Saving a project

Saving your project lets you keep your current work, and then later open the file in Windows Movie Maker to make further changes. You can continue editing your project from where you left off when you last saved the project. When you save a project, the arrangement of clips added to the storyboard/timeline, as well as any video transitions, video effects, titles, credits, and any other edits you made are retained.

A Windows Movie Maker project file is saved with a .mswmm file name extension.

You can also save an existing Windows Movie Maker project file with a new name. This enables you to use the saved project as the basis for other new projects. For example, if your current project contains a short introduction to a movie, you can save the existing project with a new name and then continue editing. When you wanted to create a new movie that includes the same short introduction, you can then open the original project file that contains only the introduction, and then make additional edits without needing to re-create the introduction of your movie.

To save a project

1. On the File menu, click Save Project. 
2. In the File name box, type the file name, and then click Save. 

To save a project with a new name

1. On the File menu, click Save Project As.
2. In the File name box, type the new file name, and then click Save.

Previewing projects and clips

As you work on a project, you can preview the project periodically in the monitor to check your editing. Or, if you want to preview individual clips, you can use the Contents pane to ensure you captured the content you want to use in your movies. Use the playback buttons to move from frame to frame or from clip to clip.

To preview a project

1. Add one or more clips to the storyboard/timeline.
2. On the Play menu, click Rewind Storyboard or Rewind Timeline to go to the beginning of the project.
3. On the Play menu, click Play Storyboard or Play Timeline.

To preview a clip

1. In the Contents pane, click the clip you want to preview.
2. On the Play menu, click Play Clip.

To play video in full-screen mode

1. Select video on the storyboard/timeline or in the Contents pane.
2. On the View menu, click Full Screen.

To pause or stop previewing a project

1. As video, audio, a video effect, or video transition is playing in the monitor, on the Play menu, click Pause Clip or Stop.

To change the preview monitor size

1. Select video on the storyboard/timeline or in the Contents pane. 
2. Do one of the following, depending on the preview monitor size you want to choose: 

• To preview the video at 320x240 pixels, on the View menu, point to Preview Monitor Size, and then click Small (320x240).
• To preview the video at 640x480 pixels, on the View menu, point to Preview Monitor Size, and then click Large (640x480).

This option is available when there is enough available space to resize the monitor without resizing the storyboard/timeline.

To jump to a frame

1. As video is either playing or paused in the monitor, on the Play menu, click Previous Frame or Next Frame.

To jump to a clip in a project

1. Open a project.
2. Click a clip in the storyboard/timeline.
3. Do one of the following:

• On the Play menu, click Back to view the previous clip in your project.
• On the Play menu, click Forward to view the next clip in your project.