by Sarah Le-Fevre

Created on: November 04, 2009

Machinima filmmaking for gamers

Way back in the day (1996, to be precise), there was a first person shooter called Quake which involved all the usual mayhem in gothic dungeons so reminiscent of Doom. Quake also allowed players to record their own actions while they played and edit the results to make films. A group of enthusiasts did just that, showing off their speed and prowess at completing the levels as speedily as possible. One of these guys, Anthony Bailey, made an incredibly popular film called Quake Done Quick and Machinima was born. Back then, of course, these films were not called Machinima. They were simply known as Quake Movies.

So what is Machinima?

Simply put, Machinima is the process of using a 3D game engine like Quake to make films. The name also applies to the films made in this way. Anthony Bailey quickly realised he was on to something, and that this new way of making movies should have an equally cool name. He opted for Machinema a combination of Machine and Cinema. When this was later misread as 'Machinima' by Hugh Hancock, another pioneer of the artform, who used his typo all over the net, the naming process was complete.

Machinima films can be made in a number of different ways. For the beginner or non-programmer, it is often easiest to start with 'virtual puppetry'. Players within the game control each character and make them 'act'. This kind of work can be done within MMORPGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games) like World of Warcraft. This has the advantage that does not involve the programming or 'modding' of other methods, but you do have to have a real person controlling each and every one of your characters. If you want to recreate the Battle of the Five Armies, you will need a lot of friends.

Some games have in game cameras to record the acting of your virtual puppets. If your chosen game does not have this facility you will need to get hold of a video grabber to do the job of a camera.

For those who like to tinker with the inner workings of game engines, you can graduate to scripting your movies. Scripting as it is used here should not be confused with writing the screenplay of your movie. This refers to the process of programming the actions of your actors. Once done you can film them as before, using a video grabber or built in camera function.

The main advantage of this is that you can make a movie on your own, no virtual actors required. Even a Nobby No Mates can be a director, although presumably the results

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>