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iMovie (known at times as iMovie HD) is a preinstalled video editing application developed by Apple Inc. for macOS, iOS, and iPadOS devices.

It was originally released in 1999 as a Mac OS 8 application bundled with the first FireWire-enabled consumer Mac model, the iMac DV. Since version 3, iMovie has been a macOS-only application included with the iLife suite of Mac applications. iMovie was included for free with the purchase of a new Mac or iOS device in late 2013 and has been free to all users since early 2017.

Apple positions its iMovie video editor for the consumer market. For the professional market, Apple provides another product, Final Cut Pro.

High-definition video support

Starting in 2005, iMovie was renamed to iMovie HD, and added support for high-definition video from HDV
camcorders. Later versions added support for footage from AVCHD camcorders, and H.264-compressed video from MPEG-4 or QuickTime Movie files (.mov)., as generated by e.g. a number of digital photo cameras with HD video recording feature.

To facilitate this, iMovie/iLife installs the Apple Intermediate Codec on the system as a QuickTime component. iMovie transcodes (‘optimizes’) HD video upon ingestion (‘import’) using this codec and stores it in the QuickTime file format (.movie).

Beginning in 2007, iMovie HD was renamed to iMovie again, but continues to include high definition support.

Features

Video effects

iMovie includes options to modify and enhance video color settings, crop and rotate of a video clip, stabilize shaky videos, add video transitions (such as fade, doorway, slide, swap, mosaic, cube, and page curls), and changing the speed (speed up or slow down) of clips. There are multi-clip video effects, such as creating a cutaway, using a green/blue screen to cut out a subject and replace the background with a different clip, creating a split-screen, and picture-in-picture effect. iMovie can also manipulate and enhance the audio of a project by reducing background noise and boosting audio levels of quiet clips.

Importing and exporting from other Apple software

With iMovie having versions on Apple's mobile and desktop operating systems Apple introduced a feature which allowed users to import iMovie projects from iOS to macOS. Similarly, if a project ends up requiring more advanced editing than iMovie can provide, iMovie allows projects to be sent to Final Cut Pro X.

Trailers

iMovie allows for the creation of movie trailers through included templates. The trailers feature in iMovie allows for clips to be easily dropped into the timeline which consists of storyboard panes which have a label that lists which type of clip should be placed in each pane. The template also includes an outline for adding titles and credits to the trailer.

App previews

iMovie can be used to create app previews for use in Apple's App Store. App previews allow developers to give users a brief overview of an app through video rather than images.

Supported media formats

The following media formats will no longer be compatible with versions of macOS after macOS Mojave, as they are 32-bit and later versions of macOS only support 64-bit technology. These files formats can be automatically converted by iMovie after a 2019 update.

Mac Version history

iMovie (1999)

The first version of iMovie was released in 1999 as a Mac OS 8 application bundled with the first FireWire-enabled consumer Mac model, the iMac DV.

iMovie 2 (2001)

iMovie 2 added the ability to interleave video and audio tracks on the timeline.

iMovie 3 (2003)

iMovie 3 was plagued by performance issues and bugs.

iMovie 4 (2004)

iMovie 4 introduced nondestructive video editing. In prior versions of iMovie, trimming a clip removed the trimmed portion permanently. Beginning in version 4, iMovie introduced Direct Trimming, implementing editing functionality closer to professional grade editing software.

iMovie HD 5 (2005)

Beginning with version 5, iMovie was renamed to iMovie HD, and included support for HDV (720p and 1080i) as well as integration with the rest of the iLife suite, with toolbox buttons allowing the importing of images from iPhoto, music from iTunes and the setting of chapter markers ready for exporting to iDVD.

iMovie HD 5 imported MJPEG files as DV by default, which introduces noise; MJPEG files are cryptically lumped with "iSight" files in this version.

