[CS:S]Movie Making For Begginers.

[Bleik]

You always wanted to start moviemaking but you just couldn't find the right guide? You think a movie.cfg is something to set the dvd player on standby? Well, these times are over.

 

I can't guarantee you to be the next Steven Spielberg after you read this tutorial, but I can guarantee you that you will be able to make your own clips . This guide will explain my way of moviemaking, the tools I am using and some tips to make your life easier during the hard learning process. So let’s get it on.

 

 

 

1. Programs

 

In the following list you will find all or most of the programs you will need during the process of getting to the final movie. There will always be more tools you can use to add some more advanced Effects like Adobe After Effects or Photoshop. But this tutorial is focusing on the basics to get you started.

 

 

 

1.Sony Vegas (you can download a free trial at http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com)

 

 

Sony Vegas is a powerful editing tool with presets like tv-simulator, grain, old look, blur and so on….

 

2.Virtualdub (you can download it for free at http://www.virtualdub.org/)

 

 

You will need Virtualdub to convert all the .tga files to .avi.

 

3. Videomach (alternative to Virtualdub http://www.gromada.com/videomach.html)

 

This is another tool to convert all the .tga files to .avi.

 

 

 

2. Configs

 

There is more than one movie config out there that will make your life easier and faster. Tuf’s, AnX’s or Sol’s. The most important thing is that you feel comfortable with it. I am just going topresent Tuf’s  config to you because that is the one that I use and I am comfortable with.

 

www.infprod.com/downloads/CFG.rar -> Config Pack

 

AnX’s Config (used much in the community – very good guide)

www.infprod.com/downloads/anXv23cfg.rar

Tutorial available at http://www.iue5.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5764

And also downloadable as .pdf http://infprod.com/index.php?site=tutorials&action=show&tutorialsID=18

 

This guide is very usefull so check it out!

 

How to install Anx’s config?

 

extract both files to:

 

C:\Program Files\Steam\SteamApps\username\counter-strike source\cstrike\cfg

 

"exec movie.cfg" in console or +exec movie in command line to use

 

Note: Make sure to put the audio on stereo speakers, because surround sound recording doesn’t work in Counter-strike: Source.

 

 

2 speakers Stereo

 

Select 2 Speakers and click on OK

 

And to all people that got problems switching to widescreen in Counter-strike: Source don’t you cry. It is very easy to fix. All you need to do is change to windowed mode in the video options ingame and then click apply, after that you will be able to choose widescreen.

 

 

widescreen

 

In combination with tuf’s config I use the Inpact Hud Tweaker. Available at http://www.inpact-team.euroserv.com . That way you don’t loose the crosshair by using hud remove in tuf’s config. Make sure to make backups of your original resource and scripts directory. This way you can just rename the folder everytime you want to play or want to work on your movie again.

 

Tuf’s Config (downloadable at the media section at http://www.infprod.com)

www.infprod.com/downloads/tufcfg.zip

 

How to install Tuf’s config?

 

Open the .rar file. There are 2 files and one directory in it. Extract all files to the cfg folder on your harddrive. Program Files\Valve\Steam\SteamApps\youraccount\counter-strike source\cstrike\cfg

 

 

Once you loaded Counterstrike Source type exec movie.cfg in the console and its loaded.

 

Hit the F9 key to open the console again and you will see the menu with all the keys and functions on the screen.

http://infprod.com/tutorials/mmg/pics/tufmenu.jpg[/img]

 

I use a slight modified version of tuf’s config so the menu binds might be different!

 

Tip:You can also add this line in the shortcut startup options, this way you don’t need to type and change it eveytime. “ -window -w 1280 -h 720 -exec movieip “

 

Windowed mode, 1280 x 720 resolution and movie config exec ! “ -window -w 1280 -h 720 -exec movie “

 

Note: If your game crashes after loading a demo the reason for it could be that you had the autoexec.cfg running. To fix that, just rename the file for example to autoexec1.cfg before you load the game.

 

Also if the chatscreen is in the way after you loaded the demo there is an easy way to get rid of it. All you need to do is bind a key to “messagemode” for example bind “F2” “messagemode. Now you just need to hit F2 and then enter and the chat fenster will be gone. Make sure you don’t bind it on one of the keys needed in Tuf’s config!

 

So lets get to the recording with Tuf’s config.

 

Hit F9 to open the menu.

Type demoui in the console and hit enter. Choose the demo you want to record and click on load.

 

Normally people will give you ticks to their demos. On the right lower side you can “fast forward” to that point by inserting the tick there and clicking on Go To.

 

 

Before pushing F11 to startmovie you have to choose a framerate. You do that by pushing one of the numpad buttons, depends on what fps you want to record. After choosing the fps hit F11 and then enter to start the process.

As soon you are done with the part hit F12 to stop the recording..

 

Note: If you record in higher fps the movie will look smoother, nevertheless the files will be much bigger then aswell. I would recommend to record at about 90 - 120 fps. Depends on what scenes you are recording. If you know you are going to use slow motion in the movie at that clip then record it in 120 fps for example.

 

After recording the demo with startmovie there will be hundreds of files in your /cstrike folder. These .tga files are very big so I recommend after converting it to avi to delete them.

