If like me, you were very upsetwhen you realized that the version of DVDit bundled with Premiere 6.5 is only the LE (limited Edition) version, which does not allow you to create chapter, and if you did not want to be ripped off by $200 to upgrade to the SE (Standard Edition) version, which allows chapter creation but does not deal with ac3 file (you have to upgrade to the PE (Professional Edition) version, a $400 upgrade), you may be interested by the following.
This is a method to create a menu offering both to play the film or to go to specific chapters, without duplicating each individual chapters. Any comments, suggestions or alternative solutions are welcome.
1st step: Film preparation.
1. With you preferred editing tool, cut your film in chapters. You should save each chapter as an individual movie. I personally work with .avi files
2. Save the first frame of your chapter as a .bmp file. I use it as the intro to the corresponding chapter, although you may want to play something else instead (see 2nd step below): Chapter_x_first_frame.bmp (X is the chapter number)
3. Save a frame as a .bmp tool, which you want to use in your chapter selection menu to refer to the chapter: Chapter_x_frame.bmp.
4. If you are working with .avi file, encode it in MPEG2. I save each individual chapter as Chapter_x.
2nd step: Authoring
1. Create the first menu, the Welcome_menu.
Personally, I create button 1 to play the and button 2 for chapter selection: Chapters_selection_menu.
2. Create the Chapters_selection_menu
Create one button per chapter. You can use the Chapter_x_frame.bmp as a button. To do that, in the button menu, right click the menu and import the Chapter_x_frame.bmp file.
3. Create the Chapter_x_menu
I use as background image the first frame of the chapter. To do that, in the background menu, right click the menu and import the Chapter_x_first_frame.bmp file.
Create the button 1, which you are going to reduce to its minimum size with the handles. To make sure you cannot see it, adjust its colors so that it disappears in the background image.
4. Create the links.
Welcome_menu: link button 1 to Chapter_1 movie (drag the Chapter_1.m2v and .wav files onto button 1)
Link button 2 to a Chapters_selection_menu
Chapters_selection _menu: link each button to the relevant Chapter_x_menu
Chapter_x_menu: adjust its properties as follows:
Duration: 1s. This is the minimum duration this menu can play. Therefore, when you select a chapter, the relevant Chapter_x_menu will play for one second. You may want to adjust your background image accordingly.
Default button: button 1
End action: button 1
For each Chapter_x_menu, link button one to the Chapter_x movie (drag the Chapter_x.m2v and .wav files onto button 1).
This means that when, in the chapters_selection_menu, you select Chapter_x, the program is going to play Chapter_x_menu for 1 second and automatically play Chapter_x_video.
Adjust the properties of each Chapter_x videos as follows:
Menu button: Menu:Welcome_menu
Next Button: Movie Chapter_x+1 (where X+1 is the chapter you want to play after Chapter_x). For the last chapter, this should be set to Welcome_menu.
End Action: Movie Chapter_x+1 (where X+1 is the chapter you want to play after Chapter_x). For the last chapter, this should be set to Welcome_menu.
Tada.
This is not perfect, maybe a bit complicated , but a way to save $200 for the chapter option.
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