And Now For Something Completely Machinima

This week’s film review looks at a work by Ally Kustera. The work artfully conveys a sense of feminism without the politics through snippets of video game character cutscenes from Lara Croft to Ellie (The Last of Us) and others in between.  1:00 Kitbash for Blender of the Back Rooms by Daniel Grove.  1:30 Machinima by Ally Kustera.  13:35 Feminism in the video game world.  16:17 A celebration of w...

Still Here... a chilling dystopian tale of a world devasted by climate crisis and wealth inequality. This week's review is of a film by Guido Ekker, featured on the Film Shortage Channel (YouTube), and is one of the few shorts we've seen that attempts to make a point beyond pure entertainment. We identify some of the stereotypical tropes used and discuss the creative potential of machinima and vir...

In this bonus episode, Tracy talks to the curators of the Oberhausen International Short Film Festival, Vladimir Nadein and Dmitry Frolov. 1:31 How did you get interested in machine?  10:28 Dedicating one of the screenings to solomon.  19:49 The interplay between analogue and digital.  26:36 What was the response from the audience?  36:01 Machinima techniques and tools.  41:47 What are your takeaw...

Following on from Tracy's visit to the Oberhausen International Short Film Festival, which took place between 26 April and 1 May, Ricky leads a discussion with Tracy on the thoughts about film selection at the event, different distribution strategies, topics discussed at the panel, and the future of avant-garde machinima films and filmmaking for festivals generally. You can also follow this episod...

A well-trodden path in alien encounters, this week’s short is Genesis by Edy Recendez, filmed in Unreal Engine. From the very beginning the film is such fun, with great editing and sound design – right up to and including the ending ‘rap slash dance’ credits.  Ricky, Phil and Damien also talk about the upcoming Diablo 4 release.    0:08 Introduction 3:56 The detail is important to the director 7:1...

This week, Ricky, Phil and Damien discuss Torn Seas – a feature made with Unreal Engine, by Richard Boisvert.  We don’t often review feature-length films on this show, not least because few are brave enough to make them, and we talk about that aspect a bit too.  Overall, we were impressed by this film but we also have a few suggestions to consider.   5:21 Cinematic Design.  9:35 Difference between...

Made in the still developing game, Star Citizen, this week's film is a large-scale production showing 97 players creating a complex battle scene. The film is called Sandstorm, directed by Wailander.  Ricky, Phil and Damien discuss the extent to which machinima is about showing off the game vs telling a story, what the role of the director is in game-based machinima productions and, of course, take...

This week, Ricky, Phil and Damien begin with an brief discussion of the roles AI is being used for to restore old machinimas, and in particular the very exciting upcoming release Phil will be doing of old Machiniplex films - more on that in due course!   The film discussion centres on After War by RG Studios, and their approach to telling a story without moving a camera in the Half Life 2 world. ...

Recently, we've seen some really great HL2 shorts, and this week we have an excellent one for you - Patient Zero is by TheParryGod aka Richard Makk, released in Feb. This is so well done you can cut the atmosphere with a butter knife, the choreography between the actors is brilliant and there are even some gratuitous small animal shots to boot.  Hear us discuss the details and check out the film f...

This week's film selection comprises 2 shorts, both untitled but actually worlds apart in their development. Its not often we get to comment on a first ever machinima project as the framing for a creative idea but our first film is just that, by Sydney Walker, and made in an environment we have never seen used for machinima before, Final Fantasy 14. Our second film is a psychological thriller, dra...

TOP GUN Maverick Intro by  @godivasl in  @secondlife , as you've never seen it before! The attention to detail in editing the scenes and character performance is outstanding - well done to all those involved. Credits - Speakers:  @zsOverman @tgharwood @DarthAngelus (MIA  @RickyGrove )  Producer: Phil Rice  Editor: Ricky Grove  Sound Effect: Motorcycle driveby by Severaltimes / Freesound.org

This week's review is of  @Astartes40k aka Syama Pedersen's stunning Warhammer 40K masterpiece called Astartes Project. The film was first released two years ago and has been recommended to us by  @orencloud . It is currently hosted on  @TheChach 's channel - we explain why. 1:07 Disclaimers 4:38 Thoughts about the game 8:02 How to carry the story forward 11:39 Are they the good guys or the bad gu...

After we first talked about this project last April 2022, we were thrilled to see what a stunning job @MartinKlekner has made in the 21 Jan release of the first episode of Heroes of Bronze. We were not disappointed: the film and work stands up to AAA Assassin's Creed Odyssey studio work, but with amazing detail of historical artefacts and storytelling, which is even evident in the way clothes move...

