Originally posted by GL2:
This forum has long needed an FAQ thread for new filmmakers and visitors. Here's an attempt to answer some of the most common questions.
WHAT IS THE MOVIE MAKERS FORUM?
This is a forum dedicated to €œmachinima€ (see next topic) that uses the Pacific Fighters game as its primary graphics engine for making films.
WHAT IS "MACHINIMA"?
Machinima ("machine" + "cinema") is filmmaking that uses video recorded from one or more computer games (such as Pacific Fighters) as the raw video for making a film. The filmmaker sets up scenes while playing the game and €œcaptures€ (records) the game€s video using special software. He later edits that video to create a film. The more sophisticated machinima films have music, dialogue and even special effects that go beyond what is available in the game itself. Filmmakers make these movies available to the public through download links that allow others to enjoy their creations.
WHERE CAN I DOWNLOAD THESE FILMS?
The links to many films can be found right here in this forum. When filmmakers create a new film, they start a new thread and post a download link. Unfortunately, those threads tend to get lost over time, and some of the links become inactive. However, there is a library of download links to some of this community€s films at the NetWings site. You can find them here:
http://www.netwings.org/library/Forgotten%5FBattles%5Fa...c%5FFighters/Videos/
If you€re interested, you can find machinima films that have been created by people outside this community at this link:
http://www.machinima.org
HOW LONG ARE THESE FILMS, AND HOW BIG ARE THE FILES?
Film lengths vary greatly. The shorter films tend to be around five minutes long, and the longer films are 20+ minutes long. File sizes vary just as much and depend on the length of the film and the level of compression used by the filmmaker. File sizes range from around 5MB to well over 100MB.
HOW MANY MACHINIMA FILMS HAVE BEEN MADE?
The film community at this site has created over six hundred films, and that number is always growing. There are other machinima communities that use other computer games as their primary graphics engine, so the total number of machinima films is unknown.
WHAT SOFTWARE DO I NEED TO VIEW THESE FILMS?
Most films can be viewed with the Windows Media Player, however, many films require you to have either the DivX or XviD codecs downloaded on your hard drive. You can download those codecs here:
http://www.divx.com/divx/play/download/
http://www.xvid.org/downloads.html
WHAT ARE THE NAMES OF THE BEST FILMS?
The quality of films produced in this community varies, just as it does in Hollywood. Look for movie threads in this forum with high ratings (indicated by the number of yellow check marks to the side of the thread) to find some of the better examples. Unfortunately, there are no active links to many of the best films this community has produced over the last few years.
The following are quality films that are available at NetWings.org and have generated some excitement among fans. Please note, I have not seen even most of the films at NetWings.org, and many of the best films made are not available there. If a film is not listed here don't assume the film is not good. Consider this just the tip of the iceberg to help you get started.
Bellum
Last Man Standing
Purple Heart Alley
If you've heard of a film you'd like to see but can't find a link, post a request for the film here. Someone might be able to email it to you using
http://www.yousendit.com.
HOW CAN I LEARN HOW TO MAKE MY OWN MACHINIMA FILMS?
The best way to start is by clicking on the €œDart€s Filmmaking Tutorial€ link in my signature block at the bottom of this post. There are also a few tutorials available at the Machinima Movie Theater Web site (see the other link in my signature block).
http://www.machinima.org has some tutorials, as well. Finally, you can post questions about filmmaking right here in the Movie Makers Forum.