Working with Sony Alpha QX1 XDCAM media in iMovie

Came upon incompatibility issues editing Sony Alpha QX1 XDCAM files in iMovie? Convert them first. Here's a quick guide walking you through the process of converting XDCAM MXF files to iMovie's favorite AIC .mov format.

"Hello everyone, I am desperately trying to edit Sony Alpha QX1 XDCAM with iMovie but nothing seems to work. I downloaded XDCAM transfer which is supposed to "rewrap" the files into .mov but it's telling me I don't have the right codecs and I don't know where to find those. Please help I am about to cry for the first time in years."

iMovie doesn't directly support XDCAM. To be able to edit Sony Alpha QX1 XDCAM files in iMovie, you will need to transcode them to a format that is compatible with iMovie first. Check a quick guide on how to encode Sony Alpha QX1 XDCAM MXF clips to iMovie preferred AIC .mov format.

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How to encode Sony Alpha QX1 XDCAM MXF files to AIC .mov for iMovie editing?

Here's what you need

Video Converter (It is available for Mac, simply download the proper version depending on your computer.)

To transcode Sony Alpha QX1 XDCAM MXF video to AIC for iMovie editing, do as below: Step 1: Click "Add File" to load Sony Alpha QX1 XDCAM MXF video files into this program.

Step 2: Select output format for iMovie Click "Profile" to select "iMovie and Final Cut Express" > "Apple InterMediate Codec(AIC) (*.mov)" as output format. AIC .mov is iMovie's favorite editing codec, which iMovie will recognize and handle well.

Tips: If necessary, you can click "Settings" button to modify video and audio parameters like encoder, resolution, frame rate, bitrate, aspect ratio, sample rate, and audio channels. You can also "enable 3D Settings" to add 3D effect to your source media.

Step 3: Click "Convert" to start Sony Alpha QX1 XDCAM MXF video to iMovie conversion. As soon as the conversion is complete, click "Open Folder" to get the generated AIC .mov files for editing in iMovie with optimum performance. Hope it helps.