Can't import MOV in Lightroom Classic 10.4

[mvalviar]

Previously I was able to import and work with these files in Lightroom. But now, when I try to import them there are no preview in the import dialog and when I try to import them I get: "The movie files contain no video frames."

These files doesn't have thumbnails in Finder and Quicktime can't play them. I can play them in VLC.

These mov files have the following file info:

Dim: 640 × 480
Codecs: μ-Law 2:1, Motion JPEG A
Original Format: Digital Camera
Movie Information: EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY  KODAK EASYSHARE M530 Digital Camera

Below is the sysinfo of Lightroom:

Lightroom Classic version: 10.4 [ 202108071231-af9219b9 ]
License: Creative Cloud
Language setting: fil-PH
Operating system: Mac OS 11
Version: 11.5.2 [20G95]
Application architecture: arm64
Logical processor count: 8
Processor speed: NA
SqLite Version: 3.34.0
Built-in memory: 8,192.0 MB
Real memory available to Lightroom: 4,096.0 MB
Real memory used by Lightroom: 464.8 MB (11.3%)
Virtual memory used by Lightroom: 404,663.5 MB
Memory cache size: 56.0MB
Internal Camera Raw version: 13.4 [ 872 ]
Maximum thread count used by Camera Raw: 5
Camera Raw SIMD optimization: SSE2
Camera Raw virtual memory: 46MB / 4095MB (1%)
Camera Raw real memory: 56MB / 4096MB (1%)
Displays: 1) 2880x1800

Graphics Processor Info: 
Metal: Apple M1

[Conrad C]

First thing to get out of the way: All QuickTime .mov files are not alike. The .mov format is mostly a wrapper, what’s inside can be one of a range of codecs. Where that might come into play here is that a .mov file could contain a very old codec.

The file info report shows that the movie came from a Kodak EasyShare 530. It looks like that camera came out over 10 years ago, so it may have saved the movie into the .mov file using an old codec.

Why do I keep bringing up “old”? Because in the last few years Apple modernized QuickTime and dropped all support for 32-bit codecs, now only supporting those built using 64-bit code, in preparation for the big transition to 64-bit-only M1 Apple Silicon. If this .mov file uses an old 32-bit codec, today’s Apple QuickTime Player — and any player using QuickTime code — may refuse to play it. Open source VLC uses its own engine that might still provide support for those old codecs, and that might be why it can play the .mov file.

If the Lightroom Classic video player has been updated to stay in step with 64-bit Apple Metal compatibility and performance, it too might have lost the ability to play old 32-bit video codecs.

What would the solution be? If that is the original video file, you could transcode (convert) it to a current format and 64-bit codec such as .mp4 using H.264 or H.265. You can transcode using the free Handbrake utility, or using paid ones that you might already have such as Adobe Media Encoder, Apple Compressor, or ffWorks. If you have a lot of old .mov files, all of those applications can transcode them in bulk.

Edit: Found more info in this article:

Apple is killing QuickTime 7 in macOS 10.15: convert old media now

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Among those which won’t be supported under macOS 10.15 are several Avid formats, Cinepak, DivX, Flash Video, FlashPix, GlueTools codecs, JPEG 2000, Motion JPEG A and B…

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Note that the codec in your .mov file info is on that list of doomed codecs: Motion JPEG A.