How to make a movie
How I did it: Mine wasn't a "movie" movie: I converted 8mm film from the 1960s - 1980s to DVD for family for a Christmas gift. I first projected the film from the 8mm projector onto the screen, and recorded it with my digital camcorder on a tripod. The house didn't have to be quiet, because the 8mm are silent and we planned on putting the movies to our own music. I later discovered it worked far better to project the films about 18" away from a very white piece of paper, so the image was about 6 inches tall. I got a much sharper result that way. And I could do it in the corner of a room, or in a small room, rather than taking up the whole living room for the night. The most time-consuming part of the recording process was watching the film to see if it was one we wanted to record, then rewinding it to start recording.
Then they were downloaded to the computer via firewire. Then editing began. I used Windows Movie Maker, which is free. It's easy enough to use; you can find online tutorials, too.
I'm glad we're doing this. As I watched one film, it kept breaking. I would put it back on, and it would break again. It was too brittle to watch even once.
Lessons & tips: Give yourself more time than you think you need, then double it!
Resources: Projector, digital camcorder, Windows MovieMaker, your favorite music, lots of time.
