IMovie 11 wont stop generating thumbnails

I imported a couple videos. After they were complete, a window popped up saying "processing event: new event" but it took forever and I had to shut down before it was finished.
Now, every time i open iMovie, that window pops up and it says: "generating thumbnails." The time remaining is 4570 hours and climbing. It never gets anywhere and I can't click on anything. Is there any way to make it stop? Or should I reinstall iMovie 11?
Thanks.

Doubt a reinstall would change anything. Close iMovie and delete your caches and plist is where I would start. http://uimfaq.us/b3aANe
Daniel C. Slagle
Keeper of the "Unofficial" iMovie FAQ
I may receive some form of compensation, financial or otherwise, from my recommendation or link

Similar Messages

Stop generating thumbnails

Please, how do I stop iMovie from "generating thumbnails?"
After this stops, I cannot get iMovie to recognize a connected (via USB) camcorder (Sony HDR-CX160). Although iMovie shows in "Event Library" that this camcorder is connected, iMovie does NOT show that the camcorder's storage has any video to be imported. I have spent hours trying to figure this out and cannot.
Thank you.
JM

Good thought, but the drive is set as Ignore Ownership, and iMovie created the folders.
Upon following launches the behavior has not repeated. Very strange, but not a major concern at the moment. Most of my editing is done in FCP 6.

IMovie 11 stuck on "generating thumbnails"

I have 1 TB of movies that worked fine in iMovie09. I open iMovie11 and it gets stuck like in the attached photo.
1. I tried using it after every upgrade, it never worked.
2. iMovie11 works fine with newly imported movies (tape/DV, AVI, MOV, etc) - imports them fine, doesn't get stuck.
3. I could move the old movies to a different directory (not iMovie Events) and import them in iMovie11, but I hate the idea. It took forever to import 500GB from iMovie06/HD into iMovie09 and I accepted it as a one-time backward incompatibility. I expected iMovie11 to be backward compatible with iMovie09.
My question is why does it get stuck and how to fix it. Other than reimporting 100 DV tapes or iMovie 09 events?
Thanks in advance.

Hi
Me just thinking
• Panic Halts = error builds up on Hard Disk - I always do a
- Repair Permissions (Disk Util tool) - and -
- Repair Hard Disk ( I start my Mac from install DVDs and select Disk Util tool from this - as it can not mend the a Disk with a running Mac OS (brain surgery on one self is not recommended))
• Generating Thumbnails
- Can take LONG TIME - I just let it be to do it's job
- If ridiculously long time >2 hour even > one day - then in my cases it's been due to a too full Hard Disk.
I never let Main Start-Up (Mac OS) Hard disk go less than 25Gb free space - ever.
Yours Bengt W

My iMovie is stuck on Generating Thumbnails. Timer increases instead of decreasing.

My iMovie11 is stuck on generating thumbnails. Timer increases rather than decreases.Have to force quit.

You might be able to trick iMovie by temporarily moving that project folder out of the following location:
Mac HD > Users > (your home folder) > Movies > iMovie Projects > (look for the name of the project that blew-up)
Drag that project folder to the Desktop for the time being. Launch iMovie and see if it still tries to create the Project Thumbnails. If it gets past any error messages or other house keeping, you can create a new project. Otherwise, quit iMovie. Drag that project folder from the desktop BACK into your iMovie Projects folder. Try launching iMovie again and see if it gets stuck generating the Thumbnails.

Imovie 09 never stops building thumbnails-

greetings,
this is the first ever launch of imovie 09 on a new macbook pro. there is a 80GB aperture library with lots of short movies taken with various cams and phones…
now when i launch imovie it tells me that it needs to create thumbnails for my aperture library… and after 18hours still is running (hot) and askes for another 380hours time… what ?!?
anyone know how to deal with such situation ?
thanks in advance…
ab.

