Machinima

When asked to define machinima, I generally answer that it’s an animation technique utilizing video game graphic engines, or, simply – films made with games. However, while preparing this year’s set, I realized that this is a very rigid description. The explanation can be even simpler! To make machinima is to play a game – a game of filmmaking. Regardless of the numerous attempts of the industry and authors, the form never became mainstream. It found its small niche, closer to fan films. But thanks to that, it kept something very important: innocence. Machinima authors remain enthusiasts – they compensate for the occassional kitschiness (or faults in the writing or editing) with an often disarming honesty. They are simply people who extend the fun they’ve had with their favorite games by turning them into tools allowing them to fulfill their creative ambitions. And sometimes, they create some real gems – we will show some of them at Ars Independent. Yet again, we invite our guests to enter this weird, yet fascinating, world.