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Annexation of Texas Video Clip

kylej — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:49:45 -0800

What are some documentaries/movies/video clips that are about the Annexation of Texas? I need around five minutes of video for a presentation on the Annexation of Texas. Online clips would be good, as well as documentaries or movies (that are easily available).

One Image, One Audio Clip: One Movie?

furtive — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 15:59:06 -0800

How to make a video from an audio track for Youtube? I'm on a Mac, I'd like to make a video for Youtube that just shows an image for the duration of the video. iMovie is not playing along (limiting video to 4 seconds, wtf!)

How can I watch videos on my laptop in the shower?

zinge — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 17:24:44 -0800

Trying to watch movies on my laptop in a steam shower. How can I see my laptop through a foggy shower door, and how can I hear the sound if the same door is sealed? I'm living with a cousin for the summer, and the room I'm in happens to have a steam shower. Basically, it means I can hang out in the shower comfortably (like a sauna) for longer periods of time without wasting water, and without getting the bathroom all steamy (the glass doors seal shut to preserve the steam). This is a two part question. I have a laptop that I can use in the bathroom. Steam is not an issue because of the sealed shower.

The two issues are sound and video. The video question is: how do I keep an area of the glass window/door from fogging up so much that I can't see the laptop screen? Is there some kind of film that I could buy in 14" squares or so to stick on the window?
The sound question is: how do I hear the movie? The sealed glass means that turning up the speakers won't do anything, and will annoy my cousins in the next room over. I can't use anything wired because of the sealed door. My thoughts were either an Olympia Soundbug (but I can't seem to find a way to buy one anymore), or some kind of waterproof bluetooth headset (which I also can't seem to find online anywhere).

Strange uses of Moving Pictures

phrontist — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 11:49:09 -0800

I'm looking for film recommendations. Films (of any length) that use approach their subject matter in abstract or otherwise unusual ways. Some of my favorites in that vein are Koyaanisqatsi and Baraka, Outside In, Powers of 10, Gantz Graf, Der Lauf Der Dinge, C'etait un Rendezvous, Fast, Cheap, and out of Control, and The Fourth Dimension. Things like this that, in their own weird way, impart some understanding. Bonus points for no dialog.

What are the best programs that can convert almost ALL kinds of video files and vice-versa?

omaralarifi — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 01:59:44 -0800

What are the best programs (paid/shareware/freeware/open source) that can convert almost ALL kinds of video files and vice-versa? All sort of video files such as : MJPEG · Motion JPEG 2000 · MPEG-1 · MPEG-2 · MPEG-4 ASP · MPEG-4/AVC · H.120 · H.261 · H.262 · H.263 · H.264 · AMV · AVS · Bink · Dirac · Indeo · Pixlet · RealVideo · RTVideo · SheerVideo · Smacker · Snow · Theora · VC-1 · VP6 · VP7 · VP8 · WMV · 3GP · ASF · AVI · Bink · DMF · DPX · EVO · FLV · Matroska · MPEG-PS · MPEG-TS · MP4 · MXF · NUT · Ogg · Ogg Media · QuickTime · RealMedia · Smacker · RIFF · VOB · AIFF · AU · WAV · FLA · Flash · and others

Note: It does not concern me if it a paid software or free.

Also are there programs that can rip VCD, SVCD, so the I can burn the files into DVD?

Thanks

I'm trying to edit a home video before uploading it to Utube and the sound quality sucks.

dthm42 — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 21:47:05 -0800

I recorded it using the web cam on my HP Touchsmart PC and the playback makes a distorted, squelch sound every time there is a loud part in the video. What's the best way to keep the original soundtrack, but remove the feedback noise? Also, is there a way to adjust the recording levels to improve audio on future projects?

Which version of "Totoro" should I buy?

lynnie-the-pooh — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 22:19:35 -0800

My Neighbor Totoro...........I want to buy the DVD, but on Amazon a lot of people are saying certain versions are not good. There is a 2006 Walt Disney widescreen version; and then there is a 2002 full screen version that is not Disney. What do you think the best version would be for me to get? If it makes any difference, I want to hear it in English.

Also, I've heard that the film maker of this movie has made even better movies, but I have a four year old that does not watch violence, so do you think this is the "best" movie she could watch from this film maker right now?

