iMovie on the iPad
Construct a movie trailer to show to your students to build awareness and anticipation for your upcoming unit. Using iMovie on the iPad, or other video editing tools we can construct online content that will act as a "commercial" to be shown to students as they begin a new unit. This trailer will build the excitement and interest on the part of the students...but more importantly set the tone for the level of quality and style of work product you expect during the unit.
But first...what Common Core State Standards are we addressing with work like this?
Writing Standards (6-8): Production and Distribution of Writing
5. With some guidance from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on how well purpose and audience have been addressed.
6. Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and present the relationships between information and ideas efficiently as well as to interact and collaborate with others.
Speaking and Listening Standards (6-8): Comprehension and Collaboration
2. Analyze the purpose of information presented in diverse media and formats (e. g., visually, quantitatively, orally) and evaluate the motives (e. g., social, commercial, political) behind its presentation.
Speaking and Listening Standards (6-8): Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas
5. Integrate multimedia and visual displays into presentations to clarify information, strengthen claims and evidence, and add interest.
So what tools can we use to build these trailers? This session will focus on using the iPad and iMovie. There are several other tools that can be used to construct this content.
Windows Movie Maker on the PC, and iMovie on the Mac are fantastic tools to use in creation of video content. We Video is a great (FREE) tool that can be used as an app in Chrome and using Google Drive. Take a look at the overview on the YouTube clip to the right.
iMovie on the iPad and iPhone is available for $4.99 (iTunes link). ReelDirectors is a little less expensive ($1.99), but may offer many more features (iTunes link). There are also a couple other options that provide some really cool video projects. Silent Film Director is $2.99 and has been given great reviews by educators (iTunes link).
How do we do this on the iPad...
1. Purchase and install iMovie for the iPad.
2. You'll need to think about what content you'll want to use as you complete your trailer. You can use video you've already captured and stored on your iPad or computer. You can also use the iPad to capture video. iMovie will provide you with directions as to what type of video content you'll need. Please keep in mind that the best way to learn how to use iMovie is to just construct content. You can always go back and edit, revise, or build a completely new video project.
3. Once you start up iMovie, click the + button on the bottom of the screen.
Then click on "New Trailer". You will be asked to select what theme you would like to use (scary, superhero, swashbuckler, romantic, retro, narrative, fairytale, expedition, bollywood).
Each one of these will provide a preview to get a sense of what the theme will look like.
4. Edit the text selections in the "Outline" tab. Each selection is available for you to edit...just click on the text and your keyboard will pop up.
5. Click on the "Storyboard" tab. Text pieces that are highlighted in blue can be edited. The grey storyboard images tell you the length of the clip, and what type of shot is needed for that clip. Click on a storyboard item to select the clip to edit. Video clips already stored on your iPad can be viewed here. You can also just turn on the video camera and record clips on the fly.
A PRO TIP: if it's getting a little tough to capture video and add to the storyboard....capture it using the iPad's video camera, and edit later using the fine detail controls in iMovie once you've finished recording.
6. To preview your trailer, head back to the main screen and select the Play button at the bottom of the screen. It will ask if you want to "prepare the trailer for optimal playback." If you chose yes...it'll take a while to render. You do not need to select this to quickly review the clip.
7. Once you are happy with your trailer...click on the share button to save it to your "Camera Roll." This will save it to your iPad and make it viewable later. I prefer saving it to your Camera Roll...and then moving over to your computer for the purposes of uploading it to YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, etc.