Samuel Levinson Consumer Publication

Creating a film can be an enjoyable, creative process, where one brings their idea to life on the screen. The movie may begin in ones mind as a simple idea, and then flourish into something greater. For the average individual lacking the resources and funds of a major Hollywood tudio, a small film may be developed as a hobby, with the use of software on a !C. However, from personal e"perience, the process may be frustrating if you lack the necessary software, if there is a specific special effect you want to add to the movie. #ne may ponder if the software available to them will be satisfactory, or if there should be an upgrade. $f there is the need for an upgrade, would there be an affordable option% This article will focus on the software available when editing a movie, specifically the free with the purchase of a computer &indows 'ovie 'aker, versus !innacle tudio. Those reading this may argue that they do not need to purchase additional movie editing software if &indows 'ovie 'aker is available, however as a maker of short films, $ know that the features are not he same when it comes to &indows 'ovie 'aker and a greater (uality software program. &ith a limit to the amount of money available for most people, one may begin using &indows 'ovie 'aker and then later decide to upgrade to !innacle tudio. 'oney is hard to obtain, therefore $ advise that a person should not spend money unnecessarily unless they are ac(uiring a product that they will use for all of its features. )ased on my own e"periences with both software programs, hopefully readers will be able to reach a better conclusion on the product they should use when editing a movie. *ifferent features may make for a more enjoyable and convenient movie making e"perience. However, there may also be an e"cess of features with !innacle that may not be utili+ed by the average film maker. $ will detail the features for both &indows 'ovie 'asker and

!innacle tudio. The focus will be on the most important, most utili+ed features, based on my e"perience as a short film producer. tarting with &indows 'ovie 'aker, it is already installed on most ,if not all- current &indows based !Cs. This is appealing to many, as it does not re(uire an additional purchase to begin editing a movie. .fter uploading your film footage from the camera, the software allows for the film to be imported into the video timeline. This is a straightforward feature. The film or film clip is placed in the timeline and can be changed until it is suitable for the film one has in mind. $n addition to this, we have easy to use, with the click of a button abilities, such as a capability to split a clip and move it to another part of the movie. To the right side of the screen is a viewer that allows us to watch our movie in progress. This is basically a small, built/in television screen, showing us a preview of the movie we have created so far. To the left is a list of features, that allows us to create professional/grade movie titles. &e may select from a variety of fonts and colors. .t the start of a movie, a title may grab the viewers attention, therefore my advice is to choose a font that is not overly elaborate, but one that it visually interesting. The font should probably match the mood of the film, as an added enhancement. For e"ample, with a comedy film, 0Comic ans ' 1 may be selected. This would also be appropriate when dealing with comic book characters, at least $ would think so. )ack to the features of &indows 'ovie 'aker, we may add effects to our movie, such as slow motion or a cycling of the color spectrum. $t would seem to me that &indows 'ovie 'aker would be good for a film maker on a low budget, possibly this would be ones dream come true. #ne may even add still pictures and music to their movie, to give it an epic score that will complement the action that is onscreen. The movie producer

would only be limited by their music library, and in the case of posting the film publicly, the legal responsibility of a possibly copyrighted music track. 2et the film maker may not understand that there s more available for an upgrade, and when it comes to even better features for software, one may want to select !innacle tudio. &hen viewing competitive products to &indows 'ovie 'aker, a good choice is !innacle tudio. The product known as !innacle tudio 3ltimate 4ersion 56 is set in a price range around 7589.99, an ine"pensive alternative to other programs that may have a higher cost without some sort of discount. For this article, the topic will be the version 55 !innacle tudio product. 3pon first viewing the available features, it seems to be a near identical match to &indows 'ove 'aker. However, upon further investigation of the tools available, one finds that there is much more that will help in creating a movie masterpiece. The features available in &indows 'ovie 'aker appear to all be available with !innacle tudio, e"cept for the cycling of the color spectrum and a few other digital effects, but other effects are here instead. &e have many additional features that may be enough of an incentive to make a purchase. #n the subject of titles, we have the same capability as &indows 'ovie 'aker, only in !innacle we are able to choose an even greater variety of styles. $ think this is better for the film maker, as it gives the user a wide variety. The colors available are beyond standard shades, with neon/light emulation, metallic finish, and an engraved simulation for e"ample. The standard video timeline, as mentioned in the list of &indows 'ovie 'aker features, has additional areas to place clips in !innacle. This allows users to place sound effects and music in the same scene, as opposed to choosing only one for a particular brief moment in a film. &hen selecting a

sound effect, the editor is not left to finding new material, as !innacle has a built/in library of common ,and uncommon- sounds. This would give the !innacle tudio film editor an advantage over those with &indows 'ovie 'aker, if the editor was unsure of where to obtain pre/recorded sounds. .lthough, the sound effects library and additional titles would not be enough to convince some individuals to buy the software. .fter all, the titles available with &indows 'ovie 'aker would most likely be to ones satisfactory, and with sound effects they may not be hard to find online. There are websites dedicated to allowing users to have access to royalty free music for use in film productions, as well as sound effects. o it would seem that so far, !innacle tudio does not offer much of a difference that would warrant a purchase of the program. This is not a complete list of features though, as there are other areas to e"plore. Therefore, !innacle tudio should not be dismissed as an e(uivalent product, because it offers much more, such as the chroma key. The most awe/inspiring feature, when used correctly, is !innacle tudios chroma key section. $ found this to be the most complicated, yet professional feature. )y complicated, it takes time to figure out how to use correctly, but once it is mastered it is a great tool to add to the editing process. This would allow one to take film footage in front of a green screen and digitally change the background to any location. This feature is not available with &indows 'ovie 'aker, which is acceptable for those looking only for the basics. 3ltimately, the use of a green screen allows for many possibilities when producing a movie. )y using the chroma key, two videos may be fused together. For e"ample, a background in one location may be filmed, and the subjects of the movie may be filmed elsewhere. :iven the proper lighting and material for a green screen, two videos may be

merged, giving the illusion that the background and the subjects are actually in the same frame naturally. #nes creativity would be the only limit for using a green screen to place a person or object in any environment. $t is my understanding that professional movies will continue to rely on green screen technology for productions. .ny film maker, no matter their budget, would most likely want to have the best technology. This would give the consumer a decision to make; would they be satisfied with the basic editing tools offered by &indows 'ovie 'aker, or would they like to e"pand their capabilities with an increase in titles, sound effects, and chroma key abilities% $ think most film makers would choose !innacle tudio, given the choice of the two products. !ersonally, $ feel that !innacle tudio offers a greater editing e"perience, allowing for more options. &hen placing ones idea into the real world, the movie creating process must be precise, and $ recommend !innacle tudio for this creative task.