Thanks so much for your help!

Many video formats: success or desperation?

TheManChild2000 — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 06:39:26 -0800

Does a movie studio releasing many, many different video formats (multiple SDVDs, HD DVD, UMD, VOD) of a particular movie indicate that this movie performs well at retail? Or is it more likely a desperate attempt to recoup from a disastrous theatrical run?

How can I play videos and charge admission?

shipbreaker — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 02:01:42 -0800

Can I get some kind of license to be a motion picture theatrical exhibitor, which would allow me to dust off my VHS copy of "E.T." and show it to kids downtown for 25c each? ((For free??))
At the beginning of every Macrovision-protected movie on my shelf, there's usually a bunch of words about "intended for home viewing only" and how many FBI fines I am about to be charged and how many laws I am about to break... ... ...

I know there is legal fine-print hidden somewhere in my BLOCKBUSTER rental agreement and on my BEST-BUY-purchased DVDs, and even in my stack of old VHS videotapes --- --- laws that prevent me from getting a projector and a big screen and showing movies to people and charging $$ per person.

When cities have "Free Movies In The Park" nights, how do they get around such laws?

Does anyone have relevant anecdotes or stories about modern "entrepeneurs" who have tried to charge admission for playing DVDs out loud?

Finally, if I do decide to "go for it" and start up my own little rogue movie theater, how soon should I expect to see Sigourney Weaver from "BE KIND REWIND" show up with her steamroller to flatten me?

I want to hear great commentary from directors or other people

0xFCAF — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 03:20:17 -0800

What movies have great director's commentary? I've listened to Joss Whedon's director's commentary of Serenity (and Objects in Space and The Train Job) over and over and over again. I could listen to these again, but what other movies have commentary that speaks interestingly about either film-as-art or film-as-moviemaking? Kurt Wimmer's commentary on Equilibrium was also enjoyable just from the down-and-dirty aspect of making an actual movie. Conversely, Brad Anderson's commentary of The Machinist and Aronofsky's commentary of The Fountain were excruciatingly boring and uninteresting commentaries of otherwise interesting and thematic films.

Easiest way to set up a 'fake' torrent tracker?

JMB1138 — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 11:38:06 -0800

I need to create a website for a fake invite-only torrent community to feature in a short movie centering around said community. What's the easiest way to set up a customizable tracker? It's important to note that there will be no actual torrents shared, this is just for the purposes of the movie. I just need the colors and graphics to be customizable so it looks pretty on screen, and so I can 'update' it with fake accounts posting fake torrents as needed for the story. I already have a domain and a webhost with MySQL access. Do I need to go through all the trouble of setting up a real tracker script? Or you think I can just get away with a customizable BBS system?

Any thoughts appreciated!

DVD player that isn't hostile to end-users?

odinsdream — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 19:54:31 -0800

Can you recommend an upconverting DVD player with component output that ignores region coding and allows me to perform any action at any time? Can you recommend an upconverting DVD player that doesn't treat me with active hostility? I'm specifically looking for a player that:

1. Ignores region coding, or can be easily set to ignore region coding without installing new firmware.

2. Never, ever restricts me from fast-forwarding previews/warnings/anti-piracy tirades or skipping to a particular menu.

I can work around these issues by ripping the discs and then re-burning them but this is highly inconvenient.

It would also be nice if the player had all of the usual standard cool things, like digital audio output and some nice pulldown detection, and didn't sound like a jet engine.

Recommend: small budget camera with movie and audio prowess

oneous — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 00:25:18 -0800

Hi all-- I'm jumping the gun and asking for a personal recommendation for a used camera purchase. My budget is $200-250 and I want to buy used. My priorities in order are: 1. As much manual control as possible -- so I'm leaning towards Canon for the CHKD firmware. 2. FAST to start up and take shots and switch modes. 3. 30FPS VGA movie ability that looks comparable to a cheap dedicated camcorder (but it doesn't need to record for a long time -- I'm fine with MJPEG). 4. Good quality audio pickup for the movies. 5. Smaller than SLR-size. ...Everything else is low priority. I hope these criteria and its answers will be useful to others.

