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Machinima, originally machinema () is the use of
real-time Real-time or real time describes various operations in computing or other processes that must guarantee response times within a specified time (deadline), usually a relatively short time. A real-time process is generally one that happens in defined ...
computer graphics Computer graphics deals with generating images with the aid of computers. Today, computer graphics is a core technology in digital photography, film, video games, cell phone and computer displays, and many specialized applications. A great deal ...
engines to create a cinematic production. Most often,
video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...
s are used to generate the
computer animation Computer animation is the process used for digitally generating animations. The more general term computer-generated imagery (CGI) encompasses both static scenes ( still images) and dynamic images ( moving images), while computer animation re ...
. The word "machinima" is a
portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsmachine'' and ''
cinema Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking ...
''. Machinima-based artists, sometimes called machinimists or machinimators, are often
fan labor Fan labor, also called fan works, are the creative activities engaged in by fans, primarily those of various media properties or musical groups. These activities can include creation of written works ( fiction, fan fiction and review literature ...
ers, by virtue of their re-use of copyrighted materials (see below). Machinima offers to provide an archive of gaming performance and access to the look and feel of software and hardware that may already have become obsolete or even unavailable. For
game studies Game studies, also known as ludology (from ''ludus'', "game", and ''-logia'', "study", "research"), is the study of games, the act of playing them, and the players and cultures surrounding them. It is a field of cultural studies that deals with ...
, "Machinima's gestures grant access to gaming's historical conditions of possibility and how machinima offers links to a comparative horizon that informs, changes, and fully participates in videogame culture." The practice of using graphics engines from
video games Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedb ...
arose from the animated software introductions of the 1980s
demoscene The demoscene is an international computer art subculture focused on producing demos: self-contained, sometimes extremely small, computer programs that produce audiovisual presentations. The purpose of a demo is to show off programming, visua ...
,
Disney Interactive Studios Disney Interactive Studios, Inc. was an American video game developer and video game publisher, publisher owned by The Walt Disney Company through Disney Interactive. Prior to its closure in 2016, it developed and Distribution (business), distri ...
' 1992 video game ''
Stunt Island ''Stunt Island'' is a flight simulation video game for MS-DOS PCs released in 1992. It was designed by Adrian Stephens and Ronald J. Fortier and published by Walt Disney Computer Software. The game, marketed as "The Stunt Flying and Filming Simu ...
'', and 1990s recordings of gameplay in
first-person shooter First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the pl ...
(FPS) video games, such as
id Software id Software LLC () is an American video game developer based in Richardson, Texas. It was founded on February 1, 1991, by four members of the computer company Softdisk: game programmer, programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer T ...
's ''
Doom Doom is another name for damnation. Doom may also refer to: People * Doom (professional wrestling), the tag team of Ron Simmons and Butch Reed * Daniel Doom (born 1934), Belgian cyclist * Debbie Doom (born 1963), American softball pitcher * ...
'' and '' Quake''. Originally, these recordings documented
speedrun Speedrunning is the act of playing a video game, or section of a video game, with the goal of completing it as fast as possible. Speedrunning often involves following planned routes, which may incorporate sequence breaking and can exploit gli ...
s—attempts to complete a level as quickly as possible—and multiplayer matches. The addition of storylines to these films created "''Quake'' movies". The more general term ''machinima'', a
blend A blend is a mixture of two or more different things or substances; e.g., a product of a mixer or blender. Blend Blend may also refer to: * Blend word, a word formed from parts of other words * ''Blend'' (album), a 1996 album by BoDeans * ...
of ''machine'' and ''cinema'', arose when the concept spread beyond the ''Quake'' series to other games and software. After this generalization, machinima appeared in mainstream media, including television series and advertisements. Machinima has advantages and disadvantages when compared to other styles of
filmmaking Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, casti ...
