Windows Movie Maker Help Guide

If you are using a version of Windows, you probably already have Windows Movie Maker installed on your computer under "Start-> All Programs." If not, check out the links at the bottom of this page.

OK, now for the fun part. :) Open up Movie Maker and notice the layout of the program. You can keep your video and music clips in the "Collections" folder on the left. Those open up and are viewable in the middle of the screen. To the far right is where you preview your video as you work on it. At the bottom is the "Timeline," where you drag your video and song clips and piece them together.

To import anything into Movie Maker, you can go to "File-> Import Into Collections" or simply drag a file onto the screen. I find that it's easiest to break apart large video and save it as individual clips. I've created a page of some sample clips to get you started here.

Click on "Show Timeline" at the bottom to see the timeline. Drag your audio (which is probably a complete song if you are making a music video) into the "Audio/Music" space. To make your music video, you simply drag your video clips into the "Video" section of the timeline.

You can cut your video or audio by dragging the blue slider where you would like it split and go to "Clip-> Split." You can play around with Effects and Transitions, too.

I recommend saving often ("File-> Save Project"), as it tends to freeze on me. You can save your video when you're done by going to "File-> Save Movie File-> My Computer." If you want to send it to me, please read How To Send Yours To Me.