How can I copy one project into another in iMovie 08?

photomusic86 — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 12:23:25 -0800

How can I copy one project into another in iMovie 08? I have two separate projects in iMovie 08, and I want to add one to the end of the other. Copy and paste doesn't include audio tracks or titles, which is the primary problem, and I can't just drag one into the other, like you can with events.

Movies from video game footage?

snowjoe — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:52:25 -0800

Help me find this NPR story about making movies from video game footage. I think it was two days ago (April 14, 2008) I heard part of a radio article or show on KPCC (NPR) about making feature length movies using video game "footage". I would like to find the entire article and listen to it but my googlefu isn't working. I would also like find a website or some other venue where I can view some of these movies and learn some of the technology used to make them. Ideas?

Forgotten-Kids-Movie-Filter

sprocket87 — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 19:11:43 -0800

Need help naming a children's movie... My wife has faint memories of a fond movie from her childhood and needs help finding out what it was. Here's what she remembers:

It's a live-action movie (she's pretty sure). The main character, probably a girl, goes through a mirror at the beginning which leads her on a quest for a magical cherry tree that grants extended life. Then there's some old evil lady that keeps eating the cherries to live longer. Finally, the girl gets the cherries to her grandparent (she thinks) which might save their life or something?

She's pretty sure there was some sort of "stuffed animal" creature that led the protagonist through this. It's possible that the whole thing was a Care Bears, Pound Puppies, or Popples video - she really can't remember.

Any ideas? Thanks - this has been driving her nuts for a long time!!

How can I build a house in 20 minutes?

slimeline — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 03:33:35 -0800

How to make a time lapse movie of a 2 year construction project? There is a new building being built in my university campus it should be finished by 2009. I want to capture the whole process of erecting the building by shooting few frames every day and editing them into a time lapse movie that will last 20 minutes. there is a tall building next to the building site, so I will be able to fit a camera at a high vintage point. My main question is about the best technology to use. Ideally I would like the whole process of capturing to be as automatic as possible, as it is not practical to be there every day to take pictures myself. I was thinking of using a wireless web-cam, but have no experience of such devices and don't know how reliable they are. If there is anyone here with knowledge of video, What will be the best way of making this movie? Thank you for your help.

Indian music video with couple dancing across beach/caked mud?

theiconoclast31 — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 01:51:44 -0800

Indian Music Video: "It's like this woman and her daughter running across a beach wearing some flowing red thing [sari?] and then theres a part of it where she's chasing her daughter through like a really big empty desert-place." ..but it's not sand [in the desert], it's like caked mud or something. The daughter is really young, and the video is just them two. There's a portion of it where she's running through shallow water and the camera is using a wide angle lens so the skyline is really warped.

My friend tells me it's relatively new (last 5-7 years?).

This was for a film class, so maybe it exemplifies some aspect of Indian culture? Not sure. I realize this could be pretty vague, would appreciate any hints.

Video Editing on XP (Not Windows Movie Maker!)

jjsonp — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 07:13:23 -0800

Best Video-Editing Software for Windows XP? My wife is engaged in editing some audio/video files. She's pretty well versed in the GIMP for photo-editing and has been very frustrated using Windows MovieMaker thus far.

Here's how she describes what she's trying to do: "
I want software that will allow me to edit video from various sources, make slide shows and edit audio for podcasts. I'd like it to be easy to use, contain tools to make credits and captions, and give my work a professional feel. It also needs to produce a product that is compatible with upload requirements on you tube etc. " By 'sources' she means DVD VOB files, MOV files, AVI, etc. No HD support is required at this point.

Is there some open source analog to GIMP for video editing? And what are comparable commercial packages? I see that Pinnacle Studio 11 is popular; we wouldn't want to pay more than say $200 (so Adobe Premiere is out of the question). There's also Ulead. Here's a list of the top-sellers on Amazon...I would appreciate recommendations from anyone familiar with multiple packages.

Last resort is to buy a Mac and use iMovie;).