. Its relative simplicity over traditional frame-based animation limits control and range of expression. Its real-time nature favors speed, cost saving, and flexibility over the higher quality of
pre-rendered Pre-rendering is the process in which video footage is not rendered in real-time by the hardware that is outputting or playing back the video. Instead, the video is a recording of footage that was previously rendered on different equipment (typi ...
computer animation. Virtual acting is less expensive, dangerous, and physically restricted than
live action Live action (or live-action) is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live-action with animation to create a live-action animated film. Live-action is used to define film, video ...
. Machinima can be filmed by relying on in-game
artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech r ...
(AI) or by controlling characters and cameras through
digital puppetry Digital puppetry is the manipulation and performance of digitally animated 2D or 3D figures and objects in a virtual environment that are rendered in real time by computers. It is most commonly used in filmmaking and television production, but has ...
. Scenes can be precisely scripted, and can be manipulated during
post-production Post-production is part of the process of filmmaking, video production, audio production, and photography. Post-production includes all stages of production occurring after principal photography or recording individual program segments. Th ...
using
video editing Video editing is the manipulation and arrangement of video shots. Video editing is used to structure and present all video information, including films and television shows, video advertisements and video essays. Video editing has been dramatical ...
techniques. Editing, custom software, and creative
cinematography Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of Film, motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens (o ...
may address technical limitations. Game companies have provided software for and have encouraged machinima, but the widespread use of
digital asset A digital asset is anything that exists only in digital form and comes with a distinct usage right. Data that do not possess that right are not considered assets. ''Digital assets'' include but are not exclusive to: digital documents, audible ...
s from copyrighted games has resulted in complex, unresolved legal issues. Machinima productions can remain close to their gaming roots and feature stunts or other portrayals of gameplay. Popular genres include dance videos, comedy, and drama. Alternatively, some filmmakers attempt to stretch the boundaries of the rendering engines or to mask the original 3-D context. The
Academy of Machinima Arts & Sciences This is a list of film festivals dedicated to machinima, the use of real-time 3-D engines in filmmaking. The Academy of Machinima Arts & Sciences (AMAS) regularly holds such festivals, and recognizes exemplary machinima works through awards nickn ...
(AMAS), a
non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
dedicated to promoting machinima, recognizes exemplary productions through Mackie awards given at its annual Machinima Film Festival. Some general film festivals accept machinima, and game companies, such as
Epic Games Epic Games, Inc. is an American video game and software developer and publisher based in Cary, North Carolina. The company was founded by Tim Sweeney as Potomac Computer Systems in 1991, originally located in his parents' house in Potomac, ...
,
Valve A valve is a device or natural object that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid (gases, liquids, fluidized solids, or slurries) by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically fitting ...
,
Blizzard Entertainment Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. is an American video game developer and video game publisher, publisher based in Irvine, California. A subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, the company was founded on February 8, 1991, under the name Silicon & Synapse, ...
and
Jagex Jagex Limited is a British video game developer and Video game publisher, publisher based at the Cambridge Science Park in Cambridge, England. It is best known for ''RuneScape'' and ''Old School RuneScape'', both free-to-play massively multipl ...
, have sponsored contests involving it.


History


Precedent

1980s software crackers added custom introductory credits sequences (intros) to programs whose copy protection they had removed. Increasing computing power allowed for more complex intros, and the
demoscene The demoscene is an international computer art subculture focused on producing demos: self-contained, sometimes extremely small, computer programs that produce audiovisual presentations. The purpose of a demo is to show off programming, visua ...
formed when focus shifted to the intros instead of the cracks. The goal became to create the best 3-D demos in real-time with the least amount of software code. Disk storage was too slow for this, so graphics had to be calculated on the fly and without a pre-existing
game engine A game engine is a software framework primarily designed for the development of video games and generally includes relevant libraries and support programs. The "engine" terminology is similar to the term " software engine" used in the softwar ...
. In
Disney Interactive Studios Disney Interactive Studios, Inc. was an American video game developer and video game publisher, publisher owned by The Walt Disney Company through Disney Interactive. Prior to its closure in 2016, it developed and Distribution (business), distri ...
