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I created three short movies in iMovie last night, exported and saved them, closed iMovie and then put my laptop to sleep. This morning I opened iMovie and my entire library of movies previously made has disappeared. I've checked the library files, the cache and followed other suggestions made in the threads below but cannot find a trace of them - even when I search using the filenames i remember giving each of the movie files.
MacBook Air, macOS 15.0
I have no idea what is causing the problem but whenever iMovie acts strangely it is always worth deleting the preferences as a first step.
Hold down the command and option keys as you launch iMovie until a window appears.
Click the Delete preferences/settings button.
Hi,
If deleting preferences didn't solve it, open your project browser screen (where your projects are displayed as icons) and look at the top of the screen to the left of the search box. Make sure that the name of the library in which the projects were created is displayed.
If the correct library is not displayed, then open iMovie in the correct library. Click on the little toggle symbols to the right of the library name to reveal a pop up box. Select All Projects and the correct library name.
-- Rich
Just to clarify - I can find the library which contains the raw files - but the edited versions of the movies aren't available to me any more (apart from the versions I've exported) so I am unable to return and do any further editing of them.
If the other suggestions in this thread haven't solved the problem, you can recover your library and projects from the iMovie Backups folder. iMovie automatically backs up your library and projects to a folder. You can retrieve a previously backed up library from it.
To get to the iMovie Backups folder, follow this file path from the Finder menu:
Go/Home/Library/Containers/com.apple.iMovieApp/Data/Library/Caches/iMovieBackups
NOTE: If running Ventura or later, in the above
file path substitute iMovie for com.apple.iMovieApp. So, for Ventura,
the file path would read:
Go/Home/Library/Containers/iMovie/Data/Library/Caches/iMovieBackups
When you get there you will see a list of previous backups of your iMovie library. Click on one dated just before your issue started. iMovie will open in that library. Navigate to your projects browser (whereyour projects are displayed as icons) and see if your projects are intact.
-- Rich
iMove library disappeared
