And Now For Something Completely Machinima

This week's selection is a stunning cinematic imaginary by Unknown Dino, focussing on the next version of Half Life (soon to be released... er, well, possibly in the next 10 years or so?). There is a lot of craft in this film, called HL: Overworld and made in Blender, which has taken its inspiration both from the HL Reddit community and the HL2 Artbook 'Raising The Bar'. We also talk about the pos...

Another packed episode of news items we found for machinima creators everywhere. We take a look at some games news including several that have released music albums recently and discuss why we think that is. We go through some of the latest AI matters, including Vimeo's new AI content guidelines. We found one of the best Unreal master classes we ever seen, more like a work of art than a 'how to',...

Crazy, it is certainly that - and more. If you enjoy slasher horror, we think you'll love this - and its definitely not for U18s! The film is by Toaster and is a music video for Code Mistake, a deathcore metal spectacular by CORPSE and Bring Me the Horizon. We examine Toaster's GTA5 machinima, reflect on its anime qualities, and conclude its significantly better than the official music video: Rick...

This week, we discussion two films:  @neisannnn 'What a Wonderful World', a love letter to Star Citizen, where we focus on its surreal nature, use of backwards music, and ability to capture the game's vast universe. Our second film is 'Plumbob Princess' by  @lReMi07l - one of the all time best machinimas we've seen in Sims 4. We discuss the visual quality and storytelling of machinima videos for T...

This week's film is a machinima that deals with pollution in the most overt way it can.  Andy Hughes' Inner Migration juxtaposes Cyberpunk 2077 against some 'found footage' taken from early 40s/60s films and General Motors corporate 'forecast' of the future of technology. We discuss how machinima is an interesting way to explore social commentary and analyze the use of video games as a medium for...

This month's news omnibus covers our usual breadth of topics - from Reallusion's Character Creator contest; to a 'how to create in SL', available only in SL; to Project Odyssey's contest for genAIers; to the winners of the second AIFF; to some fabulous projects such as  @EpicSpaceman latest film, an Elden Ring band, Jennifer McKnew's Sydney and Socket project, and one dedicated to sharing with us...

This week's film review is of [GTA5] 賽銭箱に身を投げる ロスサントス市警察, made by  @mzanku - its absurdist humor but also deeply disturbing, which hits us all in different ways around half way through watching the film. Following our discussions, we conclude the creator probably didn't intend for the work to be culturally appropriated as an interpretation of US police brutality, but that interpr...

In this episode, we analyse our picks' cinematics, beginning with 'Day of Darkness' made in Eve Online by Dire Lauthris and completing with 'The Wanderer' made in the Source engine by Dominzki. We discuss the use of ambiguity, character development, and narrative qualities, as well as the advancement of video game cinematics and in-engine techniques. We also examine how the horror of war has been...

This week, we discuss the art of machinima filmmaking, emphasizing the importance of craftsmanship, freshness, and humor in exceptional storytelling, as evidenced in 'Lonely Episode Two: The Package Thief' by TheBizTheBiz. We analyze the efficiency and density used in delivering witty lines and twists in what is essentially a modern retelling of the Lone Ranger, using mariachi music, masks, and ch...

Welcome to our latest bonus episode.  We had the pleasure of catching up with Phil Rice aka zsOverman to talk exclusively about his latest machinima, called Being Moses.  If there's such as thing as a parody of a Let's Play, this film is it!   Check out Phil's comments and watch the film - links on our show notes web post. Credits - Speakers: Phil Rice, Tracy Harwood, Damien Valentine Producer: Tr...

This week we celebrate Nvidia's investment in machinima, discuss latest AIs and give you the heads up on some great projects we want to highlight - there are just too many for us to fully review everything we're seeing that we want to share with you these days! Do check them out, we'd love to hear your thoughts too - links and notes on our website.  2:47 Thank you Nvidia  7:48 Fab projects  15:39...

A compelling and powerful story of one man's quest to remain sane on an isolated planet. This is a very effective story by Lens Nation, given its only 60 seconds long - its probably not just this one creator's worst nightmare in a game, but several of us. Check out our review and don't forget to give us some feedback on your thoughts too.  1:01 Ricky introduces the film and his critique of it, sug...

This week, we review a pretender for a new Disney show called Forlorn, by @projectforlorn (aka Alex St Pierre). Well, it may well be at some point in the near future! Starting life as a tech demo, this short has an interesting back story and has evolved into something even more interesting. Check out our review and add your own thoughts! Credits - Speakers: Phil Rice, Tracy Harwood, Damien Valenti...