' 1992 computer game ''
Stunt Island ''Stunt Island'' is a flight simulation video game for MS-DOS PCs released in 1992. It was designed by Adrian Stephens and Ronald J. Fortier and published by Walt Disney Computer Software. The game, marketed as "The Stunt Flying and Filming Simu ...
'', users could stage, record, and play back stunts. As Nitsche stated, the game's goal was "not ... a high score but a spectacle." Released the following year,
id Software id Software LLC () is an American video game developer based in Richardson, Texas. It was founded on February 1, 1991, by four members of the computer company Softdisk: game programmer, programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer T ...
's ''
Doom Doom is another name for damnation. Doom may also refer to: People * Doom (professional wrestling), the tag team of Ron Simmons and Butch Reed * Daniel Doom (born 1934), Belgian cyclist * Debbie Doom (born 1963), American softball pitcher * ...
'' included the ability to record gameplay as sequences of events that the game engine could later replay in real-time. Because events and not video frames were saved, the resulting
game demo A game demo is a trial version of a video game that is limited to a certain time limit or a point in progress, which leads to the player buying the game if they liked it. A game demo comes in forms such as shareware, demo disc, downloadable so ...
files were small and easily shared among players. A culture of recording gameplay developed, as Henry Lowood of Stanford University called it, "a context for spectatorship.... The result was nothing less than a metamorphosis of the player into a performer." Another important feature of ''Doom'' was that it allowed players to create their own modifications, maps, and software for the game, thus expanding the concept of game authorship. In machinima, there is a dual register of gestures: the trained motions of the player determine the in-game images of expressive motion. In parallel of the video game approach, in the media art field,
Maurice Benayoun Maurice Benayoun (aka MoBen or 莫奔) (born 29 March 1957) is a French new-media artist, curator, and theorist based in Paris and Hong Kong. His work employs various media, including video, computer graphics, immersive virtual reality, the I ...
's Virtual Reality artwork ''The Tunnel under the Atlantic'' (1995), often compared to video games, introduced a virtual film director, fully autonomous intelligent agent, to shoot and edit in real time a full video from the digging performance in the Pompidou Center in Paris and the Museum of Contemporary art in Montreal. The full movie, ''Inside the Tunnel under the Atlantic'', 21h long, was followed in 1997 by ''Inside the Paris New-Delhi Tunnel'' (13h long). Only short excerpts were presented to the public. The complex behavior of the Tunnel's virtual director makes it a significant precursor of later application to video games based machinimas. ''Doom''s 1996 successor, '' Quake'', offered new opportunities for both gameplay and customization, while retaining the ability to record demos.
Multiplayer video game A multiplayer video game is a video game in which more than one person can play in the same game environment at the same time, either locally on the same computing system ( couch co-op), on different computing systems via a local area network, o ...
s became popular, and demos of matches between teams of players ( clans) were recorded and studied.
Paul Marino Paul Marino (born March 10, 1980) is a film director, producer, animator, voice actor, and author currently focused on machinima, the art of using engines from video games to create films. He is a co-founder and the executive director of the ...
, executive director of the AMAS, stated that
deathmatch Deathmatch, also known as free-for-all, is a gameplay mode integrated into many shooter games, including first-person shooter (FPS), and real-time strategy (RTS) video games, where the goal is to kill (or "frag") the other players' characters a ...
es, a type of multiplayer game, became more "cinematic". At this point, however, they still documented gameplay without a narrative.


''Quake'' movies

On October 26, 1996, a well-known gaming clan, the
Rangers A Ranger is typically someone in a military/paramilitary or law enforcement role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called “ranging”. The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with protecting and ...
, surprised the '' Quake'' community with ''
Diary of a Camper ''Diary of a Camper'' is an American short film released in October 1996 that was made using id Software's first-person shooter video game '' Quake''. The film was created by the Rangers, a clan or group of video game players, and first release ...
