Machinima Island
Encyclopedia
Machinima Island was a experimental project created by Inter-Activa
which mixed social networks, virtual worlds and Machinima
. The project was conceptualised in 2004 and completed 2006. The project has been quoted as an early example of transmedia and hypercomics
and won an Arts Council award.
The idea behind Machinima Island was to develop a narrative dynamically, in collaboration with audiences, and then develop that narrative into a series of ongoing animation episodes (in response to user input), using Machinima techniques. To allow that the producers published a series of basic/introductory videos that introduced the characters and their environment to the audience. Then they also published a website where audiences could add comments and proposals (comments were also permitted via SMS). A whole virtual set was created for this project, including the characters and purpose-built avatar control techniques in Second Life
. Though the experiment was well received the series were canceled because of the lack of input from audiences (read about the "1% rule" here).
As well as receiving 3 nominatons and one award at Machinima Festivals http://www.ioct.dmu.ac.uk/press/071015.html the project was showcased in festivals in Europe http://www.machinima.org.sg/symposium2008/speakers.php and Asia.
. The goals of the site were to develop a community around the series and act as the main vehicle for the resulting text/narrative, which from there was turned into animation episodes using the virtual world.
Several artists collaborated in this project conceptualised and produced by Ricard Gras, among them - Gareth Howell, Alex Lucas and Saatchmo Prototype.
Festivals * http://www.showroomworkstation.org.uk/media/showcomotion_media_conference_guide.pdf
Inter-Activa
Inter-Activa Ltd is a digital media production company registered in the UK. They are known for having created Machinima work since 2000, virtual world content since 2004 and having promoted the use of videogames in artistic and educational settings...
which mixed social networks, virtual worlds and Machinima
Machinima
Machinima is the use of real-time 3D computer graphics rendering engines to create a cinematic production. Most often, video games are used to generate the computer animation...
. The project was conceptualised in 2004 and completed 2006. The project has been quoted as an early example of transmedia and hypercomics
Hypercomics
Hypercomics refers to a variation of webcomics, coming from the merging of the term "hypertext" with "comics." While traditional comics have been posted on the Internet as drawings scanned into digital media or even drawn entirely on computer, hypercomics take advantage of the properties of their...
and won an Arts Council award.
The idea behind Machinima Island was to develop a narrative dynamically, in collaboration with audiences, and then develop that narrative into a series of ongoing animation episodes (in response to user input), using Machinima techniques. To allow that the producers published a series of basic/introductory videos that introduced the characters and their environment to the audience. Then they also published a website where audiences could add comments and proposals (comments were also permitted via SMS). A whole virtual set was created for this project, including the characters and purpose-built avatar control techniques in Second Life
Second Life
Second Life is an online virtual world developed by Linden Lab. It was launched on June 23, 2003. A number of free client programs, or Viewers, enable Second Life users, called Residents, to interact with each other through avatars...
. Though the experiment was well received the series were canceled because of the lack of input from audiences (read about the "1% rule" here).
As well as receiving 3 nominatons and one award at Machinima Festivals http://www.ioct.dmu.ac.uk/press/071015.html the project was showcased in festivals in Europe http://www.machinima.org.sg/symposium2008/speakers.php and Asia.
The Website
The site contained information about the project, character descriptions and introductory videos. Audiences could add comments freely about the characters, episodes or the plot, rate the videos as well send comments via their mobile phones. The website was designed by CuttlefishCuttlefish
Cuttlefish are marine animals of the order Sepiida. They belong to the class Cephalopoda . Despite their name, cuttlefish are not fish but molluscs....
. The goals of the site were to develop a community around the series and act as the main vehicle for the resulting text/narrative, which from there was turned into animation episodes using the virtual world.
The Virtual Set
The set and the characters were designed completely purposely for the project. A virtual puppeteer technique was also developed specifically so that the gestures of the characters could be controlled in real-time by means of using the keyboard. The project won the Best Technical Achievement award at the 2007 Machinima Film Festival Europe. *http://www.ioct.dmu.ac.uk/press/071015.htmlSeveral artists collaborated in this project conceptualised and produced by Ricard Gras, among them - Gareth Howell, Alex Lucas and Saatchmo Prototype.
External links
Reference * http://www.serik.de/files/Erik%20Schneider%20-%20Story%20and%20Game%20Combined%20-%20www.serik.de.pdfFestivals * http://www.showroomworkstation.org.uk/media/showcomotion_media_conference_guide.pdf