 

If you don’t want to drag the files around into a different location to keep control of the files I recommend to use the search function of windows. Right click on the cstrike folder and choose search. Now you just type in the first few letters of the recorded files and you will have just them selected then.

 

Fat32 Users: I have also experienced that my .avi files are not allowed to get bigger then 1.9 gb to be able to import them into Sony Vegas. So for example at 1280 x 720 I can use about 750 frames to get that filesize. After I converted the first 750 files I delete them and choose the next 750 and so on. That way you will have everything under control and won’t get confused.

 

3. Converting .tga to avi with Virtualdub or Videomach

 

Good news is its easy, and the better news is we do have a video tutorial uploaded in our Tutorial section on www.infprod.com on how to convert the files.

www.infprod.com/tutorials/recordfinal.wmv

 

But for all you guys that like to watch screenshots, I got some for you J

 

Open Virtualdub and your cstrike folder with the .tga files.

 

http://infprod.com/tutorials/mmg/pics/tgafiles.jpg[/img]

 

Drag the files into Virtualdub!

 

 

Click on video and choose Full Processing Mode!

 

 

Click on compression and choose Uncompressed!

 

 

Last thing to do is click on file and then save as avi!

 

I am too lazy to show you the same for Videomach, but you can watch the video tutorial, it is all explained in there!

 

Now we got everything we need to go to Sony Vegas and edit the clip!

 

Note: Don’t forget to copy out the .wav file that is also saved in the cstrike folder to have some in game sound.

4. Sony Vegas - Settings

 

In this part I will show you some settings that can be changed and how to render the clip or movie at the end.

 

I am using Sony Vegas 7, so the pictures might differ from your Sony Vegas.

 

Start up Vegas and the click on File -> Properties

 

 

You have to change the Width & Height to your resolution but the rest is good to go. You might aswell change the pre-render files directory to your biggest harddrive so you don’t have troubles during rendering.

 

Now you can drag in music and video clips and edit them. I will not get into Vegas in detail because you can find tutorials about it on www.infprod.com.

 

Now lets get to the rendering. I recommend rendering little clips before the full render to see if the quality and size is good.

You can do that by double clicking into a little clip. You will see 2 little yellow triangles at the top. By dragging the triangles around you can choose what part to render.

 

http://infprod.com/tutorials/mmg/pics/vegastriangles.jpg[/img]

 

Now click on File -> Render As …

 

http://infprod.com/tutorials/mmg/pics/vegasrenderas.jpg[/img]

 

After you changed the settings just click on save. This will take some time now, depending on the codec you choose. You can also render uncompressed and render in Virtual Dub afterwards. Depends what you prefer.

 

5. Links

 

The following list includes links to tutorials about render settings and will give you the last tips to get your clips in a nice shape.

 

X264:

 

http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=112496 -> Megui Guide

http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=96032 -> Walkthrough

http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=101813 -> Megui Profiles

 

XVID:

 

http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=16935 -> Xvid FAQ

http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=119399 -> Xvid Presets

 

http://www.shaolinproductions.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=44&Itemid=48        -> x264 & Xvid guide

 

Sony Vegas:

 

http://www.infprod.com/tutorials/ -> bunch of tutorials

 

Photoshop:

 

http://www.smashingmagazine.com/category/tutorials/ -> very good tutorials

http://www.dafont.com/ -> source to get fonts

 

After Effects:

 

http://www.videocopilot.net/tutorials.html -> good source for tutorials

http://www.ayatoweb.com/ae_tips_e.html -> very nice effects

 

Counterstrike:

 

http://www.gotfrag.com/css/forums/thread/279489/?cpage=1

(how to play old demos by m4cfly)

www.infprod.com/tutorials/smooth_tutorial.rar -> How to create a camera drive

http://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/Demo_Recording_Tools

(hints and tips from the developer page)

http://inpact-team.euroserv.com/modules.php?name=CSS_HUD_Tweaker&file=index_eng

(how to remove the hud)

 

 

 

I know there is so much more you could write about and is interesting, but this should definitely get you started in your moviemaking career.

I know it is hard to get started but just keep on trying if you fail and you will see you get better with every clip you make.

 

That’s it from me. I hope this tutorial will get you started and I get to see some nice movies to watch in the future. Over and out.

 

 

Credits: Written by Manuel “Lepi” Lepitschnik

www.infprod.com

PS.I would have posted this thread to CS Section, but It is a tutorial so....

If you think I am wrong, please move it.Thanks.

[yuyubest]

Great Work, Thx a lot

[Hax0r]

+1, would appreciate it if you could find one for cs 1.6 ;D

[Bleik]

+1, would appreciate it if you could find one for cs 1.6 ;D

 

Thanks for the Karma..Actually there isn't any difference in 1.6 (I don't like 1.6) but I will find one and post it here.

And soon coming a movie made by me like Incorporated 2 ;) (http://www.maxcheaters.com/forum/index.php?topic=53511.0)

[Hax0r]

I'm talking about the tuf's cfg, I highly doubt it'll work for 1.6

[Bleik]

I'm talking about the tuf's cfg, I highly doubt it'll work for 1.6

 

Don't know if it works. but it is from MovieVault (a great company)

http://rapidshare.com/files/215162872/HQ_MovieFiles.rar

Test it, I haven't.

[Coolis®]

Yeah Gj @]InfecteD[™ :)

[shass]

+1 complete and well explained