Video Convert for My archos 604

matthelm — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 09:22:10 -0800

I need to convert different video formats and adjust audio levels of videos I want to transfer to my Archos 604... Which software does this best? I just bought the Archos 604 and I want to be able to convert videos to support formats:

MPEG-4 Playback - (ASP@L5 AVI, up to DVD resolution)
WMV Playback - (MP@ML, up to DVD resolution)
QuickTime MOV Playback - (H.264 up to DVD resolution and AAC sound)
MPEG-2 Playback - (MP@ML up to 10Mbps up to DVD resolution)
AVI Playback

and sometimes videos I have have audio that is low and I would like to be able to boost them...is there a software out there that can help me with this process?

What's the best media player for playing pieces of movie files?

matkline — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 23:48:23 -0800

What's the best media player for playing pieces of movie files? For example, if I have 600 megs of an 800 megabyte video file, which media player would be able to process it most accurately?

Name the horror movie involving tarantulas?

banished — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 21:30:37 -0800

Name the scary movie I can't remember. In one scene tarantulas crawl all over a bed and floor of a bedroom (I think it was a child's). I want to say that the plot may have involved a man who could bring about people's worst fears, but he may have been the devil. Tarantulas were not central to the plot, so it is nothing like Arachnophobia or anything. It was just the only scene I really remember.

simple images-to-video converter for mac/unix?

sergeant sandwich — Sat, 04 Mar 2006 13:19:55 -0800

can anyone recommend a simple piece of Mac (or unix) software that will take a bunch of image files named abc001, abc002, etc and string them together into a video file that i can view with a lowest-common-denominator video player? i have some code that spits out a bunch of images - currently into the simple PPM format that's part of netpbm package. the images have filenames with sequential numbers in them, and i want software that will just string them together in order into one of the more common (mpeg, avi, quicktime, or whatever) video formats.

i was planning to use ppmtompeg that comes with netpbm but i'm having a hard time getting the netpbm package to compile on my powerbook. while i try to sort that out, i'm wondering if there's any other software available to do what i want?

i see from this thread that apparently quicktime will do this, but i suspect i need the quicktime pro that you have to pay for, as opposed to the free quicktime player.

so, my only absolute requirement be that the software is free. it would be nice if it supported the PPM format (if not, i can batch-convert my images in graphic converter) and extra nice if i could run it from the command line like ppmtompeg so that i can incorporate the conversion into a shell script.

any ideas? thanks in advance!

No YOU are the sexy

Astro Zombie — Mon, 30 Jan 2006 08:28:54 -0800

I'm looking to name a script for an adult movie. Help! I'm looking for a Spanish name, as the film's theme is Santeria. It must be a common enough Spanish word or phrase to be familiar, and also must be muy sexy.

Failing that, it should simply be a great name suggesting the theme of the film.

Um, this is for a freind. *Cough*.

Can I use a 3D FPS game engine to render and control virtual scenes in real-time?

chos — Mon, 16 Jan 2006 09:30:40 -0800

Can I use a 3D FPS game engine (i.e. Half-Life 2 or the like) to render and control virtual scenes in real-time? Game modders, is what I want to do possible? I'll preface this question by saying that I'm not a gamer and have little experience with FPS (first person shooter) games, let alone modding them. There seems to be a large community of people who do this, and quite a few tools, both official and third-party, that let you modify things like game appearance, character behavior, in-game physics, etc. I'm also somewhat familiar with machinima and have seen a few videos produced using game engines (Red vs. Blue, WOW videos, etc.) I have a project that overlaps with this somewhat but I don't know if what I want to do is possible.

First, I'd like to create a custom map, very simple, with known geometry. This seems doable from what I've read. Then, I'd like to control what computer-controlled characters are in the scene, and how and when they move. This also seems doable.

I'd like to be able to set up a camera at some known point with some known orientation, and just watch the scene and the characters as they move (I don't care about actually "playing" the game). I'd like to be able to control the camera in some manner I want (for example, panning or zooming) and capture the video that this camera would see. I assume that this all is doable, judging from machinima videos I've seen.

The big question I have is - can I do this LIVE? Is it possible to programatically interact with the "game" as all of this is going on? In other words, could I have the game running, and in real-time control the camera position and orientation, as if I were directing? Could I do this programatically, either through some hooks in the developer SDK or by writing custom code? And finally, could I also get access to the final video output in real-time as well? Think of what I want to do as a virtual camera, where controlling it in real-time would produce real-time changes in the output video.