'', the first widely known machinima film. This short, 100-second demo file contained the action and gore of many others, but in the context of a brief story, rather than the usual deathmatch. An example of transformative or
emergent gameplay Emergent gameplay refers to complex situations in video games, board games, or table top role-playing games that emerge from the interaction of relatively simple game mechanics. Designers have attempted to encourage emergent play by providing too ...
, this shift from competition to theater required both expertise in and subversion of the game's mechanics. The Ranger demo emphasized this transformation by retaining specific gameplay references in its story. ''
Diary of a Camper ''Diary of a Camper'' is an American short film released in October 1996 that was made using id Software's first-person shooter video game '' Quake''. The film was created by the Rangers, a clan or group of video game players, and first release ...
'' inspired many other "''Quake'' movies," as these films were then called. A community of game modifiers (modders), artists, expert players, and film fans began to form around them. The works were distributed and reviewed on websites such as The Cineplex, Psyk's Popcorn Jungle, and the Quake Movie Library (QML). Production was supported by dedicated demo-processing software, such as Uwe Girlich's Little Movie Processing Center (LMPC) and David "crt" Wright's
non-linear editor Non-linear editing is a form of offline editing for audio, video, and image editing. In offline editing, the original content is not modified in the course of editing. In non-linear editing, edits are specified and modified by specialized soft ...
Keygrip, which later became known as "
Adobe Premiere Adobe Premiere Pro is a timeline-based and non-linear video editing software application (NLE) developed by Adobe Inc. and published as part of the Adobe Creative Cloud licensing program. First launched in 2003, Adobe Premiere Pro is a successo ...
for Quake demo files". Among the notable films were Clan Phantasm's ''Devil's Covenant'', the first
feature-length A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...
''Quake'' movie; Avatar and Wendigo's ''
Blahbalicious Machinima, originally machinema () is the use of Real-time computing, real-time computer graphics engines to create a cinematic production. Most often, video games are used to generate the computer animation. The word "machinima" is a portmant ...
'', which the QML awarded seven Quake Movie Oscars; and Clan Undead's ''
Operation Bayshield ''Operation Bayshield'' is a short 1997 film made by Clan Undead, a group of video game players. The work was created by using the machinima technique of recording a demonstration file of player actions in id Software's 1996 first-person shooter ...
'', which introduced simulated
lip sync Lip sync or lip synch (pronounced , the same as the word ''sink'', short for lip synchronization) is a technical term for matching a speaking or singing person's lip movements with sung or spoken vocals. Audio for lip syncing is generated th ...
hronization and featured customized
digital asset A digital asset is anything that exists only in digital form and comes with a distinct usage right. Data that do not possess that right are not considered assets. ''Digital assets'' include but are not exclusive to: digital documents, audible ...
s. Released in December 1997, id Software's ''
Quake II ''Quake II'' is a 1997 first-person shooter video game developed by id Software and published by Activision. It is the second installment of the ''Quake'' series, but not a direct sequel to '' Quake''. The game's storyline is continued in its e ...
'' improved support for user-created 3-D models. However, without compatible editing software, filmmakers continued to create works based on the original ''Quake''. These included the
ILL Clan Machinima, originally machinema () is the use of real-time computer graphics engines to create a cinematic production. Most often, video games are used to generate the computer animation. The word "machinima" is a portmanteau of the words ...
's ''
Apartment Huntin' Machinima, originally machinema () is the use of real-time computer graphics engines to create a cinematic production. Most often, video games are used to generate the computer animation. The word "machinima" is a portmanteau of the words ''ma ...
'' and the Quake done Quick group's '' Scourge Done Slick''. ''Quake II'' demo editors became available in 1998. In particular, Keygrip 2.0 introduced "recamming", the ability to adjust camera locations after recording. Paul Marino called the addition of this feature "a defining moment for chinima". With ''Quake II'' filming now feasible,
Strange Company Strange Company was a group of machinima creators and distributors based in Edinburgh, Scotland. They are known in the medium as the longest-standing machinima production company, having produced machinima films since 1997, and for creating the ...
