Step 1. 

Before you get started, you will want to have a draft of a script that you want your character(s) to say. Perhaps it’s an upcoming event you want to promote and want your characters to talk about? Maybe you want your characters to converse about your new website? You can have one character or two characters in your movie. Check out our how to guide for using online video for advocacy to learn more. 

Step 2. 

Point your browser to http://www.xtranormal.com/. Before you start creating your own video, it may be helpful to check out some other user-created videos on the site to get an idea of what text-to-movie is all about. Click “Watch Movies” to view other user-generated movies. 

Step 3. 

You will need to sign up and create an account with Xtranormal to make a move. Click “Create Account” at the top right of your screen. Go through the steps to create an account.

Step 4. 

Log in. To create a movie, click “Make Movies.” The first thing you will do is select your movie’s world or “Showpak” as Xtranormal calls them. Select whether you want one actor or two actors, depending on the number of talking characters you want.

Step 5. 

You will be directed to the movie-making page. 

On the right panel, you will see a preview of your movie. Your controls are on the left panel.

The character and background will be white. The first thing you will want to do is change the character and background.

On the bottom left, under “Design the Scene,” click on the icon that says “Change Character.” Choose a character from the selection. Under the character selection, choose your character’s voice, which includes selecting a different language. Sample the voice by clicking the play icon next to the selection.

NOTE: There are a limited number of characters, sets, etc. that you can use for free. You can pay for any actors, etc. that have a money sign next to them.

Make your selection and click “Apply.”

Step 6.

Choose your background by clicking on the “Change Scene” icon under “Design the Scene.” Select a background from the options. Click “Apply.”

Step 7. 

To update your preview, click the blue “Preview” button. Note: This will take awhile to update, as it is similar to rendering a video. If you don’t want to wait, you can go ahead and work on your video, and then click “Preview” when you are ready. 

Step 8.

Want to add music? Click on the “Change Soundtrack” music note icon under “Design the Scene.” You can add ambient background sounds or music. Make you selection, then click “Apply.” Remember: Music may distract viewers from your message, so if you want to add a soundtrack to your scene, choose carefully

Step 9. 

Time to write the script and give your character(s) something to say!

Click anywhere in the white text box. Type in what you want your character to say. 

Step 10.

Add actions. There are many different types of actions you can add. You can add one, all of them, or none! It’s up to you to decide what you want your character to do. 

Under “Direct the Action” you will see a number of options.

The person icon allows you to add animation to your character. Choose the action you want. You can see a preview on the action on the right panel. Make your selection and click “Apply.”  You can drag the animation icon to anywhere in the text you have typed to set when you want the animated action to start. 

Change the camera angle by selecting the video camera icon. You can see a preview of the angle for each option on the right. Make your selection and click “Apply.”  Again, you can drag the camera angle icon to anywhere in the text you have typed to set when you want the angle to change.

Add expressions to your character by selecting the expressions icon. You can see a preview of each expression on the right. Make your selection and click “Apply.”  You can drag the expressions icon to anywhere in the text you have typed to set when you want the expression to start. 

Add looks to your character by selecting the looks icon. You can see a preview of each look on the right. Make your selection and click “Apply.” You can drag the look icon to anywhere in the text you have typed to set when you want the look to start.

You can make your character point by selecting the points icon. You can see a preview of each point on the right. Make your selection and click “Apply.”  You can drag the look icon to anywhere in the text you have typed to set when you want the point to start. 

Add a pause by selecting the pause icon. Make sure you place the cursor in the text where you want the pause to occur. 

Add sounds by selecting the sounds icon.  

Add more text if necessary. 

Tip!

If you want to delete any action you have added to your text, just move your cursor to after the action icon you want to delete and then use the delete button on your keyboard. 

Step 11.

Once you have added all of your updates, click “Publish.” It will render the movie. You will be able to see a preview for you to review. You can edit your movie after it’s updated. Remember to click “Action” each time you want the movie to update. 

Step 12.

Finished editing your video? Click “Publish.” Give your movie a title and description, and then add any tag keywords. Click “Publish.”

Your video will be rendered, which will take a few minutes. Reload the page after a few minutes. 

Tip!

To download your movie you must be a paying member. You can upload it to YouTube for free.

Step 13.

On the publishing page, you will see a URL for your video on the right-hand side of the page. Copy this URL to share your movie with others. You can also embed the video on your website by copying the code in the embed field and pasting it in your site’s code.

To upload your video to YouTube, click on the “YouTube publishing” button at the bottom of the screen. It will take you through the steps to publish your video on your YouTube channel. 

Step 14. 

Watch your video!

Step 15.

Want to change something on your video that’s already been published? Click on the “Remix” button under your video and you can edit it.

Step 16.

Like one of the featured videos on Xtranormal? You can remix (customize) someone else’s video yourself by clicking the “Remix” button under any featured video. You will be able to edit the script, actions, etc. to your liking. 

Share

Share Your Lessons Learned and Suggestions!