originally wanted. So a big shout-out to Stephen for hanging in and working it out.

One more thing: Don’t expect a fix. Tech #3 said he would submit feedback and encouraged me to do the same. But the bottom line is the bottom line. Apple, like any for-profit entity, loves feedback proposing new products. That means new sales and new customers. Fixing an existing app is regressive, not progressive. You will never see an ad campaign for “Fixed the Keynote Glitch!” So take this fix as the only one you are ever likely to see that doesn't sound like a prank.

NOTE: These steps are for Macs only, not PCs.

Background: Needed to create a video from an audio interview, for posting on an author’s Amazon author’s page. Keynote was perfect for creating the presentation, which I recorded and saved. That was when things turned bad.

So here’s the process.

1. In Keynote, with your recorded slide show open, click File and select Export to QuickTime. Your slide show will be exported into a QuickTime movie in .mov format, with timings intact, but no audio. You can view in QuickTime.
2. Open iMovie.
3. Drag and drop your QuickTime movie into iMovie.
4. Drag and drop the audio file you used for your recorded slide show into iMovie.
5. Line them up and play back to make sure they’re synched up.
6. Find the Share icon in the upper right corner of iMovie and click it.
7. A modal window opens with eight or so icons. Select the last one, File. Then click Next.
8. Confirm the Export As title and destination for the exported file (desktop’s a good choice).
9. Click Save. Your movie will be exported and appear as an MP4.
10. Double-click the MP4 to open. It will open in QuickTime.
11. From QuickTime’s File menu, select Export as, then select the desired output (720p, 480p, audio only). 720 is a good default choice.
12. Confirm Export As title and destination. Again, desktop is a good choice.
13. Click Save.
14. QuickTime will export and save your slide show with audio included and synched, just as you intended and started out to do 13 steps and three programs ago.

Quick and easy? Nope! And my guess is it never will be. But it works.