Digital Storytelling

Digital Storytelling Use of Windows Live Movie Maker to create a digital story using the “Auto” function. Create a digital story in minutes! Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

At the heart of each digital story is your script and “voice.” You now need to have your script ready: with each image tagged with your spoken script: This is your storyboard. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Go to start programmes and click on the folder called Windows live. Then click on Windows Live Movie Maker. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

This is the Windows Live Interface: It is designed using tabs like most Microsoft 2007 software. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

The Home tab. This allows you to add photos initially for your digital story. Ideally the photos you intend using should be located on your desktop or My Documents of your computer. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Click on the Add videos and photos button. This will allow you to add your digital story photos into the movie software. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Navigate to the folder where your images are saved. Click on open to transfer the location of the images into Movie maker. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Hold down control and click on the images you wish to import into Moviemaker for your digital story. Click Open. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

After clicking Open the images are now inserted into the Movie Maker timeline. You need to reorder the images by dragging them to the desired location until you are happy with the order of your images as per your prepared storyboard. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

We are now going to use the AutoMovie function. If you are happy with the slide order now click on the AutoMovie button. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

When you click AutoMovie you will get this message: Click OK Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

What AutoMovie does… • Adding a title at the beginning of your project and credits at the end. • Adding pan and zoom effects to photos in the project. • Adding crossfade transitions between items. • Changing the duration of photos, so your movie and the music in it end at the same time. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

For this message: Click No Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Click Close We can now add our voice to the digital story. For each slide you should have a prepared script. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Note: all the transitions, effects and pan and zoom have automatically been inserted into your story: click on the play button to view the effects. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

View tab If you are going to display on a widescreen TV choose the second option. In the view tab you can adjust the size of the image icons to allow easy editing and change of order. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

You now need to record your script: you need a quality microphone and preferably audacity. Otherwise use windows sound recorder. Recording sound: Load Sound recorder Plug in microphone Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

With your microphone plugged in click on start recording and record your sentences: (one by one) don’t try and record your entire digital story at once. Save your recording as record1, record2, etc….. In a folder on your computer. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Start speaking and recording your script. When you have finished your sentence click Stop Recording. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

You can either continue recording by clicking on Resume Recording or save the file as a windows media audio file (wma) : name each one as sound1, sound2, etc.. To ease placement in moviemaker. Save all the sound files in one folder. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Save all the wma sound files in one folder: numbered numerically to ease placement in digital story. Before inserting in your digital story it might be a good idea to listen to them to make sure your voice is clear and loud enough. The better the quality of the microphone: the better the sound. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

You now need to insert your voice tracks at the appropriate part of your digital story. Move the slider to the point where you wish to insert your first audio file. Click on the line with your mouse and move. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Click on Add music at the current point. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Choose the sound file you wish to insert at this point and click Open. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Note: sound1 is longer than the image one so we have to increase the duration of image one to suit. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

By holding the cursor over the sound file: I can see that the length of the sound file is 8 seconds so I need to adjust the image duration to around 10 seconds. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Click on the edit tab and adjust the image duration to 10 seconds Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

The sound file now fits in comfortably within the duration of the image. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Repeat the same process with the rest of your sound files inserting the sound file on the planned image. Adjust the duration of the image to suit. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Title Title: Your digital story may need a title to introduce your story: Position the timeline tool at the start of your movie and click the Title icon. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

The title tools will now appear: Start typing the title of your digital story here. The rest of the tools for adjusting the title effect are present in this tab. You can alter the text, start time, text duration and special effects in this tab. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Preview the different effects by moving your cursor along the effects. You can also alter the start time and duration. Make sure the title fits inside the image duration. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Preview your title by clicking on the play button. Your title is in place on the timeline. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Another example of a digital story ready to render with titles, voice, transitions and effects. Ready to render in preparation for the music background. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

After previewing your completed digital story you are now ready to publish your digital story (sharing) for viewing on a DVD player or computer or YouTube. Note: Moviemaker will not burn a DVD straight from the software: you need to burn a movie file first onto your computer, then transfer the movie onto a DVD using the windows DVD software. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

These tools allow the user to render their digital story into a movie file. Options: YouTube HD quality (suitable for wide screen LCD or Plasma) Computer based movie format: TV or Computer or Cell phone or portable device or mobile phone and finally an email version. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Click on the movie version you require: HD takes the most megabytes' per minute of video while email takes the least. Note the quality will go down as you move down to the email version. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

When you click on a sharing icon you will be prompted to give your digital story a name and a location to save the movie to. Save to the desktop so you can find your completed digital story easily. The rendering process will take a while….. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

The rendering process: it does take time. The software is assembling all your ingredients in the correct order: the equivalent of baking a cake in an oven! Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

When complete you should get this! You digital story is now ready to play. If you want a musical background to your digital story you need to complete the following steps. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

The original digital story is now loaded into Movie Maker ready for the background soundtrack to be inserted. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Click Add Music, then Add music at current point, you need to position the timeline at the correct point first. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

TiritiriMatangi: Digital Story no music: just voice Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Locate the music file you wish to use on your computer or usb drive. Then click open. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Once the music is showing on your timeline: press the play button in the preview to listen to sound levels of you voice and background music. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Click on the Music Tool tab. Here you can adjust music volume, fade in and fade out. The volume is important as you do not want the music to over power your voice. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Here I click on the video tab and adjust the voice volume up, then click on the music tools and turn down the music track volume. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Publishing: go to the Publish tab and then choose your format and render your movie again, this time with the background music. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

You can also burn your digital story movie to a DVD using the computer’s DVD burning software. Malcolm Roberts Waikato Institute of Technology

Digital Storytelling