Inserting Movies: Black Box vs. Still Image

[Diane Busch]

Using PowerPoint 2003. Why, after inserting a movie, does a black box appear
sometimes, and other times, a still image of the video? I need the still
image - not the box. I placed a still image picture over the movie and have
it disappear a second before the movie starts, but I do not like doing that
because I eventually convert my powerpoints to flash videos and it's not a
smooth play like the videos that do appear as a still image. I also cut a
few seconds off the beginning of the video, thinking it was a problem with
the beginning, but that didn't help. Still appears as a black box on
inserting. How do I get the video to appear as a still image instead of a
black box? Please help!

 

[Ute Simon]

Using PowerPoint 2003. Why, after inserting a movie, does a black box
appear
sometimes, and other times, a still image of the video? I need the still
image - not the box. I placed a still image picture over the movie and
have
it disappear a second before the movie starts, but I do not like doing
that
because I eventually convert my powerpoints to flash videos and it's not a
smooth play like the videos that do appear as a still image. I also cut a
few seconds off the beginning of the video, thinking it was a problem with
the beginning, but that didn't help. Still appears as a black box on
inserting. How do I get the video to appear as a still image instead of a
black box? Please help!

In the old times, when film was still on celluloid, you needed a meter or so
of lead material to fasten it to the spool. This was continued in digital
videos by inserting 10 or so black frames to make a short flicker at
start-up less visible.

In my opinion, it is not needed any longer, especially not in short videos,
but production companies sometimes still do it. You can either order the
video without this lead. Or, if you have video editing software and know how
to handle it, cut it out yourself. I'm not sure, why you still see a black
preview in the slide. Have you tried re-rendering/producing the edited file?

Instead of applying a disappear animation to the covering screenshot, you
might want to try to start the video with a trigger animation, where the
trigger is the image and the action is Play.

Best regards,
Ute