Create movies

The movie capability is an integrated animation tool that's part of the 3D capabilities in ArcGIS Earth. Using the Movie tool, you can present data visually and create unique stories.

Get started

To begin creating a movie in ArcGIS Earth, click Movie on the toolbar to open the movie editing panel. In the right panel, three sample projects allow you to learn more about movie creation.

Movie layout

Below, you'll find the movie's UI layout, offering a visual reference for understanding its structure and functionality.

The ArcGIS Earth movie editing panel, shown above, includes the following:

1. New Movie—Add a new movie to the current workspace.
2. Save—Save all the movie projects to the workspace.
3. Samples—View all the movie templates in the right panel to get started with ArcGIS Earth movie.
4. Play—Preview the movie.
5. Export—Export the movie to MP4 format with resolution and frame rate settings.
6. Clear—Clear all added content from all tracks.
7. Lock—Block the editing of current content from all tracks. Adding new content is allowed.
8. Playhead—Represent the current playback position within the timeline of the movie.
9. Track control—Configure the overall track scale, or reset to the default settings.
10. Properties panel—Configure the properties of selected content in the movie track.

Edit a movie

When editing a movie, it's important to understand two key terms: block and track.

A block represents a specific animation effect or action in the movie. For example, the Fly-To block from the sample project is a default block for creating camera movements.

There are six tracks you can use when editing a movie:

• Camera —Capture the camera movements in the scene. The following camera animation options are available:
  • Fly-To—Simulate a smooth and immersive flight-like experience over a location in a 3D scene. Two modes are available: Zoom-To and Point-To-Point. Use the ArcGIS Earth navigation capability to find the point of interest and mark it as the movie's start view and end view. Detailed camera parameters can be adjusted for accuracy.
  • Rotate—Rotate the camera around a specific point of interest or the entire scene. Three modes are available: Pin, Axis, and Orbit.
• Environment —Add various ArcGIS Earth environment effects. The following environment effect options are available:
  • Basemap—Capture the current basemap being used in ArcGIS Earth.
  • Elevation—Configure the start and end elevation exaggeration value.
  • Atmosphere—Switch the atmosphere effect between None, Horizon Only, and Realistic.
  • Daylight—Enable daylight animation. The start and end time of animation can be configured accordingly.
  • Underground—Enable underground navigation.
• Data —Access data added from the table of contents.

  Tip:

  Drag the data from the table of contents onto the track, and adjust its transparency settings accordingly. Hover over the Info button for a detailed tip.
• Marker —Add markers. Three options are available: Screen Marker, Ground Marker, and Location Marker.
• Text —Add text. Three options are available: Caption, Text Box, and Location Text.
• Audio —Manage audio effects. Point to a local directory to add the media to the movie, and configure the audio settings accordingly.

The Camera and Audio tracks allow only a single row at a time. The other tracks can have multiple rows.

  In the movie editing panel, you can add, remove, or update each track as follows:

• Click Add to add animation blocks to each track.
• Click Clear   to clear all block contents from a track.
• Click Lock  to restrict editing of length, order, and properties of existing block contents. You can add new block content with lock mode on.

Preview a movie

You can preview an entire movie or a selected block content. The Play button is enabled once you add block content to the track.

The Playhead icon is a visual indicator that represents the current playback position within the timeline of a movie. It serves as a reference point that shows you which frame of the movie is currently being displayed or edited.

Locate the Playhead indicator where you want to start the movie preview. Click Play to watch the movie. Once the preview begins, you can click Next to go to the next frame, click Last to go back to the previous frame,  or click Pause to temporarily stop the preview.

Tip:

You can double-click the Playhead indicator to activate or deactivate a section. Sections assist you in editing the movie within a specific time span.

Export a movie

ArcGIS Earth supports exporting movies in MP4 format.

To export a movie as a video file, complete the following steps:

1. Above the track panel, click Export .
2. Choose the video quality for the movie. For Quality, the default option is 1080 pixels. If you are not signed in to ArcGIS Online or ArcGIS Enterprise, both 720 pixel and 1080 pixel resolutions are supported.
3. For Frame Rate, choose an appropriate option from the drop-down list.
4. Click Export video.

   The export process starts frame by frame.

Tip:

You can sign in to ArcGIS Online or ArcGIS Enterprise to unlock the resolution of 2K for movies up to 5 minutes in length.