You are welcome.
In Activity Monitor, left click on the process (iMovie). Then click "Inspect" (second from left at the top).
A window should come up. In this window, you should see %CPU and "Recent Hangs". If "Recent Hangs" is zero, it is probably working OK. If "Recent Hangs" has a positive number in it, you could be in an infinite loop that will never finish.
If you need to Force Quit, I would use /Force Quit rather than force quitting from the Activity Monitor. There may be multiple threads that need to be killed.
Message was edited by: AppleMan1958

Problems in generating thumbnails in iMovie08

I just downloaded 6GB worth of video from my Sanyo XactiHD camera into my iPhoto. When i launch my iMovie08, it asks for permissions for generating thumbnails and then it closes down. It has imported stills and video into iPhoto perfectly, but fails to generate thumbnails in iMovie (other projects open fine, if i skip the thumbnail generation and postpone importing the new video). I have tried three or four times and it still crashes. I tried importing directly into iMovie and it still crashes with a message "iMovie application quit unexpectedly". Any suggestions on how to deal with it?
Regards
Sanjeev

If you have corrupted thumbnails you can try the suggestion to delete either the whole _iMovie Thumbnails_ folder or individual files in there. Then restart iMovie and let it regenerate the thumbnails.
If iMovie continually fails to generate thumbnails for some clips (as it seems to do for some clips imported from my Sony Cybershot) I figured *as a workaround* you can "manually" generate Thumbnails if you open the movie in Quicktime and can Export in Photo-JPEG at 120x90 resolution and drop the file into the iMovie Thumbnails folder for your event. Note that the movie you export has the same name as the source minus the .mov extension.
Thumbnail format info
!http://picasaweb.google.com/rocketmanblamb/IMovieSupportImages?authkey=5u255cTC 8Tc#5265888220957444242!
iMovie event directory
!http://picasaweb.google.com/rocketmanblamb/IMovieSupportImages?authkey=5u255cTC 8Tc#5265891696441348034!
To do this for many clips this would be annoying I know, I'm thinking that you could create an Automator workflow to do this for all the files but I haven't done this yet. If I work on that I will post more info here.
I also talk about this issue here:
[http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1775462]
[http://splinterinyourmind.com/2008/08/14/workaround-for-imovie-08-taking-a-long -time-forever-to-generate-thumbnails>
Message was edited by: rocketmanblamb

Imovie 9.09 unable to generate thumbnails on my iMac running 10.6.8

I'm trying to digitise camcorder footage currently saved on vhs tape. Although I'm now using a 27"iMac running Yosemite, I don't have the usb lead with the std usb connector on the computer end to connect the digitiser to it, so I'm using my old iMac running 10.6.8 and iMovie 9 as I have the correct lead for that iMac.
I did a test one minute file transfer and this digitised, opening it in iMovie 10, ok so I saved it onto a USB stick and transferred it to the 27" iMac though without any content displayed in the clip. Even so, it plays ok so I'd be content if the remaining tapes got digitised with this problem. But.....
When I tried to import 2 hours as one file the conversion appeared to be going ok until I stopped it. I then got a message saying that it was generating thumbnails and would take a minute. this changed to 2, then 9, then 2 hours, then 4 hours. After it had been running for 12 hours with no change in the 4 hours estimated for generating the thumbnails i did a force quite, then tried to get back into iMovie.
When it opened, it went straight into generating thumbnails, estimating the time needed as 9 minutes. It's now been stuck on "less than a minute" for about 30 mins so I'm about to do another force quit.
All suggestions welcomed, ideally to generate thumbails in the shortest time possible - though I'd be content just to get the file transferred with no thumbnails.
Advice please.

Save the photos to the camera roll on the iPad, then connect it to your computer with a USB cable. You can import the photos using iPhoto if you have it or image capture if you don't.

TS3391 iMovie 11 is not working. I try to open it and it says it is generating thumbnails for one of my previous projects. All the commands are gray. I have to force it to quit. I just want to capture clips to start a new project.

iMovie 11 is not working. I try to open it and it says it is generating thumbnails for one of my previous projects. All the commands are gray. I have to force it to quit. I just want to capture clips to start a new project. I googled the problem and there were discussions about deleting files in various folders and renaming clip extensions. I don't like the solutions I saw there and I am not sure they will work.

