Animoto is a new online video editing service but unlike any you’ve used before. You can quickly and easily create impressive videos with your own photo’s and music and share them instantly via email or by embedding it on your website/blog. The special effects are extremely slick and professional quality. If you don’t like how things have been generated you can click the remix button and it automatically recreates the video (without touching the original!). You can also remix the original video yourself and change the images or music and again keep the original intact.
Here is a sample video I put together in less than five minutes! I just chose 10 photos (the minimum requirement) from my computer and added one of my favorite songs from my mp3 collection (The Simple Things) and let Animoto do its thing. It actually took longer for the service to render and produce the finished video than it took to design it!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmNXl7v8vKY ]
But Wait There’s More!
You can actually use images you have stored online from Flickr, Photobucket, Picaso or other sites. You can also use music from Animoto’s impressive online music library.
When you’re done creating your videos they are all stored in your own library called My Videos. Another fantastic feature is its integration with YouTube! With the click of a button your videos can be exported to your YouTube account, tagged and bagged! You can also download your videos to save them to your computer.
Here’s their 60-second demo:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvjRzaUYoLw&feature=related]
How Much?
OK, creating professional videos can’t be cheap, so how much will it cost? Well, the basic account is free which lets you create unlimited 30-second videos which is a great deal! If you want to produce a full-length video then you can either chose the pay-per-video option which is only $3 per video or the incredible unlimited videos and download package for just $30 not per month but per year! Amazing, huh?
Final Thoughts
While I love the unique remixing feature that never produces the same exact video twice in a row, I hope they someday give more options and controls over that feature. It would be awesome to be able to pick and choose whatever effects and transitions we want just like we do with presentation packages and full-blown desktop video packages. Still, who can complain about an online service that can offer this kind of high-quality type of product that produces such professional results so quickly and easily?
One last thing, don’t think of this as just for home movies and personal use. I have no doubts that many businesses will make full-use of this technology to produce cool marketing and promotional videos for their websites and viral marketing campaigns.