's 1999 production ''Eschaton: Nightfall'' was the first work to feature entirely custom-made character models. The December 1999 release of id's ''
Quake III Arena ''Quake III Arena'' is a 1999 multiplayer-focused first-person shooter developed by id Software. The third installment of the ''Quake'' series, ''Arena'' differs from previous games by excluding a story-based single-player mode and focusing prima ...
'' posed a problem to the ''Quake'' movie community. The game's demo file included information needed for
computer network A computer network is a set of computers sharing resources located on or provided by network nodes. The computers use common communication protocols over digital interconnections to communicate with each other. These interconnections ar ...
ing; however, to prevent cheating, id warned of legal action for dissemination of the file format. Thus, it was impractical to enhance software to work with ''Quake III''. Concurrently, the novelty of ''Quake'' movies was waning. New productions appeared less frequently, and, according to Marino, the community needed to "reinvent itself" to offset this development. ''Borg War'', a 90-minute animated Star Trek fan film, was produced using Elite Force 2 (a ''Quake III'' variant) and Starfleet Command 3, repurposing the games' voiceover clips to create a new plot. ''Borg War'' was nominated for two "Mackie" awards by the
Academy of Machinima Arts & Sciences This is a list of film festivals dedicated to machinima, the use of real-time 3-D engines in filmmaking. The Academy of Machinima Arts & Sciences (AMAS) regularly holds such festivals, and recognizes exemplary machinima works through awards nickn ...
. An August 2007 screening at a ''Star Trek'' convention in Las Vegas was the first time that CBS/Paramount had approved the screening of a non-parody fan film at a licensed convention.


Generalization

In January 2000,
Hugh Hancock Strange Company was a group of machinima creators and distributors based in Edinburgh, Scotland. They are known in the medium as the longest-standing machinima production company, having produced machinima films since 1997, and for creating the ...
, the founder of Strange Company, launched a new website,
machinima.com Machinima, Inc. was an American multiplatform online entertainment network owned by WarnerMedia. The company was founded in January 2000 by Hugh Hancock and was headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It originated as a hub for its namesake, m ...
. A misspelled contraction of ''machine cinema'' (''machinema''), the term ''machinima'' was intended to dissociate in-game filming from a specific
engine An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power ...
. The misspelling stuck because it also referenced
anime is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...
. The new site featured tutorials, interviews, articles, and the exclusive release of Tritin Films' '' Quad God''. The first film made with ''
Quake III Arena ''Quake III Arena'' is a 1999 multiplayer-focused first-person shooter developed by id Software. The third installment of the ''Quake'' series, ''Arena'' differs from previous games by excluding a story-based single-player mode and focusing prima ...
'', ''Quad God'' was also the first to be distributed as recorded video frames, not game-specific instructions. This change was initially controversial among machinima producers who preferred the smaller size of demo files. However, demo files required a copy of the game to view. The more accessible traditional video format broadened ''Quad God''s viewership, and the work was distributed on CDs bundled with magazines. Thus, id's decision to protect ''Quake III''s code inadvertently caused machinima creators to use more general solutions and thus widen their audience. Within a few years, machinima films were almost exclusively distributed in common video file formats. Machinima began to receive mainstream notice.
Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...
discussed it in a June 2000 article and praised Strange Company's machinima setting of
Percy Bysshe Shelley Percy Bysshe Shelley ( ; 4 August 17928 July 1822) was one of the major English Romantic poets. A radical in his poetry as well as in his political and social views, Shelley did not achieve fame during his lifetime, but recognition of his ach ...
's sonnet "
Ozymandias "Ozymandias" ( ) is a sonnet written by the English Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822). It was first published in the 11 January 1818 issue of '' The Examiner'' of London. The poem was included the following year in Shelley's coll ...
