Icon of program: Windows Live Movie Maker

Windows Live Movie Maker

Used Windows Live Movie Maker for Windows? Share your experience and help other users.

Key Details of Windows Live Movie Maker

  • Create movies and slide shows from your photos and videos, and share them with your friends and family.
  • Last updated on
  • There have been 8 updates
  • Virus scan status:

    Clean (it’s extremely likely that this software program is clean)

Windows Essentials 2012 suite (and Windows Live Movie Maker) reached end of support on January 10, 2017. It is no longer available for download. Download.com offers no downloadable file and presents data for informational purposes only.

Editors’ Review

Download.com staff

Functional freeware that's aimed squarely at the casual consumer crowd, Microsoft's Windows Live Movie Maker easily turns photos and video clips into slideshows and movies on Vista and Windows 7. However, its toolset and interface lack a certain sophistication that users of all levels would appreciate. The app comes bundled into the bulky Windows Live Essentials suite of apps; to separate it, you'll need to uncheck the other boxes before installing.

Like Microsoft Office 2007 apps, Windows Live Movie Maker tucks its actions and menus into a visual ribbon. You'll start dragging and dropping video clips and photos into the storyboard. You could finish a minute later with a click of the AutoMovie button, which populates the movie with a title, transitions, pan, and zoom effects. It'll also prompt you to add a song from the hard drive. Automating movies is handy, especially for time-restricted users. After all, you can always tweak it later with the help of the menu tabs.

The intermediate photo, audio, and video-editing features are sparse--you can split and trim videos, fade songs in and out, and pick a start and end point for audio and video. The publishing and sharing options are better thought out. Windows Live Movie Maker can e-mail a finished video, burn it to DVD, or upload it to YouTube or Facebook (with a plug-in). Videos can also be saved in HD for your TV (standard or widescreen) and converted to a mobile phone-friendly format.

As of 2023, Microsoft no longer officially supported Windows Live Movie Maker, leaving many users searching for alternatives. However, it can still be downloaded from trusted third-party sites, though users should exercise caution regarding potential security risks. Its original functionalities remain relevant, but compatibility issues with modern operating systems may arise. To address this gap, Microsoft has encouraged users to transition to Windows Photos, including basic video-editing features that come pre-installed on Windows 10 and 11. While Windows Photos provides a modern interface and native integration with Microsoft's ecosystem, it still lacks more advanced video editors' depth and customization options.

For those seeking an alternative with similar ease of use but enhanced capabilities, Shotcut has emerged as a popular choice. Shotcut is an open-source video editor compatible with Windows, macOS, and Linux, offering features such as multi-track editing, keyframing, and support for a wide range of formats. Unlike Windows Live Movie Maker, Shotcut includes robust tools like color grading, transitions, and audio mixing, making it suitable for beginners and intermediate users. Additionally, its active community ensures regular updates and support.

A key difference between Windows Live Movie Maker and Shotcut lies in their interfaces. Windows Live Movie Maker's ribbon-based UI prioritizes simplicity, allowing users to create basic movies quickly. In contrast, Shortcut's layout can be more intimidating for newcomers due to its professional-grade toolset, but it offers greater creative freedom. Moreover, Shotcut's support for advanced export settings, including 4K video, contrasts with Movie Maker's limited HD output.

Bottom Line

In summary, Windows Live Movie Maker remains a nostalgic choice for those who prefer its straightforward workflow and lightweight design. Yet, for users who need modern tools and broader compatibility, Shotcut offers a compelling alternative that bridges ease of use with advanced functionality. Users can select the app that best aligns with their video-editing goals by evaluating their specific needs.

What’s new in version 2012

  • Support for recording voiceovers was restored, along with an audio mixer and integration with several free stock music services.
  • H.264/MP4 is now the default export format, replacing Windows Media Video.
  • Support for uploading to Vimeo was added.
  • Hardware accelerated video stabilization was added for Windows 8 users.
Icon of program: Windows Live Movie Maker

Windows Live Movie Maker

Used Windows Live Movie Maker for Windows? Share your experience and help other users.

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Full Specifications

GENERAL
Release
Latest update
Version
2012
OPERATING SYSTEMS
Platform
Windows
Operating System
  • Windows 10
  • Windows 7
  • Windows Vista
  • Windows Server
Additional Requirements
DirectX 9
POPULARITY
Total Downloads
3,531,744
Downloads Last Week
0
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Program available in other languages

Last Updated

User Reviews

2.2/5

141 User Votes

Developer’s Description

By Microsoft
Create movies and slide shows from your photos and videos, and share them with your friends and family.

Windows Live Movie Maker is the one-minute way to turn photos and videos into great-looking movies that are easy to share -- for free.Windows Live Movie Maker is a new offering that allows you to easily turn photos and videos into great-looking movies to share with family and friends across a TV, PC or mobile device using the most popular camera types and file formats on the market today.

Supported image and video files include: Windows Media Video (WMV), Windows Media, DV-AVI, Microsoft Recorded TV Show, 3GP, 3GPP, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, Motion JPEG, JPEG, TIFF, GIF, Bitmap, PNG. Windows 7 users can also view QuickTime MOV and QT files, AVCHD, and MPEG-4 video formats.

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