Compression on MP4 inserted into Storyline

Apr 03, 2024

I am trying to publish a course with an inserted MP4.  When I choose 'None' for compression the zip file is over 1,000 MB (our LMS max is 750 MB).  When I choose 'Automatic' for compression the zip file is only 77 MB.  The issue is that the compressed video is too blurry, compared to the video with no compression.  There  is such a large discrepancy between the two file sizes. Is there away to compress the video just a little bit, so I get it under the 750 threshold?  I have tried to use the publish quality settings but have not found a successful result with these settings.

9 Replies
Ron Price

Hey Sara

In your publish quality settiings, I would recommend Static over adaptive and experiment with adjusting the video quality settings to get the quality and size you desire.

I ran 2 quick tests this morning.  One using the Adaptive setting and the other just switching to statice and keeping the quality in the mid-range.

The Adaptive was over 3xs bigger than the static. I Could not tell any difference in viewing quality.

Jürgen Schoenemeyer

Compression 'None' means storyline will copy the original imported video without recompress into the zip

if you do not use this setting, Storyline always adjusts the video to the dimensions of the slide.

e.g. slide 960x 540, video 1920x1080

  • Compression 'None' -> video 1920 x 1080
  • Compression 'Automatic' -> video 960 x 540 + the video settings (-> publish settings)

best practice for size/quality: compress the video outside storyline to the final data size and use 'None' + 'Static'

Jürgen Schoenemeyer

a video with 1.25 h (in HD) is typical much bigger than 1,000 MByte

there are two options

  • lower the dimensions  and/or the quality of the videos (while Premiere export)
  • use vimeo or another video platform (-> video from website)*

 

*hint: trigger in storyline don't work with external video

Jose Tansengco

Hi Sarah, 

If your videos are in 1080p, you can try lowering the resolution to 720p to decrease its file size significantly. You can use a tool called Handbrake for this. An 85-minute video in HD is a pretty large file, so I'd imagine that this single file alone would be enough to exceed the 750 MB limit in your LMS. If lowering the resolution is an option for you, here's a helpful video on how to use Handbrake that you can check out.