[boapnuaput]

Very well. I would like to correct two misconceptions that you carry. Not only is the Fast Fourier Transform not magical, but it comes out of a straightforward elaboration of the question of how multiplication of two numbers might be done quickly. The technique was discovered before the (19)90s, too; Gauss discovered it over two centuries ago.

[sjwright]

I think you are intentionally misunderstanding the OP's point. He is talking about FFT as applied to lossy video compression.

In direct response to the OP, I would suggest that motion estimation and entropy coding are up there on equal footing with FFT.