ANIMOTO Project Step by Step Directions

Getting Started… How to get your pictures ready in Powerpoint First step- Open Powerpoint (duh)

To make a power point slide – get a picture from the internet. Example – this is Google images.

Choose – see full size image.

Right click - copy

maximize power point. Right click paste.

Choose this layout – it is easiest to use. Pull the corners to resize. Then return to the internet to get the URL (web address)

Right click – copy the URL (web address). Note that this does not say Google images. The place you are redirected to is the URL. If yours says Google images, yahoo images, etc. You did it wrong – talk to your teacher.

Right click – paste. Then reposition it. It should not be bigger than 12 point (font size) – put it at the bottom of the slide.

Create a slide for each of your pictures. When you are ready – file – save as – choose your folder that you made in your network folder. Name the file.

R: choose drop down menu titled save as type – choose jpeg file interchange format (*.jpg) then choose save.

Choose every slide. If you have done this, and have simply added a new slide – choose current slide only (make sure you are on the slide you want to make into.jpg)

It will tell you that each slide has been saved into the folder – and where it saved it. If you followed the directions it should be in your network folder. Now you are ready – you have all your pictures together.

How to create you ANIMOTO project

ANIMOTO.COM/ click on Sign Up.

Scroll to the bottom of the screen and click on “sign up now!”.

Fill in your new Gmail address. Your password MUST BE your Student ID #. Fill in the rest COMPLETELY!

THIS IS SUPER SUPER IMPORTANT!!! You must put in the promo code or you will not be able to complete your project. **CASE SENSITIVE** HARLAN’s Codes: Code #1 a4eharl0b937b Code #2 a4eharld5c319 Then choose sign up.

If you did not sign up properly – with the promo code – this will not work. DO NOT PAY FOR THIS PRODUCT! Click CREATE.

Choose this for your pictures Choose this to browse their photos and videos. If you use these they must make sense with your project. Photos of hamburgers will not work for a project on AIDS. If you are at home you can get photos from flickr, facebook, smugmug, picasa, and photobucket.

Upload. Choose the folder where your pictures are located. If you want more than one – choose one and hold the ctrl key at the same time. Choose open. It will add the photos into a grid. You can upload your own video, but you must have video clips approved by your teacher (no more than 45 seconds). You can also choose from Animoto’s videos, but make sure they match your project. Animoto’s pictures and video clips.

Highlight all and click open.

A 30-second video uses 8-15 elements (text, images, video), depending on the song. Rearrange by moving the tiles. Your PSA should be 1 ½ to 3 minutes. Add more pictures Add text – keep it simple (22 characters per title box) and 30 subtitle First tile should be name, organization, teacher and period (I did not do this  ).

You can even duplicate slides if you want them to show up more than once – this works great to see a picture / text for a little longer. Recommended for statistics and information slides. Use the spotlight to emphasize the tiles you want as most important When it is the way you like it – choose DONE.

Step 2 is music. MUSIC MUST BE SCHOOL APPROPRIATE AND MATCH THE TONE OF YOUR PROJECT. Rap music does not generally match with pictures of children dying of cancer. iTunes is MP4 and will have to be converted to an MP3. You can use zamzar.com (file converter) Select from their choices. These are free and copywrite is not an issue. Upload your own music – SCHOOL APPROPRIATE! Animoto allows you to upload any music file provided it is an MP3 and under 10Mb in size

If you need to record your own voice – use audacity. You will need to download it. Remember - this is not a report, but a Public Service Announcement (commercial) – we want them to be powerful with little to no talking.

After you choose your music you can move where the music starts, or change the music and start at music again. When ready - choose continue.

Choose ½ speed if there is a bunch of text. Choose the middle for normal. 2x speed goes by very quickly. Keep video length at FULL LENGTH, Video style should stay as “THE ANIMOTO ORIGINAL”

Fill in video info. Then choose create video. This could take a long time (10 mins). You do not have to create until you are ready. It will save when you leave the site. When you are ready – create

If you keep the window open you can watch it when it is done, but you do not have to because it is internet based. When it is done it will be ready to watch, and they will send it to you in an – SO, you can turn it off and it will keep going. You do not have to sit and watch it process, analyze, and render….

If you need to edit, go to my videos FYI- DO NOT PICK REMIX!! It will mess up your order

Edit will bring you back to the “element” page

When you are all done – share it with your teacher.

to your teacher. We are using at g-mail because our school can not hold all the animoto videos. Ask your teacher for their address.

Your teacher’s You can write a message – it would be smart to tell me who the video is from. When ALL done – choose close (it is at the top)

Some hints: The PSA should be compelling (make us feel) without very many words (pathos). You should tell us the BIG BIG facts and statistics – 1,000 children die every year from…. Or 7 in 10 teens try……. How can people get involved – a phone # or website (or both) would be super important. How does this organization help??? 1 ½ - 3 minutes in length. Do not go over or under. Have fun. It is really hard to mess up animoto. You may want to create a wordle for one of your tiles –

Things to Remember: Be serious Have a clear message Be between 1 ½ - 3 mins. Have important and accurate information If someone is acting – make it believable. BE RESPECTFUL. Give statistics. You can film, but video clips have to be approved by your teacher, and you have to do this on your own time.