Making Movies Nothing With Free Software
I love creating videos. Although I am now fortunate enough to have Final Cut Studios, it was not too long ago that I was making movies using Windows Movie Maker (the only free software for video production I was aware of, at that time). So, you can imagine my shock when I discovered that, not only was there a community of people who made software for the betterment of that community, and that the software in many cases was free, but it was also GOOD! It turns out that some of the best software available comes from the open-source community.
Open-source software is not always free (and not all free software is open-source ), but since the title of this post is making movies for nothing with free software we’ll just talk about free software you can use to make up your editing suite.
The first thing you need is a good video editor. KEDnLive is by far the best free video editor. It’s a Linux only program, but Nixie Pixel has a tutorial explaining how to install the programe on a memory stick.
You’ll also need an audio editor. I’d recommend Audacity. Audacity has features like noise removal that, in my opinion, put it far above any other free audio editing software and it’s cross platform running on Mac, Windows and Linux.
The next thing every video editor needs is an image editor. I know it’s hard to wrap your head around, but image editors are used for everything from simple lower third titles to creating massive set extensions and visual effects compositions. My favorite free program for this is Gimp. Paint.net is also a good choice, although it falls short of Gimp because its Windows only, not cross platform. Also, I personally dislike the interface.
Another great software for your free multi media production suite is Blender 3D. Blender 3D is a great application for well… 3D modeling, animation, compositing and rendering, It’s a great program that is fairly advanced, but very fun.
This next tool is all about pre-production. I’m talking about Celtx, which is an absolutely killer script writing software that also does an amazing job of letting you lay out your story board, save the contact info of your cast and crew and plan your schedule. Another truly amazing tool worth a mention is ReelClever.com. It’s a great way to plan your schedule and story board.
More great free Production tools: Art of Illusion Gnome Subtitles InkScape Jahshaka Pencil Picasa.
Mason Pelt