Another new feature was included called "Magic iMovie", which attempted to automate the whole process of video editing, by allowing a common transition to be added between scenes, a music track to be synchronised with the video and a DVD to be created with the accompanying iDVD software.

iMovie HD 6 (2006)

iMovie 6 was released in January 2006 as part of the iLife '06 suite, and was also originally optionally included with iLife '08 as a substitution for iMovie '08 (due to the new version's incompatibility with older Power PC Macintosh computers). However, this option was removed after iLife '09 was released. It was integrated with iPhoto, iTunes, iDVD, GarageBand and iWeb. iMovie HD 6 was designed for ease of use, and included new themes. Themes allow the user to drop movie clips or photos into professionally designed backdrops. Each theme included full-motion graphic bumpers and transitions. iMovie HD 6 also added real-time effects, which took advantage of the computer's graphic processing unit to perform some effects without rendering. It also introduced real-time titling, enhanced audio tools and effects, the ability to have multiple projects open at once, video podcasts and blogs (using integration with iWeb), and a refined look based on iTunes 5 and 6.

iMovie '08 (2007)

iMovie '08 (Version 7.0) was released in August 2007 as a part of the iLife '08 suite. iMovie '08 was a complete redesign and rewrite of iMovie. It had much better HD output, and more formats to convert to. This was limited, however, by an undocumented restriction on supported codecs. iPhoto uses the QuickTime library and can create thumbnails for all QuickTime supported formats, but most of these cannot be used by iMovie '08. Some of the formats that iMovie '08 is able to import will not be recognized when they are added to an iPhoto library. Though Motion JPEG-encoded AVI files do appear to be recognized, this was the most common format used by digital cameras. A new feature called "skimming" for quickly previewing video in the library at a user controlled speed was added, and so was a feature that allows the user to highlight parts of video clips just like highlighting text. iMovie 08 also had the ability to add more than two layers of background sound, including multiple music, narration and sounds; previous versions could play multiple tracks but could display only two extra audio tracks. It included more exportation formats, including iPhone-sized video. It also supported non-tape-based HD video, such as AVCHD and footage from DVD and HDD camcorders. iMovie '08 also has the ability to export movies to the YouTube video sharing website.

According to Apple'
system requirements
iMovie '08 requires a Mac with either a 1.9 GHz or faster PowerPC G5 or Intel processor. G4s are not supported, even though Apple sold its last G4-based Computers (iBook G4s) 14 months before the release of iLife '08. However, a system hack enables iMovie 7.1 or higher to run on a PowerPC G4.

Criticism of iMovie '08

iMovie 08 was criticized due to its drastic abandonment of some iMovie HD 6 features. Former New York Times reviewer David Pogue said "iMovie ‘08 is an utter bafflement... incapable of the more sophisticated editing that the old iMovie made so enjoyable...All visual effects are gone — even basic options like slow motion, reverse motion, fast motion, and black-and-white. And you can’t have more than one project open at a time."

Features removed included the classic timeline, the ability to create DVD chapter markers, support for plugins, and in-timeline audio adjustment and control. iMovie '08 imports to a much more limited set of video codecs and metadata formats than previous versions of iMovie or today's QuickTime Player. For example, QuickTime Player can be extended to support the FLIP Video 3ivx MPEG-4 codec, but iMovie '08 cannot. iMovie '08 also removed the ability to import DV footage. As a result, all resulting videos have lossy compression applied and there is no facility for managing full format video. The peculiar lack of QuickTime support means QuickTime Pro can edit a larger range of video than iMovie '08.

Apple released iMovie HD 6 as a free download to those who had purchased iMovie '08. However, in response to the release of the subsequent newer version of iMovie '09, Apple removed the download in late January 2009 while also reducing the $299 price tag for Final Cut Express to $199. Several of the features removed from iMovie '08 that were previously included with iMovie HD 6 have been restored into iMovie '09 and, more recently, iMovie '11.