This week's film is a SFM Saxxy 2017 entry from  @TipsyDucks called Mann Co: Employee Training Video. Lots of in-jokes and satire in the style of a PSA, with a fantastic voiceover by Keith Ferrell aka MrTush. 4:13 We don't pay you to think. We pay you to work. 7:07 Team Fortress 2 stylized graphics. 9:02 Phil’s sense of humour and satire. 10:31 Pushing the edge of appropriateness. 13:42 The value...

We always love a good RDR2 machinima, and this is one by a Sam Menell, released on 9 Feb 2023.  We watched this several times, and Tracy didn't spot the UFO in the opening shot! 2:03 Phil’s thoughts on the film.  3:36 The soundtrack and editing.  6:24 The searchers  8:05 The ending was such a surprise.  Credits -  Speakers: Ricky Grove, Phil Rice, Tracy Harwood, Damien Valentine  Producer: Phil Ri...

This week, Ricky provokes us with a selection of shorts released on TikTok.  We discuss the usefulness of the platform for machinima and virtual production creators, as well as pass comment on the three films we take a look at, which unsurprisingly we variously struggle with. Phil's analogy to fish restaurants of different quality sums it up well for us all. 8:19 Fish restaurants 11:51 Dumpsters f...

This week's film review is The Gateway by  @ritualenfilm3976 , made with  @UnrealEngine and released in May 2020. Its a mix of some well-known alien life sci-fis we all love, the pacing is nicely done and there are some interesting effects that we comment on although we're not quite sure what the ending is all about. Ricky also tells us about a new Philip K. Dick inspired (Blade Runner stylized) r...

This week we review the winner of the 2022 Kitbash3D moving image challenge contest, based on their free Mission to Minerva asset pack.  The film is called Secret Moon by Orencloud, and what a visually stunning and ethereal representation of Minerva this is, with a clear trajectory between this piece and Orencloud's portfolio.  We discuss some of the ways in which the film works and works less wel...

Ricky's pick for the month is Let's Play Nomad X by Kristian Andrews, uploaded to Vimeo on 11 Mar 2013. The film is a 'slice of life' comedy with intriguing mix of playing a 90s style space game, Nomad X, and reflecting on losing the love of your life - a perfect antidote for those Valentine's week shenanigans! 0:10 Let’s Play Nomad X by Kristian Andrews 3:59 Let’s play, let's play 6:27 The shared...

This week's episode reviews a film by Fandom Games called Half Life 3: Honest Game Trailers, released 31 March 2015.  The film is a throwback style of satire and even if you've not been following Valve's Half Life developments, you'll enjoy this.  For those less in the know, HL3 is a game that never made it beyond the hype, despite its avid fan base waiting patiently (or impatiently) to play it fo...

Show Notes & Links: https://completelymachinima.com/2023/02/02/s3-e63-film-review-the-backrooms-reunion-feb-2023/ Credits -  Speakers: Ricky Grove, Phil Rice, Damien Valentine, Tracy Harwood  Editor/Producer: Ricky Grove  Music: CreateStudio Pro Licensed Music Assets. Youtube Audio Library - Nebular Focus by Dan Henig. 

Show Notes & Links: https://completelymachinima.com/2023/01/26/s3-e62-film-review-so-i-tried-to-take-a-holiday-jan-2023/ Credits -  Speakers: Ricky Grove, Phil Rice, Damien Valentine, Tracy Harwood  Editor/Producer: Ricky Grove  Music: CreateStudio Pro licensed audio.

Show Notes and Links: https://completelymachinima.com/2023/01/19/s3-e61-film-review-interloper-half-life-2s-greatest-unsolved-mystery-jan-2023/ Credits - Speakers: Ricky Grove, Phil Rice, Tracy Harwood, Damien Valentine Producer: Ricky Grove Editor: Damien Valentine Music:  licensed from CreateStudio Pro

Links and show notes: www.completelymachinima.com Credits - Speakers: Damien Valentine, Tracy Harwood, Ricky Grove, Phil Rice Producer: Ricky Grove Editor: Damien Valentine Music: licensed from CreateStudio Pro

0:14 Introduction to this episode.  9:45 The stylized look of the film.  11:44 How they arrived at the world of the film.  15:43 The flaws in the story.  21:52 Is there still a significant audience for quick and dirty machinima?  27:26 The audience’s reaction to machinima.  33:33 Machinima’s plight is a hidden one.  37:57 What are your thoughts on my criticism of the story aspect of the voice in t...