Nobody replied so I called Apple. They seemed to think they could fix the problem but I had to agree to pay about $20 first. I told them to put it down as a complaint. I only want to use the software I bought. I can't see that it is my fault it is malfunctioning. I guess I will have to pay. It doesn't seem right.

IMovie update 7.1.2 crashes at start while generating thumbnails

Since I updated iMovie to v7.1.2 it crashes every time I open it. First shows a message saying that a camera has been detected (although there is no camera connected) Then it starts generating thumbnails and crashes.
I re-installed version 7.1.1 and works wonderfully

After a very patient work I could make my iMovie work.
When the iMovie 7.1.4 update starts (7.1.2 had the same issue) it checks your HD (and all other storage devices you may have connected) for video files. This is different from version 7.1.1. If during the check, for any reason, cannot access a file, it crashes.
In my case I had to check permissions for every video file and/or folder containing them until I solved the problem. Fixing permissions with Disk Utility or changing permissions for a folder and all enclosed subfolders, it is not enough. You have to check each individual file. Not very difficult but time consuming.
Now iMovie is working fine. I really regret that Apple made a change in the two last updates without any warning. After all the turmoil provoked in this and in other related forums by desperate iMovie users experiencing this problem, they should have acknowledged the issue. By the way. it started last June. I would have expected that they publish some suggestions in their support website.
I spent almost 4 hours doing what finally was the answer to the problem. Not to mention the timeless trials I made during the last months.

Imovie is not generating thumbnails for MPG video files

Hi everyone,
I have what I hope is a quick question with an easy solution. I'm using iMovie '09 8.0.6 to make a movie for my parents of their granddaughter. Imovie has generated thumbnails for all my video in iPhoto (most of which is .mov format), but two short clips (about a minute in length each) were apparently taken with a different camera and are in .mpg format. For some reason, imovie is not generating thumbnails for these .mpg videos, though in the past I have never experienced a problem here. What is wrong? What can I do to get these clips into iMovie or have iMovie generate these thumbnails?
Thanks.

No, the orientation is not the issue, The first set of 4 imported videos were from a GoPro 3 camera, and the one that was lost doing an "update thumbnail" operation was also a GoPro3 fie.
Just now I did another experiment, I chose to update thumbnail from a video file created with my Pentax WG-3 and it worked.
I updated thumbnail on a horizontal and verticle video from my Galaxy S3, and now those are also gone with no thumbnail...
So far the only one that actually works for me is the Pentax video, which is a MOV file. , the GoPro 3 and Galaxy are mp4 files, so it's possible that the mp4 format has something to do with it. This is very frustrating losing my thumbnails like this.... Luckily I have not deleted ver11 yet.
I hope they repair this issue soon.
Thanks for the help so far,

IMovie 11: issues generating thumbnails with large import

I have a HDV tape that was in a flood, and is not in great condition (It's a sentimental family movie). It imported OK, but iMovie recognized scenes really weird, in that it separated the 60 minute tape into so many segments (157) that it's causing fits for iMovie to generate thumbnails. At the import, it got all the way to the point where it said it had 1 minute left -- but it stayed there for over 3 hours. So I "forced quite" iMovie. I relaunched it, and it did basically the same thing -- it got to a minute left, then stayed there for several hours. So I forced quit it again. This time it got to the point where it said 4 hours left, and I left it over night. It was in the exact same spot this morning. So I forced quit, then rebooted the whole computer. When it came up this time, it said it had less than a minute, but it's now growing in time (the bar is moving towards the right, so maybe it's working...we'll see).
The problem is now, as soon as I boot up iMovie, it automatically goes into the generate thumbnails mode, and I can't do anything else with it. So, my question is 3 part.
1. Is there a way to get the import process done, so that I can start to edit the video.
2. If I can't, how can I clear this project, so that when I start iMovie, I can do something else with it?
3. I have 8 HDV tapes in similar condition (some worse than others) -- what is the best course of action to extracting all the movie that I can from the tapes?
Thanks

By the way, here's a video of my issue:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGHjiv0-5y0&feature=youtu.be

Importing video while iMovie generates thumbnails

I am in the midst of importing analog video via my Canopus ADVC110. My question is this: Once you've imported the video and iMovie starts to generate thumbnails, is it possible to begin importing a new tape during this time?
Russ
Altadena, CA

Not to my knowledge.

