What is the process of creating my movie?
Once we receive your home video tapes, we import them onto our non-linear editing system, turning them into digital files. These files can now be manipulated without actually making any changes to the original tapes.
Next we review all your video, analyzing it minute by minute, and discuss with you the material. We want to make sure we get as much input from you as to what you would like to see in the finished film.
From our experience, an average hour of home video contains about 5-15 minutes of truly entertaining footage. We will give your our professional advice, but ultimately we will create the film you want to watch.
We will then discuss your musical choices. We can add any music that you wish, as long as you own it. (Copyright laws require that you own the music used in your film, so please send only original CDs.) We can also recommend music, and help you with the choices.
Then comes the fun part. We trim and clean up your video, picking and choosing only the good moments, and eliminating the boring bits.
(Don’t worry – as we mentioned earlier, we are not making actual changes to the tapes themselves. Those will be returned to you untouched).
The film will then be divided into chapters according to the different events captured on your video. A great way to open every chapter is with a musical clip of highlights from the event. Take a look at some samples of these opening clips.
Once the editing phase is finished, the film will be put onto a DVD (we use DVD-R format, which can be played on most home DVD players). Menus and chapters are added to the DVD, so you can easily access any point in the film you’d like to watch, without fast-forwarding or rewinding.
Once the DVD is made, we custom-design and create a label and a cover for your DVD.
At the end of this process, if you would like to receive all the digital files that we digitized (the unedited ones), we can archive them on a hard drive for you. There will be an additional charge, plus you will have to provide us with a hard drive large enough to accommodate all these files. (Typically about 13 GB per hour).
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Can I add still photos to my movie?
Yes. A photo slideshow can be added to the video. We can scan photos from prints, or import digital photos from a digital camera. The photo slideshow can mixed in with your videos, or have it as a separate show.
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Can I be involved in the editing process?
This is your movie, and you know what you want to see in it. We will have discussions before and during the editing process, listen to your input and find out from you what are your expectations. If you are not sure which direction to go - we will gladly give you our professional advice. And if you have no idea what you want, and prefer to leave it all to us - we can do that too. Either way - we guarantee you'll love your movie.
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Will my original photos and videos be returned to me?
Absolutely! All the photos and videos you send us will be returned to you in their original condition. It is, however, a good idea to make copies when possible, just in case of shipping issues. When it's an analog tape, you should always send us the original to ensure the best quality picture.
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Can I recieve all the digital files at the end of the process?
At the end of this process, if you would like to receive all the digital files that were digitized (the unedited ones), we can archive them on a hard drive for you. There will be an additional charge, plus you will have to provide us with a hard drive large enough to accommodate all these files. (Typically about 13 GB per hour).
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Will the DVD play in my DVD player?
Most likely yes, we use DVD-R discs which are compatible with almost all newer DVD players. If you are concerned about the compatibility of your player, we will happily mail you a sample disc so that you can be certain.
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What about PAL video ?
Yes. We can also work with PAL video (video format usually used in Europe and the Middle East), although combining PAL video with NTSC format is not recomended. The final result can be either one of the fromats, depending on where you are intending to watch it.
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Please do not hesitate to contact us with any other question or concern you might have.
