Movie Maker's case only confirms the divorce between Redmond and reality. For millions of users, Movie Maker was the first video editor with which they managed to experiment and develop their own creations, and the decision to retire it did not sit well. In fact, there are still many people out there interested in getting a copy and learning the details to install Movie Maker on Windows 11. Today we are going to explain the complete process.
Movie Maker: A Timeless Classic
The history of Movie Maker dates back to the year 2000, with its first version available under Windows ME. Its initial explosion of popularity happened with version 1.1 on Windows XP, where it received several updates. Windows Vista kept the editor as an essential piece of its multimedia structure, adding additional effects, transitions, support for Xbox 360, and HD in the Premium and Ultimate editions. At the same time, it dropped functions like analog video capture from cameras and/or VCRs.
Its transformation into Windows Live Movie Maker was not entirely positive. As a new application, the new editor could not read projects from previous versions, and many functions bit the dust. It was not until 2012 that Movie Maker found some solid ground (with the move from Windows Live to Windows Essentials), restoring support for voice-overs, integrating an audio mixer, and adopting H.264/MP4 as the main export format. Another bonus was hardware-accelerated video stabilization for Windows 8.x users.
Finally, Windows Essentials was retired in early 2017, and within that package of apps was Movie Maker. Of course... it's one thing for Microsoft to announce the retirement of one of its programs, and another for users to agree with that. Even though Redmond no longer offers direct downloads, the web itself has filled the gap, and if you want to install Movie Maker on Windows 11 today, there is a path.
How to Install Movie Maker on Windows 11
In general terms, the best option is to download a Windows Essentials installer from a trusted source. That takes us to the Internet Archive where there is a complete copy with a size of 131 megabytes.
There are two details to consider before installation: you must install .NET Framework 3.5 (the Essentials installer itself requests this, but it's better if it's already present in the system), and both Movie Maker and Photo Gallery have to go together.
Starting the installation does not require compatibility modifications or anything like that. Here you should choose the option "Choose the programs you want to install" for a custom installation, and make sure to select only Movie Maker with Photo Gallery.
Now, the installation itself doesn't take very long, but it finishes with an error 0x800c0006 associated with UXPlatformLang. That suggests a language conflict (after all, it's an English build on a Spanish operating system), and the message indicates that Windows Essentials could not complete its installation, however, that is false. You can ignore the error without problems, and both Movie Maker and Photo Gallery will appear in the Start menu.
The only major compatibility issue you may encounter with Movie Maker under Windows 11 affects the N editions of the operating system. In those environments, Movie Maker refuses to start, generating an error linked to kernelbase.dll. I discovered this after experimenting with some Pro N and Education N images, and it seems it has no solution.
Conclusion
With some technical details along the way, the idea of a "Movie Maker 2022" is perfectly possible, and all you need to install Movie Maker on Windows 11 is the right installer, following a couple of steps. As always, we don't know how long compatibility will last due to the nature of Windows 11 with its existential crises updates, but until that happens, take advantage!
Download Windows Movie Maker: Click here