". At
Showtime Network Showtime is an American premium television network owned by Paramount Media Networks, and is the flagship property of the namesake parent company, Showtime Networks, a part of Paramount Media Networks. Showtime's programming primarily includ ...
's 2001 Alternative Media Festival, the
ILL Clan Machinima, originally machinema () is the use of real-time computer graphics engines to create a cinematic production. Most often, video games are used to generate the computer animation. The word "machinima" is a portmanteau of the words ...
's 2000 machinima film ''
Hardly Workin' Machinima, originally machinema () is the use of real-time computer graphics engines to create a cinematic production. Most often, video games are used to generate the computer animation. The word "machinima" is a portmanteau of the words '' ...
'' won the Best Experimental and Best in SHO awards.
Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spi ...
used ''
Unreal Tournament ''Unreal Tournament'' is a first-person arena shooter video game developed by Epic Games and Digital Extremes. The second installment in the '' Unreal'' series, it was first published by GT Interactive in 1999 for Microsoft Windows, and lat ...
'' to test special effects while working on his 2001 film '' Artificial Intelligence: A.I.'' Eventually, interest spread to game developers. In July 2001,
Epic Games Epic Games, Inc. is an American video game and software developer and publisher based in Cary, North Carolina. The company was founded by Tim Sweeney as Potomac Computer Systems in 1991, originally located in his parents' house in Potomac, ...
announced that its upcoming game ''
Unreal Tournament 2003 ''Unreal Tournament 2003'' is a first-person arena shooter video game developed by Epic Games and Digital Extremes, and published by Infogrames under the Atari brand name. The game is part of the ''Unreal'' franchise, and is a sequel to 19 ...
'' would include Matinee, a machinima production software utility. As involvement increased, filmmakers released fewer new productions to focus on quality. At the March 2002
Game Developers Conference The Game Developers Conference (GDC) is an annual conference for video game developers. The event includes an expo, networking events, and awards shows like the Game Developers Choice Awards and Independent Games Festival, and a variety of tuto ...
, five machinima makers—Anthony Bailey, Hugh Hancock,
Katherine Anna Kang Katherine Anna Kang (born December 15, 1970) is an American video game designer. Career In 2000, as founder and CEO of Fountainhead Entertainment, she championed machinima and became known as one of machinima's biggest supporters. Through Fount ...
, Paul Marino, and Matthew Ross—founded the AMAS, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting machinima. At
QuakeCon QuakeCon is a yearly convention held by ZeniMax Media to celebrate and promote the major franchises of id Software and other studios owned by ZeniMax. It includes a large, paid, bring-your-own-computer (BYOC) LAN party event with a competitive ...
in August, the new organization held the first Machinima Film Festival, which received mainstream media coverage. '' Anachronox: The Movie'', by Jake Hughes and Tom Hall, won three awards, including Best Picture. The next year, "
In the Waiting Line ''Simple Things'' is the debut studio album by Zero 7, released on 23 April 2001. It peaked at number 28 on the UK Albums Chart, staying on the chart for 56 weeks. It was nominated for the Mercury Prize. Critical reception Tim DiGravina of AllM ...
", produced by
Ghost Robot Ghost Robot is a creative content studio based in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York, United States. The company produces projects in a variety of media. History Ghost Robot was founded in 2002 by Zachary Mortensen. The company derived its name fro ...
, directed by
Tommy Pallotta Tommy Pallotta (born May 25, 1968, in Houston, Texas) is an American film director and producer. Biography Pallotta received a degree in Philosophy from the University of Texas at Austin. There, he met Richard Linklater and began his film caree ...
and animated by Randy Cole, utilizing Fountainhead Entertainment's Machinimation tools, it became the first machinima music video to air on
MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
. As graphics technology improved, machinima filmmakers used other video games and consumer-grade
video editing software Video editing software, or a video editor is software used performing the post-production video editing of digital video sequences on a non-linear editing system. It has replaced traditional flatbed celluloid film editing tools and analog video t ...
