Logo courtesy of Animoto press kit and download promotional materials.
There are many wonderful software programs available currently in my classroom to develop eye catching images, video, slide shows and presentation. For the upcoming school year I plan on introducing my students to some of this software, such as Garage Band and iMovie to use in project development. However, we don't always have the time for precession video editing with impressive transitions and soundtracks. For myself, my schedule is so tight at times I forget what pillows feel like or what dreams are. I stumbled upon two web based, tool sites that could very easily help me (especially in a time crunch) to create great introductory videos for my lessons and web announcement for my students using images and videos that I upload.
The first is Animoto. This site "automatically generates professionally produced videos using their own patent-pending technology and high-end motion graphics." (Animoto. 2010). The service it provides is absolutely free for any video 30 seconds or shorter. If you are planning on only making one video you can purchase a full-length video credit for $3.00 or all access service with unlimited videos for $30.00 a year. One of the really cool features that Animoto provides is "re-generate" where you can run your pictures, sound and video back through their generator and get a completely different result using the same content. I applied for an education account they offer to find out what the terms and conditions of use and service are because I couldn't find specific details on the site for education. Lets hope it's free!
To get an idea of the kinds of videos Animoto creates, please check out this link HERE. I highly recommend the second video on the top row titled "Puppies".
The second site I tried out was Flixtime. It is generally the same concept as Animoto for creating short videos. However, Flixtime allows for up to 60 seconds for free and then service fees for anything above 60 seconds in length. Flixtimes other rate plans are a bit more pricey for both personal and professional use above the allotted free time. Both sites provide a large library of sound loops and music that you can use as well as uploading your own. It was my observation though that Animoto had a little more hip music library. Neither site will allow for you to do more detailed editing without an upgrade but for someone that loves to take pictures and video and share them I feel it would be worth the cost. For myself to use as a tool to create an introduction video to a lesson or for my Culture Club announcements of concerts and events on our class site I think it would be great!
Here is a short presentation created using Flixtime I made to get a feel of what the tool does.
Flixtime. (2010). Your fix in a flash. Retrieved July 21, 2010, from http://www.flixtime.com
Animoto. (2010. Learn more in 60 seconds. Retrieved July 20, 2010, from http://www.animoto.com