This week, we discuss two stunning music videos: Children of Pain by  @VincereSylph with video created by  @TomJantol and  @tanyasubaBg ; and Firefly by  @TheEsotericaChannel in Unreal Engine. Children of Pain is a perfect example of Tom's 'anymation' approach whilst Firefly demonstrates just how far Unreal Engine has come as a creative toolset in one year alone! Credits - Speakers: Phil Rice, Tra...

Not for the first time do we discuss the gorgeous cinematic qualities of GTA5, and this week we share a beaut by @Salva. Padilla . This one has a distinct vibe to it, but it is its general ambiguity that we especially love about the machinima. We each see something a little different in it! What do you see in it? Credits -  Speakers: Ricky Grove, Phil Rice, Damien Valentine, Tracy Harwood Producer...

Our May update on machinima and virtual production related news highlights some of the latest generative AI tools, warts and all, and brings to attention several of the latest machinima potential games, including Jaws, Jurassic World Evolution, Rise of the Hydra and Harold Halibut.  We discuss the challenges filmmakers face when developing games from their IP, why Kickstarter isn't a good strategy...

This week we celebrate Star Wars with a fabulous short portraying the infamous AT-AT death walkers as 'nature-creatures' in their natural habitat - this is a beautifully observed work, made in Unreal Engine by Jeremy Cummins.  Cummins is an experienced character creator, now working for Tippett Studio, with an impressive list of credits including Ant-Man and the Wasp, Spider-Man and Avengers, amon...

This week, we cover three outstanding music videos, demonstrating different genres of music and different game engines - a re-imagined Simon and Garfunkel classic, a pop-tacular and a rap. We discuss the perfect match between the lyrics, the game and the images our three selected creators have demonstrated in these shorts. We suggest comparing and contrasting, but really we just mean enjoy them al...

This week, we discuss one of the most outstanding presentations of space science, by  @EpicSpaceman , called I put 4M Suns in a Blackhole. Made in Blender, we discuss the creative workflow adopted, from zero to hero - and why the  @BlenderOfficial Foundation should take note. We make a few suggestions for enhancing the work even more and discuss the primary audiences for this type of conrtent. Qui...

A packed review this month, with some sad :( better :| and happy news :) 1:42 Demise of Rooster Teeth and yet RVB will outlive the corporate brand!  We reminisce about the early days of machinima and the influence Rooster Teeth had on the emerging creator community 26:30 Drax Files: World Makers comes to a close 33:37 Awards! Sam Crane’s continuing success with GTA5 Hamlet at SXSW and UE5’s use in...

The Dog Days is an unusual machinima that combines the glitchiness of AI generated content composited with a Second Life avatar. Whilst not realtime, the performative aspect of this work is evident and we reflect on the fit of the current state of generative AI with the Fluxus art movement. We discuss what The Dog Days means, metaphorically and literally, and how we interpret this film concluding...

In this ep, we discuss two machinima films dealing with thematically similar issues, albeit presented with different treatments: Vigilante is made in GTA5 and tells the shocking story of how the lead character became cyberpunk.  The second is a futuristic yet somehow more traditional gender-based story made in UE5.  It is presented as a proof of concept for a proprietary tool made by its creator,...

This week, we take a look at a spectacular particle show in a machinima that has been documented and edited by Tutsy NaVaRaThNA in Second Life.  The show is called Flowers of Evil and was created by Lalie Sorbet and Chrix as an interactive installation inspired by the most scandalous literary works of Charles Baudelaire, with the support of a Second Life Endowment for the Arts.  Tutsy's documentar...

This week’s podcast episode is our curated news omnibus for this month.  We cover lots, and enjoy reflecting on the significance of the stories we highlight for the world of machinima and virtual production.  Links and show notes on our website, as usual – skip to our highlights about each item with our timestamps here –   1:23 Learn UE5 in less than 60 minutes – and yes, it seems you really can!...

In all our years of involvement with machinima (and that's over 75 years between us), feature length has been something we've rarely found watchable... but with this week's pick, we were proven wrong, mostly! Emesis Blue, made in Source Filmmaker using the Team Fortress 2 characterisations by Fortress Films, is an incredibly well-made if very complex story that was crafted over many years.     1:3...