Storage: deleted movies from iMovie but not reflected in storage data

Hi, alice,

If you delete a project that contains media, a new event with the same name as your project is created in the currently open library, containing the media from that project. The media is still on your computer. To permanently remove the projects and the media from the system and your computer you must then delete the event that contains the media. This will permanently delete the photos and videos that are contained in the Original Media folder in the iMovie library. Note: To permanently remove the media the event must be deleted, not the individual media within the event.

-- Rich

The multiple deletions give you the option of deleting a project from the app without disabling other projects. The same Original Media (stored in your iMovie library, not the app) may be referenced and used by several projects. If you deleted the Original Media from the library when you deleted one project from the app, that would disable all other projects referencing that media. It would also prevent newly created projects from referencing that media. That's why you must delete the Event itself to delete the Original Media. At that point, deleting the event would disable all projects using that media. Until you delete the event, the media would still be available to other projects.

There are not multiple copies of the the media that you import into iMovie. If, for example, you import a video clip into iMovie, it is stored in the Original Media folder in the iMovie library, not the app itself. When you use that media in projects the projects just reference that original media in the library. Because the projects are only referencing the Original Media, the projects don't take up much space. The space is taken up by the Original Media that is stored in the iMovie Library folder that is contained in the Movies folder on your Mac. That explains why deleting the projects has little effect on your disk space.

-- Rich

A "finished" movie is one that is shared out. It stands independently and is no longer related to anything in iMovie and does not refer to any other file. The clips in a "project", on the other hand, refer to the original media contained in the iMovie library.

An image imported into iMovie resides in the iMovie Library and is available to any project that uses it. Several projects may make reference to it to include it in the project.

The originals are not stored as Events. Unlike in iMovie 9 the Events in iMovie 10 do not hold actual files. All originals reside in the iMovie Library Original Media folder where they bear their original names. Events are an organizational tool that lets you group and access the original media imported into iMovie. The images and videos in Events are references to the originals. When you select an image or video in an Event, a pop up folder will take you to the Original Media folder that contains the original image or video that is being referenced.

As for the "Event" nomenclature that Apple chose to use, that was their call. I do not know the reasoning behind the choice. The terminology was a holdover from iMovie 7 years ago, although it has a different meaning. Events hold references to both images and videos, so "Images" would not be an accurate name. "Originals" and "Root Files" wouldn't be accurate either, because the images are not the Originals or the Root Files. When you see Event, think Media, although that is not entirely accurate because it simply references media that is contained in the Original Media folder.

I have not been able to find a way to open the Original Media folder for the entire iMovie Library. You can see a portion of the Original Media folder when you select a clip and choose File/Reveal in Finder, and an abbreviated Original Media folder will pop up showing the selected clip highlighted along with a few other clips. You also can access the Original Media folder by clicking on the Movies folder on your Mac and then Contol-clicking on the iMovie Library icon, and selecting Show Package Contents in the drop down menu. You will see a list of your projects. They actually are not projects, but contain the data an codes that the iMovie app uses to assemble it into a project when you click on the project's icon from within iMovie. Double click on one of the "projects", and inside the folder that opens you will see an Original Media folder that contains the original media in the project. If you erase the media from there it will be gone. However, never move, delete, or change anything in the Show Package Contents or any of its subfolders or you risk corrupting your library.

As you can see, iMovie 10 has very complex architecture to accomplish the functions that the designers wanted. Organizing the architecture for consumer access must have been a daunting job. Once the basic architecture is understood, however, it hopefully is less confusing to the consumer.

-- Rich

I have never heard of deleted photos popping up again. You might want to post your question in the Photos for Mac forum. They have some very savvy contributors there.

The deletion procedure is: Select the photo or video in the Photos apps library. Press Delete on your keyboard. The file will be sent to a Recently Deleted album, visible in the sidebar, where it will remain for 30 days before the photo or video is automatically deleted. Or, you can open the Recently Deleted album either to recover the file in case you've changed your mind, or to delete it permanently from there. The Recently Deleted album will not be visible until it is populated with at least one deleted file.

-- Rich