This week I tried out Animoto. I had been aware of it for some time and had seen it being used
to great effect. However I simply never got around to using it or found a different app to suit the need I had at that time. I found that you only get to create 30 second videos before you have to pay for extra length to your video, which was an initial disappointment. But you get what you pay for in life and I think Animoto could well be worth the money. The video creation interface is really as simple as a company could make it. It's easy to add pictures, videos and even your own soundtrack to your creations. Animoto has a plethora of design templates for your video and I imagine you would be a long time using it before you felt limited by their available choices. Overall I'd recommend it for teachers as an accessible and quick way to create teacher resources or to help pupils create a video project. Here are a couple of quick resources I made this week for a Leaving Certificate class on
The Truman Show.
Update: Thanks to a tip off from @MrAbe101 I found out that teachers can apply for a
free educational account here. This extends the video length to three minutes and allows you to create 50 videos with your class in a six month period. I applied and was immediately accepted to the upgraded account. I created the video on Casablanca, below, as an example of how to use the extended time.
The Truman Show - Cul. Context
The Truman Show - Cul. Context (2)