. Using
Bungie Bungie, Inc. is an American video game company based in Bellevue, Washington. It is a studio owned by Sony Interactive Entertainment. The company was established in May 1991 by Alex Seropian, who later brought in programmer Jason Jones afte ...
's 2001 game '' Halo: Combat Evolved'',
Rooster Teeth Productions Rooster Teeth Productions, LLC is an American digital media company headquartered in Austin, Texas. Founded in 2003 by Burnie Burns, Matt Hullum, Geoff Ramsey, Jason Saldaña, Gus Sorola, and Joel Heyman, Rooster Teeth is a subsidiary of ...
created a popular comedy series '' Red vs. Blue: The Blood Gulch Chronicles''. The series' second season premiered at the
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 millio ...
in 2004.


Mainstream appearances

Machinima has appeared on television, starting with G4's series ''
Portal Portal often refers to: *Portal (architecture), an opening in a wall of a building, gate or fortification, or the extremities (ends) of a tunnel Portal may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Gaming * ''Portal'' (series), two video games ...
''.
MTV2 MTV2 (formerly M2) is an American pay television channel owned by the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. The channel launched initially as an all-music video service, once the original MTV had started to shift its programmin ...
's ''
Video Mods ''Video Mods'' is a television series that aired on MTV2. This show turned video game characters into musicians. It was created by Tony Shiff of Big Bear Entertainment in 2003. A pilot aired in December 2003, having been underwritten by Electroni ...
'' re-creates music videos using characters from video games such as ''
The Sims 2 ''The Sims 2'' is a 2004 strategic life simulation video game developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. It is the second major title in ''The Sims'' series, and is the sequel to ''The Sims.'' The game was released for Microsoft Windo ...
'', ''
BloodRayne ''BloodRayne'' is a media franchise that originated with an action-adventure video game series originally developed by Terminal Reality and published by Majesco Entertainment which began with the game of the same name in 2002. The franchise f ...
'', and ''
Tribes The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to confl ...
''.
Blizzard Entertainment Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. is an American video game developer and video game publisher, publisher based in Irvine, California. A subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, the company was founded on February 8, 1991, under the name Silicon & Synapse, ...
helped to set part of "
Make Love, Not Warcraft "Make Love, Not Warcraft" is the eighth episode in the tenth season of the American animated television series '' South Park''. The 147th episode overall, it first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 4, 2006. In the episode, na ...
", an
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
–winning 2006 episode of the comedy series '' South Park'', in its
massively multiplayer online role-playing game A massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a video game that combines aspects of a role-playing video game and a massively multiplayer online game. As in role-playing games (RPGs), the player assumes the role of a character ( ...
(MMORPG) ''
World of Warcraft ''World of Warcraft'' (''WoW'') is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) released in 2004 by Blizzard Entertainment. Set in the ''Warcraft'' fantasy universe, ''World of Warcraft'' takes place within the world of Azeroth ...
''. By purchasing broadcast rights to
Douglas Gayeton Douglas Gayeton is an American multimedia artist, filmmaker, writer, and photographer who divides his time between a farm near Petaluma, California and Pistoia, a medieval Tuscan town. Along with his wife, Laura Howard-Gayeton, he directThe Lex ...
's machinima documentary ''
Molotov Alva and His Search for the Creator ''Molotov Alva and His Search for the Creator: A Second Life Odyssey'', originally titled ''My Second Life: The Video Diaries of Molotov Alva'', is a 2007 American documentary film created by Douglas Gayeton. ''Molotov Alva'' tells the story of a m ...
'' in September 2007,
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
became the first television network to buy a work created completely in a
virtual world A virtual world (also called a virtual space) is a computer-simulated environment which may be populated by many users who can create a personal avatar, and simultaneously and independently explore the virtual world, participate in its activitie ...
. In December 2008, machinima.com signed fifteen experienced television comedy writers—including
Patric Verrone Patric Miller Verrone (born September 29, 1959) is an American television writer and labor leader. He served as a writer and producer for several animated television shows, most notably ''Futurama''. Schooling and pre-television career Verrone ...