iMovie '09 (2009)

iMovie '09 (Version 8.0) was released January 2009 as part of the iLife '09 package. It introduced some new features and restored some features from previous versions of iMovie, including basic video effects (such as fast/slow motion and aged film) and image stabilization as well as travel map functions for marking locations where a video was shot. iMovie '09 also introduced simple implementations of more advanced features such as picture-in-picture and Chroma keying. It also improved editing with a precision cut editor and a clip trimmer, improved support for hard drive-based cameras such as the Flip Mino, added some new titles and transitions, and added full iDVD support (which was unavailable in iMovie '08). In addition, it introduced a Full-Screen Library Browser with which the user can find and examine all of his or her video in one place.

iMovie '11 (2010)

iMovie '11 (Version 9.0) was released on October 20, 2010, as part of the iLife '11 package. It has the ability to make trailers for home movies, more control over audio, instant replay and flash and hold effects, facial recognition, news themes, and the ability to watch the video on a Mac, iPad, iPhone/iPod touch, or Apple TV, as well as sharing on Facebook and YouTube. It now supports the AVCHD Lite format.

Apple worked with Abbey Road Studios in London, England, to bring original music/film scores to iMovie '11. The music is most notably used in the "trailers" feature provided by the software.

On January 6, 2011, Apple made iMovie '11 (along with Aperture, the iWork suite, and the rest of the iLife suite) available on the then-new Mac App Store.

Prior versions of iMovie had the ability to split an event so that the unwanted portion of a long event could be deleted in order to save memory. This feature was removed in iMovie ‘11 and is no longer available in iMovie or Final Cut Pro X (FCPX). But in FCPX, as a workaround, you can cut out all but the desired part of a project, export that project in ProRes 422 format, and then import that export. This can be used as a smaller source clip instead of the original larger one.

iMovie 10.x (2013-present)

iMovie 10.0 was released on October 22, 2013, by Apple Inc. This version of iMovie was a complete redesign with more options to share a movie, more movie and trailer theme options from iMovie for iOS, easier to make picture-in-pictures, cutaways, side-by-sides etc., more realistic green-screen effects and easier refinements. Because it was not compatible with projects created with iMovie 9, upgrading to iMovie 10 did not replace the earlier version, but instead moved it to a folder where it could still be used.

iMovie 10.1 was released on October 13, 2015. It added support for 4K video editing and included a major user interface overhaul, as well as the removal of some peripheral features. Later updates to iMovie 10.1 fixed bugs and made incremental changes.

iMovie 10.2 was released on November 12, 2020. It, and later updates, improved support for Apple Silicon Macs, fixed bugs, and added new backgrounds.

iMovie 10.3 was released on October 18, 2021. It, and later updates, added support for Cinematic Mode, added support for Magic Movie and Storyboard, and made performance improvements.

iMovie for iOS

On June 7, 2010, Steve Jobs announced in his WWDC keynote that the upcoming iPhone 4 would support a new, iOS-native version of iMovie that supports many of the basic features of the Mac version of the software. iMovie for iPhone was officially available on June 24, 2010, to coincide with the launch of the iPhone 4.

On September 1, 2010, iMovie was made compatible with the new 4th-generation iPod Touch. An iPad version of iMovie for iOS was made available with the release of iPad 2, announced at an Apple media event on March 2, 2011, and released seven days later. On March 7, 2012, Tim Cook announced an updated version of iMovie for iOS along with the third-generation iPad.

The app was later made free and preinstalled on future Apple devices. Later versions have added support for 4K resolution in version 2.2, Metal graphics processing in version 2.2.5, external displays, and green screen effects in version 2.2.7.

iMovie 3.0 (2022)

In April 2022, Apple introduced iMovie 3.0, with new features that enable easier and faster creation of edited videos on the iPhone and the iPad. These new features, namely Storyboards and Magic Movie, have been designed to enhance the overall experience of storytelling and movie-making for aspiring creators. The new iMovie Storyboards provide pre-made templates for easier sharing on different content formats and the Magic Movie feature allows effortless transitions and personalization of videos.

Version table

See also

* Animaker
* VSCO

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Imovie
Video editing software
Video editing software for macOS
MacOS-only software made by Apple Inc.
IOS-based software made by Apple Inc.
IOS software