"Machinima" offers an in-depth look at where machinima has come from, how and where it is being employed, and its future. It is one of the first books catering to the demand for practical information on this fast-growing and exciting new moviemaking medium. Examine how machinima has been put to use in recent blockbusters, including "Troy" and "The Lord of the Rings" and take an in-depth look at the production pipeline of machinima movemaking as you walk through every step of the process--from screenwriting techniques and storyboarding through character design, lighting, sound effects, and closing credits. You’ll also discover where you can find machinima movies on the Web.

"Machinima: Making Animated Movies in 3D Virtual Environments" offers an in-depth look at where machinima has come from, how and where it is being employed, and its future. It is one of the first books catering to the demand for practical information on this fast-growing and exciting new moviemaking medium. Examine how machinima has been put to use in recent blockbusters, including "Troy and "The Lord of the Rings" and take an in-depth look at the production pipeline of machinima movemaking as you walk through every step of the process--from screenwriting techniques and storyboarding through character design, lighting, sound effects, and closing credits. You’ll also discover where you can find machinima movies on the Web.

Great Intro book

If you are looking for a good overview of what Machinima is about then I recommend this book. If you are looking for more of a how to then check elsewhere. However, if you get serious about Machinima you’ll eventually want this book on your reference shelf.

A great read...but....

I purchased this book understanding that there was no way machinima production could be properly covered in 160 pages. This book touched on the various production subjects such as scripting, storyboarding, video editing and so on, but not near enough to do much with the information. Rather I was interested in machinima history, which this book did an excellent job covering. I presume that it was no easy task locating the many machinima examples the authors cited throughout the book. But if the authors had these various machinima examples to pull screen captures from, they could have provided them on a DVD included with the book - this would have brought the value of the book up to par with its current cost.

I moved through the book from the start enjoying the history of machinima. Naturally I was getting excited about producing machinima myself. The authors pointed out that its relatively easy to get started, that it requires little or no budget and that it can be a lot of fun. Then, wham, on page 98/99, it’s seemingly all over. Here the authors quote several lawyers who give dire predictions of what happens to those who violate intellectual property rights, with machinima authors having no special privileges. Even Fair Use as an option is shredded. Then, one lawyer is quoted "Check with a lawyer...". Well, there goes the benefits of fun and low budget - any contact with Legal Man is neither fun or inexpensive.

I think it was a critical mistake for the authors to have quoted these lawyers (What did the authors expect them to say?), yet give very little discussion to viable options for avoiding copyright infringement. Ironically these two copyright pages illustrated the popular Red vs. Blue which the author originally attempted to fly under the radar of Microsoft’s Halo copyrights, but for whom it worked out. Should I expend 10-100 hours on a machinima piece and hope it works out on the legal front? Prior to pages 98/99 I read every page enthusiastically. Thereafter I was haunted by the thought that my machinima hobby may in some way be an illegal activity.

But, other than the unfortunate turn of events I reluctantly cite above, the book "Machinima" is well written and illustrated and is a great read within its introductory scope.

Very Basic - Not Worth The Time

I was looking for a book that gives a intro tutorial on creating machinima, but this book is so basic that it fails even at that basic expectation. It has nice glossy pictures, but most topics of serious interest (e.g., copyright, setup, distribution, etc.) are nothing more than 1-2 pages, with half of each page space dedicated to pictures. I flipped through this book literally in 3 mins, looking for one reason to keep it but to no avail. It’s going back to Amazon. I don’t want to sound mean, but I want to share my views so that others don’t waste their time ordering and returning this.

A new way of making movies based on technology originally developed for computer games

Matt Kelland, Dave Morris and Dave Lloyd’s Machinima: Making Animaled Movies In 3d Virtual Environments provides examples of a new way of making movies based on technology originally developed for computer games. Machinima movies are made on virtual sets using virtual characters and 2D graphics engines derived from popular games - so any filmmaker with a home PC an create them. Learn how to build sets, handle animation, customize existing sets, and plug in characters through a title which addresses everything form camera angles and acting to a history of machinima.

can be done on a small budget

The book is a suitable first book on Machinima for those who’ve never dealt with the subject. It gives a good overview of the main topics in the field. And it shows the overlap with traditional film making in several ways. Most clearly in the necessity for good storyboarding.

But of course, the book also blends in the computer animation aspects. Where now these differ from traditional film animation by having the characters exist in a full three dimensional world.

It might be said that this is also true of mainstream digital animations like those from Pixar or SKG Dreamworks (eg. Shrek). But the book shows that the distinguishing aspect of machinima is its low budget. You and a few capable friends can easily ramp up the computing resources and software for a modest project.