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Exporting Animated Sequences

Animated sequences can be exported either as a video file or as a frame sequence that contains a series of images saved in the PNG file format. The recording options, which are available in the Export Animation dialog, also allow you to select the dimensions for the exported file, as well as the start and end times.

Export Animation dialog

Recording options
	Description
FPS	The FPS (frames per second) setting determines how many unique consecutive images are displayed per second in a video to give the illusion of movement. It also determines the number of images in a frame sequence and is calculated as FPSduration. The FPS is selectable from 1 (lowest quality) to 120 (highest quality). At around 25 frames per second, the typical film rate that often gives a cinematic feel*, is where most human eyes are fooled into perceiving motion. However, this is not a standard. If your video has very limited and slow transitions, you can maintain quality at frame rates as low as 5 FPS. On the other hand, large shifts between pure white and pure black can have a perceivable fault below 30 FPS. You should note that footage of video games can often require 60 FPS and more to maintain smoothness. In cases in which you need to lower the bitrate, you may have to choose a lower frame rate. Like most settings, it is best to play around with the encoding to find a setting that looks best for your video.
Video Dimensions	Determines the dimensions of exported file in pixels. Resolution is selectable up to 4096 by 4096 pixels. NOTE Ultra-high definition (4K) is 3840 by 2160 pixels.
Dimensions Presets	Provides a number of standard dimensions in the 4:3 and 16:9 aspect ratios.
Start Time	Determines the point at which encoding of the animated sequence will start.
End Time	Determines the point at which encoding of the animated sequence will end.
Preset	Determines the file format in which the video file will be saved and the codec that will used to encode the file (see Video File Presets).
Bitrate	Determines the bitrate, which is a measurement of the number of bits that are transmitted over a set length of time. Bitrates are calculated automatically for the selected frame rate and video dimensions (pixel count). If required, you can manually enter a bitrate (see Bitrates).

How to Export an Animated Sequence as a Video File

Before you export an animated sequence as a video file, you must decide which format — AVI, MPEG, WMV, FLV, WMV, or OGG — is best suited to your needs and targeted distribution. You should also decide how large you want the video to appear without any loss of quality.

Click the Export Animation button at the top left of the Movie Maker panel.
The Export Animation dialog appears.
Select the settings for the recording — FPS, Video Dimensions, and the Start and End Times.
Refer to the table Recording options for information about setting these settings.
Select a preset for your video file (see Video File Presets for information about choosing a file format and codec).
Select a bitrate, if required. See Bitrates for information about manually selecting a bitrate.
Click the Save as video file button.
Choose a File name in the Export as Video File dialog.
Save your animation.
During rendering, the canvas will be resized to the selected dimensions or aspect ratio. If you notice any unwanted clipping or extra space during this process, you many want to cancel and then re-select the video dimensions.

Video File Presets

The options available for exporting video files are dependent on the codecs (an acronym for compressor / decompressor) that are installed in your system. Codecs serve two purposes: they tell your computer how to encode (or compress) a video file when you save the file, and they tell your computer how to decode (or play) the file when you open the file. Since the same codec is needed to both compress the file and play the file, the choice of which codec to use is extremely important. If the codec you use to compress your file is not installed on your user's computer, your user will not be able to play the video.

Digital video formats can be confusing because most video files consist of two separate elements — the container and the codec(s) used inside that container. Containers typically describe the structure of the file: where the various pieces are stored, how they are made (interleaved), and which codecs are used by which pieces. It can specify a video as well as an audio codec. AVI, MPEG, WMV, and OGG are container formats and can be encoded using a number of different codecs.

The term MPEG4 in AVI means that the MPEG4 codec will be used to encode the file and that the file will be saved in the AVI file format.

Video file presets
	Description
Auto	Saves the animated sequence in the MPEG4 file format. Though they are compressed, MPEG files maintain most of the original quality of an uncompressed movie. This is why many videos on the Web, such as movie trailers and music videos, are available in the MPEG format.
MPEG4 in AVI (*.avi)	AVI, short for Audio Video Interleave, is one of the most commonly used video formats and was designed by Microsoft to store both audio and video data in a standard package that allows simultaneous playback. While some formats can only contain a certain kind of compression, an AVI file may carry audio/visual data in almost any compression scheme, including MPEG4, Full Frames (Uncompressed), Intel Real Time Video, Indeo, ClearVideo / RealVideo, QPEG, and others. The MPEG4 codec available for the AVI output format usually provides a good quality compression that produces manageable files for use on both desktop players and on the internet. NOTE AVI formatted movies can be played with any media player that supports the AVI file format. Microsoft Windows are usually configured so that double clicking an AVI file will open an application known as Media Player. This application can play AVI files, as well as other multimedia data types. On the Mac platform, Apple’s QuickTime 3 Pro includes a QuickTime Internet Plug-In that can play AVI video files. If the AVI file was encoded using a codec not included with QuickTime, contact the publisher or distributor of the codec to see if a QuickTime version is available.
WMV in WMV (*.wmv)	WMV, short for Windows Media Video, was developed by Microsoft to handle all types of video content. These files can be compressed with one of Microsoft's proprietary codecs to match many different bandwidths (connection speeds) and can be delivered as a continuous flow of data. The WMV format is a derivative of the MPEG4 format. However, it's more efficient than MPEG4 in encoding video and, while similar to the ASF format (Microsoft's Advanced Streaming Format), it allows decreased file sizes while retaining watchable quality. NOTE The WMV container requires specialized plug-ins and is generally only supported by Microsoft products such Zune and Silverlight.
FLV in FLV (*.flv)	FLV, or Flash Video, is a proprietary file format used to deliver video over the Internet using Adobe Flash Player. FLV content may also be embedded within SWF files. Notable users of the FLV format include YouTube and Yahoo! Video. Flash Video is viewable on most operating systems, via the widely available Adobe Flash Player and web browser plug-in, or one of several third-party programs such as MPlayer, VLC media player, or any player which uses DirectShow filters (such as Media Player Classic, Windows Media Player, and Windows Media Center). NOTE The FLV container is only supported by the Flash plugin, which is not supported by the new HTML5 standard and mobile devices such as the iPhone.
HUFFYUV in AVI (*avi)	HUFFYUV is a very fast, lossless Win32 video codec. Lossless means that the output from the decompressor is bit-for-bit identical with the original input to the compressor.
OGG in OGG (*.ogg)	OGG is a free, open standard container format maintained by the Xiph.Org Foundation. The OGG format is unrestricted by software patents and is designed to provide for efficient streaming and manipulation of high quality digital multimedia. In addition, the open source OGG codec provides a viable alternative to MPEG formats that provides very good quality videos at small file sizes.