,
Bill Oakley William Lloyd Oakley (born February 27, 1966) is an American television writer and producer, known for his work on the animated comedy series '' The Simpsons''. Oakley and Josh Weinstein became best friends and writing partners at St. Albans ...
, and
Mike Rowe Michael Gregory Rowe (born March 18, 1962) is an American television host and narrator. He is known for his work on the Discovery Channel series '' Dirty Jobs'' and the series '' Somebody's Gotta Do It'' originally developed for CNN. He hosted ...
—to produce episodes for the site. Commercial use of machinima has increased.
Rooster Teeth Rooster Teeth Productions, LLC is an American digital media company headquartered in Austin, Texas. Founded in 2003 by Burnie Burns, Matt Hullum, Geoff Ramsey, Jason Saldaña, Gus Sorola, and Joel Heyman, Rooster Teeth is a subsidiary of War ...
sells
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...
s of their ''Red vs. Blue'' series and, under sponsorship from
Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted th ...
, helped to promote ''
The Sims 2 ''The Sims 2'' is a 2004 strategic life simulation video game developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. It is the second major title in ''The Sims'' series, and is the sequel to ''The Sims.'' The game was released for Microsoft Windo ...
'' by using the game to make a machinima series, ''
The Strangerhood ''The Strangerhood'' is a comedy series created by Rooster Teeth Productions. The series is produced primarily by using the machinima technique of synchronizing video footage from video game to pre-recorded dialogue and other audio. The animatio ...
''.
Volvo Cars Volvo Cars ( sv, Volvo personvagnar, styled VOLVO in the company's logo) is a Sweden, Swedish multinational manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Torslanda, Gothenburg. The company manufactures SUVs, station wagons, and sedans. The co ...
sponsored the creation of a 2004 advertisement, '' Game: On'', the first film to combine machinima and
live action Live action (or live-action) is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live-action with animation to create a live-action animated film. Live-action is used to define film, video ...
. Later, Electronic Arts commissioned Rooster Teeth to promote their ''
Madden NFL 07 ''Madden NFL 07'' is an American football video game based on the NFL that was published by EA Sports and developed by EA Tiburon. It is the first in the video game series to debut for the PlayStation 3 and Wii consoles as launch titles and the l ...
'' video game. Blockhouse TV uses
Moviestorm Moviestorm is a Real-time computer graphics, real-time 3D animation app published by Moviestorm Ltd. The software is available to and used by people of all age groups and appeals to those with a diverse range of backgrounds and interests, from ...
's machinima software to produce its pre-school educational DVD series ''
Jack and Holly ''Jack and Holly'' is a preschool animated series from the UK that centres on two characters, Jack and Holly. It was launched as a freely available TV series on all IPTV platforms Limited edition DVDs were distributed to children's hospices arou ...
'' Game developers have continued to increase support for machinima. Products such as
Lionhead Studios Lionhead Studios Limited was a British video game developer founded in July 1997 by Peter Molyneux, Mark Webley, Tim Rance, and Steve Jackson. The company is best known for the '' Black & White'' and ''Fable'' series. Lionhead started as a bre ...
' 2005
business simulation game Business simulation games, also known as economic simulation games
''
The Movies ''The Movies'' is a business simulation game created by Lionhead Studios for Microsoft Windows and ported to Mac OS X by Feral Interactive. Players run a Hollywood film studio, creating films that can be exported from the game. ''The Movies'' w ...
'',
Linden Research Linden Research, Inc., doing business as Linden Lab, is an American technology company that is best known as the creator of ''Second Life''. The company's head office is in San Francisco, with additional offices in Boston, Seattle, Virginia an ...
's virtual world ''
Second Life ''Second Life'' is an online multimedia platform that allows people to create an avatar for themselves and then interact with other users and user created content within a multi player online virtual world. Developed and owned by the San Fra ...
'', and Bungie's 2007 first-person shooter ''