Machinima

Machinima is a term derived from the combination of the words: Machine and Cinema. Machinima is an emerging film genre with it's own unique set of production methods. These methods include the rendering of real-time interactive video games through the use of screen capture techniques (either software or digital recording), and the subsequent editing of those materials on video-editing software. Most of the raw footage captured, or "filmed," for Machinima is created using the basic tools of interactive video games (camera angles, level editors, script editors.) Using the specific game interface, the creators of a specific Machinima movie control an avatar on screen as if they were directing an actor. Through this creative mode of game play, the creators "shoot" all of the raw footage they need and then import that data into film editing software to construct the final product. The biggest bonus of Machinima may be that the genre allows for everyone to have the opportunity to make movies. The relative costs and availability of the equipment, in comparison to CGI (Computer Generated Imagery), allow this medium to be unilaterally available - therefore broadening it's possibilities as a creative and influential medium. The popular Machinima series, Red vs. Blue, is an example of how Machinima, coupled with the rise of the Web 2.0, is helping the new medium to flourish.

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Links

http://youtube.com/watch?v=_mnUKilHD5o A fan video from Red vs. Blue on Youtube.com http://www.machinima.com/ Hundreds of Machinima Creations