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User profile for user: GardenWitch
GardenWitch Author
User level: Level 1
18 points

iMovie 10.3.5 desktop version - won't export higher than 720 and degrades quality

Using iMovie desktop, the latest version 10.3.5. All the clips imported for editing are 1080p. The final edit videos are under 3 minutes. When exporting to a file saved to my desktop, the only options are 720p or 540p and the quality is terrible. When uploading to other platforms for playback -- social media, YouTube and Vimeo, the quality further degrades.


Previously, before the update to newer iMovie software, I was able to export to 1080p and the quality was better at the final playback destination.


I'm using IOS Ventura 13.2.1.


Any thoughts?

MacBook Pro Apple Silicon

Posted on Mar 2, 2023 6:11 AM

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User profile for user: Rich839
Rich839
User level: Level 8
47,730 points

Posted on Mar 2, 2023 8:09 AM

Hi, GardenWitch,


Try deleting preferences and see if that solves it.


To delete preferences, open iMovie while holding down the Option and Command keys and select to delete preferences in the box that appears. iMovie will open in a new library. Reopen your old library to get back to your projects. Possibly you may need to reboot to set the changes.  Deleting preferences is a safe procedure that will not cause data loss or disruption to your project.


If still no luck, try creating a new project and insert a 1080p clip into it as the very first clip placed into the project. That will set the project at 1080p. Then you should get a 1080p export option and be able to export at 1080p. This is because iMovie sets the resolution of the project as that of the very first clip placed into it. Once set, neither the frame rate nor the resolution can be changed, even if you delete the first clip and even if other clips in the project are other than 1080p. You would need to create a new project.


-- Rich

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User profile for user: Rich839
Rich839
User level: Level 8
47,730 points

Mar 2, 2023 8:09 AM in response to GardenWitch

Hi, GardenWitch,


Try deleting preferences and see if that solves it.


To delete preferences, open iMovie while holding down the Option and Command keys and select to delete preferences in the box that appears. iMovie will open in a new library. Reopen your old library to get back to your projects. Possibly you may need to reboot to set the changes.  Deleting preferences is a safe procedure that will not cause data loss or disruption to your project.


If still no luck, try creating a new project and insert a 1080p clip into it as the very first clip placed into the project. That will set the project at 1080p. Then you should get a 1080p export option and be able to export at 1080p. This is because iMovie sets the resolution of the project as that of the very first clip placed into it. Once set, neither the frame rate nor the resolution can be changed, even if you delete the first clip and even if other clips in the project are other than 1080p. You would need to create a new project.


-- Rich

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User profile for user: GardenWitch
GardenWitch Author
User level: Level 1
18 points

Mar 2, 2023 2:56 PM in response to Rich839

Thanks Rich. Solved.


I followed the recommendation to delete preferences. When restarting, iMovie kept freezing up. Rebooting the computer did not solve. Deleted and reinstalled iMovie. I was able to get it to restart without freezing.


Good to know about that iMovie defaults to select the resolution of the very first image. I was not aware of that so I started a new project instead of using our movie template. That template must have had a 720p image as a lead in at one time. The fresh start exported as a 1080p so I created a new template for our video series. Quality is better but still not as high as the original footage shot.


Improvement appreciated. Thanks!

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iMovie 10.3.5 desktop version - won't export higher than 720 and degrades quality

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