iMovie 8.0 Help
Importing video from movie files
You can import some kinds of video directly into iMovie from most discs or hard disks, including video from MPEG-4 or DV file formats, and from some .mov file formats.
If your video is contained in a previous iMovie project, see:
iMovie doesn’t import AVCHD video files from the Finder. To import AVCHD video, you need to import directly from the camcorder. See:
If you’ve used iMovie to make a backup archive of video from your camcorder, you can import that video.
To import video from a movie file:
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Choose File > Import > Movies, and then find the file you want in the navigation window.
If the 1080i HD Import Setting dialog opens and you’re not importing 1080i-format video, just click OK. If you are importing 1080i format, or if you will do so in the future, select the size in which you want iMovie to import your video. To learn more about selecting a size, see:
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Choose the disk where you want to store the video from the Save To pop-up menu.
You can choose any supported hard disk that’s connected to your computer. The amount of free space on each available disk is shown in parentheses next to the disk’s name in the pop-up menu.
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Choose how you want to organize the imported video in your Event Library:
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To add the imported video to an existing Event, select “Add to existing Event,” and then choose the Event name from the pop-up menu.
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To create a new Event, select “Create new Event,” and then type a name for the Event in the adjacent field.
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If you're importing 1080i-format video, you can choose a size from the pop-up menu.
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Choose what to do with the original files:
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To delete the original files after copying them into iMovie, select “Move files.”
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To retain the original files intact after copying them into iMovie, select “Copy files.”
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Click Import.
iMovie can take from several minutes to more than an hour to import the video and create thumbnail images, depending on the amount of video you’re importing.