ODG to MPG Converter

Convert ODG to MPG: What This Tutorial Covers

An ODG is the native vector drawing of LibreOffice Draw and Apache OpenOffice Draw — part of the OpenDocument standard (ISO/IEC 26300) — so it stores shapes and text as math, not pixels. This page walks through turning that drawing into an MPG video clip: the artwork is rasterized to a single frame and held on screen for a duration you choose, producing a short, silent MPEG clip. Read the "When This Doesn't Work" section first if you actually want an editable or scalable file.

How to Convert ODG to MPG

1. Upload Your ODG File: Drag and drop or click "+ Add Files" to load one or more .odg drawings. With several files, choose Merge images to chain them into one clip or Video per image for a separate MPG each.
2. Set the Duration: Open Advanced Options and pick Duration (default "5 seconds per frame") — how long the still drawing is held. For a single ODG this becomes the clip's full length; values run from a single frame (1/60s, 1/30s, 1/24s) up to 10 seconds.
3. Pick Resolution and Background Color (Optional): Use Video resolution (Keep original or Fixed Resolutions with custom Width × Height) and set Background Color (default Black) to fill the bars when your drawing's aspect ratio doesn't match the frame. Under File Compression, the Quality Preset defaults to Very High.
4. Convert and Download: Click Convert to get a silent .mpg. Files are uploaded over an encrypted connection, processed on our servers, and deleted automatically after a few hours — no sign-up, no watermark, never shared.

Walk-through: Picking the Right Duration and Frame Size

The MPG output defaults to MPEG-2 video (ISO/IEC 13818, also ITU-T H.262) — the codec legacy MPG-capable players and DVD-authoring tools expect. Because an ODG has no timeline of its own, the only "length" in your clip is how long the rasterized drawing is displayed, so the Duration control does the heavy lifting:

• Want a readable title or diagram card? Set Duration to 5–10 seconds so viewers can take in the drawing before it ends.
• Want a true single frame to drop into an editor? Pick 1/30s or 1/24s — the drawing lands as one frame you can freeze or extend in your timeline.
• Merging several ODG slides? Choose Merge images; total length equals the number of drawings times the per-frame Duration.
• Want crisp edges on text and thin lines? Set Video resolution to a Fixed Resolution at least as large as the drawing's intended size, then keep Quality Preset on Very High — MPEG-2 is older and lossy, so giving it more pixels and bitrate keeps vector strokes from softening.

Common Errors and How to Fix Them

• "My text and lines look fuzzy" — MPEG-2 compresses every frame and ODG vector edges don't survive low resolution well. Raise Video resolution and keep Quality Preset on Very High, or skip raster video entirely with ODG to SVG.
• "There are black bars around my drawing" — the frame's aspect ratio differs from your drawing's. Switch Video resolution to Keep original, or change the Background Color to match your artwork instead of leaving it Black.
• "The clip is silent" — that's expected. A drawing has no audio track, so ODG to MPG always produces a silent clip; add a soundtrack afterward in an editor.
• "It won't play in my browser or on my phone" — .mpg (MPEG-2) is not an HTML5 <video> format. Use ODG to MP4 (H.264) for web and mobile playback.
• "My fonts changed" — fonts not embedded in the ODG are substituted at render time. Embed fonts in LibreOffice Draw before exporting, or convert to ODG to PDF, which preserves layout faithfully.

When This Doesn't Work

ODG to MPG is a niche still-to-video step: it makes sense only when the destination specifically needs an MPEG video file — DVD/VCD authoring, legacy signage, or a broadcast playout system that won't accept a plain image. Once rasterized, the drawing is fixed pixels, so you lose the scalability and editability that made ODG useful. If you want to keep editing the vectors, convert to ODG to SVG; for a print-ready, layout-faithful copy use ODG to PDF; and for a simple flat image use ODG to PNG. Reach for MPG only when a video container is genuinely required.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why would I convert an ODG drawing to a video instead of an image?

Only when the target device or workflow requires MPEG video rather than a picture — for example feeding a DVD/VCD authoring tool, an older set-top box, or a broadcast playout system that accepts .mpg but won't open an image file. For everything else (sharing, printing, editing) an image or PDF is the better target. If you just need a flat picture of the drawing, ODG to PNG is smaller and far more widely supported than an MPEG clip.

Will the MPG have any motion or sound?

No to both. An ODG is a static vector drawing with no frames and no audio, so the conversion holds that single rasterized image on screen for the Duration you set and writes video only — the result is silent by design. There is no panning, zooming, or animation; a moving effect needs a video editor, not a format conversion.

Will I lose the vector quality of my Draw file?

Yes — this step rasterizes the drawing, so shapes and text become fixed pixels and can't be rescaled without softening. To preserve resolution-independent vectors, convert to ODG to SVG instead. If you only need MPG for a specific player, set a high Video resolution and keep Quality Preset on Very High to minimize the visible loss.

What codec does the .mpg use, and will it play everywhere?

The MPG container defaults to MPEG-2 video (ISO/IEC 13818 / ITU-T H.262) with an MP2 audio layer — the pair legacy MPG hardware decodes natively. It plays in desktop VLC and on DVD players, set-top boxes, and broadcast systems, but .mpg is not an HTML5 <video> format, so it won't play inline in browsers or natively on iOS. For web or phone playback, use ODG to MP4 (H.264) instead.

Can I combine several ODG drawings into one MPG clip?

Yes. Upload multiple .odg files and choose Merge images; each drawing is rasterized and shown for the Duration you set, played back to back as a single clip. Total length equals the number of drawings multiplied by the per-frame duration. In our testing, three ODG drawings merged at 5 seconds each produced a single 15-second silent MPG. Choose Video per image instead for one separate MPG per file.

Why did my fonts or gradients shift after converting?

ODG references fonts and renders gradients at export time, so any font not installed where the file is processed gets substituted, and complex gradients are flattened into the rasterized frame. Embedding fonts in LibreOffice Draw before uploading avoids substitution. For the most layout-faithful result that keeps text sharp, convert to ODG to PDF rather than to video.