Ah a lot clearer!
You have DV AVI files from a MiniDV camcorder
Im not sure of any free packages ( would any be that good??)
But I would recommend
UleadMovie Factory
It is (IMHO) a fuss free way of getting to DVD video from your files
It is Inexpensive and generally does what it says on the Box
Nero Vision 5 (Part of Nero 8) or 4 ( from Nero 7) are perhaps capable but a bit more lean in features
DVD Architect ( or Architect Studio) is another ( This one is from the Sony Vegas Family)
There are others TMPGenc ect
None do it as a "quick transfer" though
The "quick" way is to record from camcorder to settop DVD recorder in real time
If you dont need to edit, I would bypass the full editing packages. UMF6+ does have some editing abilities
Give the trial download a go from
HERE
As an aside, all the packages get a slating and most times it doesn't prevent them from having satisfied users who can often find way round any gremlins if none has been made available by patches
I see why you are aiming to minimise no of discs but If you are making it for a worldwide audience ( of delegates), wouldn't you need to worry about the NTSC/PAL Issue?
Premiere Ver4 works well with me, but that seems to be the case with most packages , so im a bit "untypical" It would seem. I find it very hardware hungry though and found ver3 far more easy going. I hesitate to recommend it
At any rate I would read the reviews with a pinch of sodium chloride, and also ask in forums like this for reallife user experience