How to Make a Simple and Easy AMV

Pick a show. It doesn't really matter as long as it's anime, but try to make it a show you actually watch and enjoy. If you don't know anything about the show, it may throw you off track.

Pick a song. Actually this should be done before picking your show, as you may not be able to find the right song to go with your show, but switched around it would be much easier. Grab the song from any source you can.

• Listen to the song almost non-stop for about a day. This will give you the knowledge of where certain things in the music are for you to sync to, meaning you don't have to rely on audio pikes to create your AMV.
• Think about what type of AMV you can make to the song. You can't make a sentimental AMV with long running clips to a screamo song. Think about flow at this time; are you going to sync to words? Drums? Guitars? How are you going to transition at different times, crossfades? Black fades? Effects? Think about all of this thoroughly, for this is what's going to make your AMV worth watching.

Get DVDS. You can use torrents to get the VOBs/Mpeg2 files that you want to use. Knowing your footage is a must for an AMV. Also, learn how to convert the VOBs to something that is usable in an AMV, which requires outside programs.

• Note: VOBs are large; a single disc goes up to 1 gig of hard drive space. So if you have an external hard drive, now is the time to use it. If you don't have the space for VOBs, get high-quality .avi files with no subtitles on it.

Time to edit and create the AMV. You can use a lot of editing programs for this step, though preferably a non-linear editing program such as Adobe Premiere, Final Cut, Magix, and Wax. Adobe After Effects is not a good choice for this part (but creates great effects for final touch-ups). If the recommended software are not affordable, Wax is free, and has a lot of the features that its more expensive counterparts have. You can also use mobile apps such as Videoshop and FilmoraGo, if you want. Be prepared to spend a long while on this step, as long as it takes to reach perfection.

Time balancing is also very important. You don't want to edit for 6 hours on an AMV; otherwise you are going to get bored. A good schedule would be: four hours AMV, then anything you want to do. If you have time, spend another two hours on your AMV.