How do I import several smaller mvp projects to make one large project

siegbrunn wrote on 5/5/2014, 10:30 AM

I'm trying to put together several small projects I have already done into a single longer project. These short ones were made each as a separate project for individual students who sang in a concert and each project burned as a DVD . Now I want to make one long one for our archive with all the small films in it. It saves me a great deal of time because all the titles and such are already there.

An attempt to import one of these MVP files into a new project brings me the "there is a current project open" window and gives me the choice to choose "add new project" instead of "close current". That is supposed to insert the chosen MVP into my "new" project. But it doesn't do that, it opens a second window with the selected MVP. At this point I could copy it and paste into the new project, but I am unable to close the MVP extra window. That means that, if I do this for all 12 or so films to copy them over, I will have 12 extra window open "behind" the new project window and my computer will probably collapse. Or I have to save and close MEP 12 times and reopen.

What am I missing? I need to insert an older MVP into a current project. How? Or at least, how to I close one of my open projects so I can open another without crashing my PC. I hope I've made my problem clear enough. I'm grateful for any assistance.

Karen

Win7 pro

Movie Edit Pro MX

Comments

browj2 wrote on 5/5/2014, 6:18 PM

Hi,

Each time, you are trying to import an existing project into the currently opened one. You are not importing a video or image, you are importing a set of instructions that may apply to everything in each project. You cannot safely mix them into one, so Magix does not allow you to do it. It will either close the current project or add it as another movie and add a tab, as you have seen. Thus all of the parameters for each stay with each movie.

Projects are made up of movies and chapters.

If you do not have chapters and you probably do not in your case, when you click on burn, you will be asked if you want any chapter markers. Select the first option, "Only one marker." The menu will create one entry for each movie, which is likely what you want.

Go ahead and import each film which will open in a separate tab. Then go to burn. You will like the result. Should you need to make any adjustments to any of the films, they are all available. Nothing that you do to one of the films will affect the others. This is the best and safest method.

I doubt that your computer will collapse. The projects are simply instructions, the actual videos are not loaded all at once. The computer uses the instructions to find and apply the effects, titles, transitions, cuts, etc. using the original footage, but only creates one output at the end. Try it.

terrypin wrote on 5/6/2014, 1:43 AM

Hi Karen,

John's suggested method is probably the quickest and simplest for most users' needs.

But for more flexibility you might prefer the approach I take with my holiday videos. Which also sounds rather similar to what you've been trying to do so far. Namely, collect all the separate parts onto a single timeline and render the new video from there.

In my case the individual videos are typically say 7 days of a week's holiday. All exist as both rendered videos in a format of your choice (e.g. Tuesday.MP4) and as finished projects (e.g. Tuesday.MVP).

To achieve that you can either:

1. Do as I do and import each previously rendered video onto the timeline of a fresh project (Week.MVP), allocate chapter markers to each, and proceed to make your new video (Week.mp4) and DVD.

2. Instead, open each new project as you described, copy/pasting successively into the one timeline. I'm puzzled, because after each paste you should be able to close the individual unwanted tabs:

Or for better quality: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4019461/MEP-RemoveMovie.jpg

Option #1 is obviously faster to render and easier to work with. Option #2 allows you more detailed editing. A potential disadvantage if you ever want to finish the project!

--
Terry, East Grinstead, UK

siegbrunn wrote on 5/6/2014, 5:09 AM

Thank you to both of you! First, I didn't say that I'd like to keep the "pieces" free and moveable as I bring them in, so that I can change the order of the individual songs. Some of the original MVPs have more than one chapter as there are up to 4 songs or duetts for some. The main thing is, all the titles come in as well, I hate having to do them all over again.

John, thank you for the info, I hadn't realized that the MVPs are only "frameworks" and not the whole film, which frees me up to try some other things.

But OK, so now . . . I've done it! I found the way to bring the MVPs in an uncomplicated way. First John, I don't know what you mean by closing a "tab", I only have indication that more than one project is open when I open the "Window" menu. In any case, here's what I did, using the "manage movies" in the "file" menu, menu entry that till Terry spoke about it, I didn't use:

Drag an MVP to the timeline of the new project,
A new window comes - Choose "Add new project" (opens a second project)
Over the Window menu switch back to the new project.
Place "play" marker at the end of the last film piece (this may not be necessary)
In File menu - Manage Movies / Attach. . . Choose "attach an opened movie" (it's listed there)

and Voila! - the MVP is at the end of the new project and the "opened movie" closes automatically!

It takes much longer to describe than to do,.

I thank you both for the help. I hope to finish this film then today and my husband will be extremely happy (he is the voice teacher for all these students).

Karen

terrypin wrote on 5/6/2014, 6:10 AM

First John, I don't know what you mean by closing a "tab", I only have indication that more than one project is open when I open the "Window" menu.

See my earlier screenshot, which shows the tabs.

--
Terry, East Grinstead, UK

siegbrunn wrote on 5/6/2014, 4:36 PM

Terry I swear, I have NO tabs for different windows. This is MEP MX v. 11.0.4.4, perhaps it was something added later?

Here's a screen shot of the same area with the Windows menu open to show that I have two projects loaded, but there are no tabs where the tabs are in your photo. Is there a setting I've not used perhaps, something that shows or hides different toolbars or menu bars?

terrypin wrote on 5/6/2014, 5:17 PM

I'll check MX when I get back to my PC on Thursday...

Hi Karen,

I was mistaken, sorry. Tabs were introduced in MEP 2013, not MX. So no wonder you couldn't find them!

--
Terry, East Grinstead, UK