IMovie 08 generating thumbnails every time it's opened

Hello -
I'm hoping someone has the answer for this. When I first started using iMovie 08 everything worked fine. It generated thumbnails the first time it opened, and they were there each time I re-opened the program. Then out-of-the-blue they disappeared, and iMovie needed to regenerate them each time open the program (which takes about 30 minutes).
Helpful info? The only thing I noticed is that I have several types of movie files (.mov,.avi,etc..) all mixed in together, but as far as I can tell they were like that when the program was working well. I have looked for duplicates, and again, any duplicates would have been there when everything was working ok.
I appreciate any advice on this.
:)Christina

Hello there Clayguy7,
If I understand correctly you are unable to use iMovie because it keeps closing on you for no reason as soon as you open it. I would like to recommend the troubleshooting information in the following article to help you out here:
iMovie: How to troubleshoot "Application Unexpectedly Quit" messages
Start with this step, and there is more in the article if you need it:
2) Disable non-essential QuickTime components.
Navigate to /Library/QuickTime/ for a list of components currently installed.
Temporarily disable any components that are not in the list below. You can disable the components by moving them to the Desktop or another folder outside of the /Library/QuickTime/ folder.
Open iMovie and see if the issue is resolved. If iMovie no longer unexpectedly quits, check to see if an updated component is available, or contact the developer of the component for further recommendations.
iMovie uses the following components, and should be left in the QuickTime folder:
AppleIntermediateCodec.component
AppleMPEG2Codec.component
Note: There may also be a similar folder at ~/Library/QuickTime/ depending on the components you have installed. If this folder is available on your Mac, remove any components as instructed in step 2. Both of these locations hold QuickTime components. The components help you encode or decode different types of multimedia content.
Thank you for using Apple Support Communities.
Take care,
Sterling

Trying to import video files. Clock on files and hit import. Imovie says generating thumbnails and importing. Then after loading, no movies there. help?

My 14 year old son is trying to import videos into iMovie. He's done this a dozen times before with no problem. Here is what he's doing "I went to import movies, clicked on the idv files and hit import. On iMovie it said "generating thumbnails, and importing". Then it gave the loading sign. When it was done, none of the movies/videos were in Imovie. He needs to have this done as a xmas gift for a friend by Thursday .

After much research and troubleshooting, GoToMeeting replied with the final answer: We do not support the uploading of recordings to editing software. If you are having issues uploading a recording, unfortunately, we do not have tools or steps to resolve this. It is not a supported feature. I am sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you.
The no longer plan to support editing of recordings made with their software. So, we are planning to find a new meeting provider.

HT1014 I'm working with imovie 08 and converted movie originally from VHS tape to .m4v files imovie wouldn't recognize it. I converted to .mov files and imovie generated thumbnails (for hours) and shows a New Event but there is nothing there. Any help?

I'm working with imovie 08 on Macbook pro OS X and converted movie originally from VHS tape to .m4v files imovie wouldn't recognize it. I converted to .mov files and imovie generated thumbnails (for hours) and shows a New Event but there is nothing there. Any help?

markmc78 wrote:
.. I'm really struggling with the concept of events/clips/projects.
consider usage of a diff. editor.. iMovieHD6, you're entitled for a free downlaod at apple.com:
http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/imovieHD6.html
but IF you're relaxed, opened your mind, follow the bright light, ommmm.. for Events & Stuff:
your intended workflow will add another step of quality-degradition (8mm>>avi>>mp4>>iM08) ..
consider the free tool Mpeg Streamclip www.squared5.com for 'chopping' that 90min beast into pieces..
rename these new chunks, follow advice given on my site:
http://karsten.schluter.googlepages.com/im08changeeventdate
there's the manual..
http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/iMovie08_GettingStarted.pdf
and the most recommended books from Mr Pogue's Missing Manual series..

IMovie 11 wont stop generating thumbnails

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