It is intended to restore moving-picture data whose pixels have been
thinned rapidly with a small-capacity memory and with prevention of image
deterioration. There is provided a moving picture converting apparatus
for reconstructing an original moving picture from compressed
moving-picture data, which includes an input unit to receive compressed
moving-picture data including a thinned image consisting of invalid
pixels and valid pixels and a forward motion vector incident to the
thinned image, an intra-frame interpolator for interpolating the invalid
pixels in a present frame to be restored on the basis of the valid pixels
of the thinned image in the present frame to produce a padded image, and
a frame rendering unit to produce a rendered image by making
preceding-frame rendering to restore pixels of the padded image on the
basis of valid pixels in a preceding frame and subsequent-frame rendering
to restore pixels of the padded image on the basis of valid pixels in a
subsequent frame, the frame rendering unit making the preceding-frame
rendering to restore a pixel at an end point of tracing in the padded
image on the basis of valid pixels detected in the process of tracing,
started at a pixel in the preceding frame, in a sequence from the
preceding frame to the present frame according to the forward motion
vector, and the subsequent-frame rendering to restore a pixel at the
start point of the tracing in the padded image on the basis of valid
pixels detected in the process of tracing, started at an invalid pixel of
the padded image in the present frame, in a sequence from the present
frame to the subsequent frame according to the forward motion vector.