Windows DVD Maker

    I've been trying to make a dvd using a 16:9 source video. My last few attempts have perfect menus but when I play the movie the sides are scrunched together, introducing black bars on either sides. In the options I've tried selecting 16:9, but the sides are scrunched every time regardless. Is this still a bug in windows dvd maker, or am I just missing something? I will be happy to provide more information upon request. Thanks!

-dragonlance231

I have exactly the same problem and have no fix yet.  Anyone else?

I am also having the same problem.  I've had one DVD that worked perfectly and filled the entire 16:9 screen.  All others, however, have black bars on the left and right sides even though the videos are in 16:9 format.  I don't know why the one DVD worked and the others now don't, since they were burnt under the exact same settings.

Well I found a solution, but not really what I expected.  I went into the settings in my dvd player and changed it from 16:9 to 4:3 Pan & Scan and it filled my entire screen and looks perfect.  However, the one DVD that naturally filled the screen in 16:9 mode does not look correct in 4:3 Pan & Scan, and must be played in 16:9.  Quite the workaround, but it will get me by until I find out a real solution.

The solution for this is to import the .avi file into Windows Movie Maker and go into options and select 16:9 and either PAL or NTSC, after doing that save the project file.

Close Windows Movie Maker and then open up Windows DVD Maker and click on 'add files' then add the project file you saved in Windows Movie Maker. This will import the .avi file in 16:9 format.

I tried doing this but when I open up the saved project in Windows DVD Maker it gives me an error saying "Windows DVD Maker cannot add the selected Windows Movie Maker Project because it contains only audio files.  You can add video or picture files to the project in Windows Movie Maker, or choose another project to add."  Also, this is a .avi file I'm trying to burn.

 

Any help would be appreciated.

Add the movie to the storyboard (drag and drop) and then save the project. When you open it in DVD maker it will work.

Cool, I didn't catch that before.  So you have to drag it INTO the storyboard, hah.  Well that solved my problem and it opened up in Windows DVD Maker with the settings that I wanted.  Thanks so much guys, you made my b-day even better.

OK I have done everything stated in this thread (and more besides) but my problem continues to persist.

I am trying to burn a large AVI file to DVD and the original movie is widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio.  It plays beautifully (as an AVI) on my Vista machine regardless of which media player I use, windows or otherwise.

When I load it in to Windows Movie Maker and/or Windows DVD Maker, both the thumbnail and preview views of the movie are correct and as expected. Naturally I check and make sure that 16:9 and NTSC are selected for the project inside WMM and also in Windows DVD Maker.  Even after selecting one of the menu themes everything still looks great, until I burn it....

I have made so many coasters now that I have all but given up.  Below is what I see every single time I try to burn a movie DVD with the tools above in Vista Home Premium.

Anyway, pictures speak a 1000 words as they say so I've created some images to demonstrate what happens.  I used an image editor and the default Vista sample movies to create examples of what I am experiencing. These are not screenshots per se but suit the purpose for this demonstration.

First image shows the menu preview before burning the DVD

Second image shows how it looks on the DVD once its burned

Third image shows how the movie looks in preview before burning the DVD

Fourth and final image shows how the movie looks on the finished burned DVD


If anyone can shed any light on this I'd very much appreciate it.  Thanks in advance.

Never mind.  I finally did my research and figured it out.

I have this problem also with exactly the same symptomes as previous NiteCloak described.  What is the solution?  I think it has something to with interlacing.  Can anyone help?

Could you please detail how you did fix this? As this seems to be the single biggest issue with Vista's DVD Maker at present.

I just tried my first DVD burn and get exactly the same result as you, NiteCloak.  What is the solution that you came up with???

Darklord:

The solution for this is to import the .avi file into Windows Movie Maker and go into options and select 16:9 and either PAL or NTSC, after doing that save the project file.

Close Windows Movie Maker and then open up Windows DVD Maker and click on 'add files' then add the project file you saved in Windows Movie Maker. This will import the .avi file in 16:9 format.

Thanks, this worked perfectly for me. No more ruined DVDs!  :-)