How to Import Videos to iMovie on Mac: A Step-by-Step Guide

Liza Brown

Jul 18, 2024• Proven solutions

Developed by Apple, iMovie is the inbuilt video editor for Mac that is available for free and offers a wide range of features. For instance, using iMovie, you can crop or trim your videos, apply filters, edit audio, and do so much more. Though, the first thing that you need to do is import a video on iMovie. Since it can be a bit complicated, I will let you know how to import videos to iMovie in two different ways right here. Let’s begin!

Part 1: How to Import Videos to iMovie on Mac in Different Ways?

Ideally, you can import any media file (like photos, videos, or audio) to your iMovie project. While the application is majorly used to and create and edit videos, it can also meet other requirements of yours. Since iMovie is an inbuilt application in Mac, you don’t need to install anything to get things started. To learn how to import videos to iMovie, you can follow these techniques.

Method 1. Import Videos to iMovie Manually

If you have multiple photos or videos stored in your Mac, then you can just create a new project, and manually load them to iMovie in the following way:

Step 1: Create a New Project

To start with, you simply need to launch the iMovie app on your Mac via Spotlight or Finder. Once the iMovie application is launched, just go to the “Media” section from the top panel and click on the “+” button to open a new project.

Subsequently, you will be asked to work on an existing template or load a fresh iMovie project. Just select the “iMovie” option from here to get started with a new project.

Step 2: Manually Import Media to iMovie

This will now launch a dedicated interface of iMovie where you can start working on a new project. Here, you can click on the “Import Media” button from its home to launch a browser window. You can now just go to the location where your photos/videos are saved and manually load them to iMovie.

Subsequently, you can also get this option from iMovie’s Menu > File > Import Media field.

Start 3: Start Editing with iMovie

Once the video is loaded, its thumbnail would be displayed on the home screen. You can now drag the video thumbnail and drop it to the timeline at the bottom. This will let you get a preview of the video and access several editing options available in iMovie.

After when you are done editing your video in iMovie, you can go to its Menu > File > Share field. From here, you can directly upload it on social media or choose the “File” option to save the video on your Mac’s storage.

Method 2. Directly Drag and Drop Files from Finder to iMovie

Besides using the native feature in iMovie, you can also take the assistance of Finder to load multiple media files to the app. To learn how to import videos to iMovie in this way, you can just launch Finder and go to the location where your media files are saved.

Now, you can also load the iMovie app on your Mac and keep it running in the background. Go to the Finder window and select multiple files that you wish you load using the Command key. Afterward, you can just drag these files from the Finder window and drop them to the library list on the iMovie interface to load them.

Bonus Tip: How to Import Videos from Photos to iMovie?

If you already have your media files stored in your Mac’s Photos library, then you can directly import them to an iMovie project. To learn how to import videos from Photos to iMovie, you can launch the app and start working on a new project.

Now, go to the “Libraries” option from the sidebar and select Photos. This will automatically load the Photos library, and you can later go to the “My Media” option from the top to import your files to a new project.

Part 2: How to Import Videos to the iMovie iOS App?

Apart from the iMovie Mac application, a lot of users also take the assistance of the iOS app of iMovie. Ideally, learning how to import videos to the iMovie iOS app is also quite easy.

All you need to do is launch the iMovie app on your iPhone or iPad and choose to work on a new project. Tap on the “+” icon and choose to load a new iMovie project on your device. This will launch the Photos app on your device, letting you manually select the videos/pictures to load for the project.

Part 3: Other Tips for Managing Videos in iMovie

Now when you know how to import videos to iMovie, you can easily start editing your videos. Furthermore, you can also follow these quick tips to make the most of iMovie.

• Know the Supported Formats

Too many times, users are not able to load videos to iMovie because of an incompatible format. While iMovie supports most of the video formats, some of them like DivX, MTS, XviD, etc. are not fully compatible.

• Import Media from Libraries/Projects

Besides importing videos and photos from your Mac, you can also explore the existing iMovie projects or simply browse the connected iMovie/Photos library where your files could be present.

• How to Import Any YouTube Video to iMovie?

Ideally, you can’t directly import a YouTube video to an iMovie project. At first, you need to download the YouTube video on your Mac and can later import it to iMovie.

• Add Audio to Your iMovie Project

Not just photos and videos, you can add an audio file to your iMovie project as well. Once you open a new project, click on the “+” button and select “Audio” to include an existing soundtrack or import another audio file from your Mac.

• Export Your Files in Different Qualities

After editing your videos, you can also directly export your files to YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, etc. via the Share option. You can also choose to save the video in different formats and resolutions from here.

There you go! After reading this post, anyone can learn how to import videos to iMovie on Mac or iPhone. To make things easier for you, I have listed a detailed stepwise solution that you can follow to import any video on iMovie. If you want, you can also learn how to import videos from Photos to iMovie and follow the shared tips to use iMovie like a pro.

Liza Brown

Liza Brown is a writer and a lover of all things video.

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