<Under Construction>

So you don't own a digital still camera, let alone a camcorder. Don't let this stop you from making movies. The following is a tutorial on how you can make movies on your computer with nothing more than a mouse and free software. I have also included the files I made so you can practice with them.


Step 1:
Decide on a story. Come up with a very short story you want to tell.

For this tutorial my story is going to be about a guy who walks into his house. I'm sure it will win awards.


Step 2:
Create your images. If you have a sweet Wacom Table (like I have in my edit bay) then it's pretty easy to sketch. I'll use a mouse so you can see what I'm doing with the same tools.

a. Fire up GIMP and draw some images each on their own layer. It is best to save your image files in a layered .psd file and then save the elements from each layer that you want to move around in your NLE as an image with a transparent Alpha Channel (such as a .png).


Notice how I made the Window Layer with a 30% Opacity. This will come in handy later when I want him looking out the window from inside.

b. Each element should now be saved in its own .png file with a transparent background. Since this is a tutorial, I'm keeping everything really simple, and greyscale.




Step 3:
Import your images into your NLE and layer them in the proper order so your image looks correct.

I just realized that neither Windows Movie Maker or iMovie allow you to have more than one video track. That completely halts this Tutorial until I can find an accessible NLE that does.