Tuesday, September 7th at 12PM Pacific Time

In addition, we have decided to extend the submission period for the Spanish/Latin entries to Tuesday, September 14th at 12PM Pacific Time. We feel that because we added Spain and Portugal several weeks after submissions started, it’s only fair to those Spanish and Latin machinima directors to have a bit more time than everyone else.

The Expo has received well over 130 entries to date and are very pleased with the quality of the submissions. We plan on announcing the films that will screen at the Expo along with those films which we will send on to our Jury sometime in September. We are also planning a surprise announcement about a new category of film screening at the Expo this year. More info to come.

-Ricky

The 2010 Machinima Expo will officially take place on Saturday, November 20th and Sunday, November 21st. The actual schedule of events is still being planned, but we’ll most likely be running from around 1oAM to 3 or 4PM in the afternoon (Pacific Time/Los Angeles), with a half hour or hour break in the middle.  Click this link for a time zone converter to determine the correct time in your zrea.

Our goal remains to provide the best quality versions of hand picked films that were submitted to the Expo this year and to make your experience attending the Expo easier and simpler.

Also, we’ll be opening the screening reels on the Friday, November 19th sometime in the evening (exact time will be announced).  We will be running the screening reels through the weekend and the rest of the week. Screening will stop officially on Sunday, November 28th in the evening. This means that everyone will have full access to high quality versions of all of the screening films for 10 days, 24/7.

The way the Expo is being presented this year is going to be very different from the previous two years. A main goal, in addition to quality films, is to make the Expo attendee’s experiences easier and simpler. If you have a computer, an internet connection and a browser you’ll be able to attend the 2010 Expo.

In order to facilitate this new change in the way we are presenting the Expo, we will be partnering with a number of organizations and people most notably Ken White /TMOA Radio and D.L. Watson /TMU Theater. We’d like to thank Ken and D.L. for helping us in creating a new Expo this year.

Some of the programming we are working on for the 2010 Expo includes:

• Keynote address by Tracy Harwood
• “Women in Machinima” panel discussion. Chaired by Ingrid Moon
• MachinExpo 2010 Awards Ceremony
• Screening of Jury Grand Prize Winner
• “Sound Design for Machinima” presented by Ricky Grove
• “Finding and Creating Music for Your Machinima” with Phil Rice
• Muvizu and Reallusion will have booths in Second Life and will also present a video overview of their programs (more tools in the planning stages

And many other events are still in the planning stage including more machinima tool presentations, a “Meet the Machinimators” mixer, a possible “Wolf and Dulci Hour” live show and a conversation with “Classic Machinima Filmmakers” who started the machinima movement years ago, but have moved on become professional Machinimators in the gaming world.

We will be announcing new programming as it’s confirmed and will post a final programming schedule sometime in late August or early September, 2010.

We are very excited about this years Expo. All of the Expo team members are working hard to make this the best Expo yet.

The MachinExpo 2010 promises to be the biggest and most exciting one yet. We are solely focused on two goals this year: to present the best machinima films we can find at the highest quality and to open the audience for the Expo to include anyone with a computer and a net browser. We want this year’s Expo to be easy to attend and simple to get around. It will take a lot of work, but we have a staff of over 15 now and we are very excited about what’s coming.

We’ll start the ball rolling with opening submissions to the 2010 Expo film festival on June 1st. We will continue to accept submissions of machinima films until August 31st, 2010. We decided to start the submission process a little earlier this year, so we could incorporate the goal of higher quality screening and figure out technical issues. We’ll also be announcing the new category of film award for this years Expo on June 1st and will have more information on the guidelines, which have changed just a bit.

So stay tuned and on June 1st and we’ll provide the guidelines, application forms and comment on some of the new ideas we have for the festival this year!

This Sunday, November 15th, from 9Am to 12AM (Pacific Time), we will hold a Technical Rehearsal for all MachinExpo 2009 participants. If you are presenting or on a panel, please make time in your schedule to come to this rehearsal. We’ll be going over the programming schedule and telling you how everything will work technically. You’ll have a chance to check your mic and headset, test the “power point” application Phil has set up for presenters and get a feel for the space.

This is especially important for newbies to Second Life. We’ll be able to help you out with learning how to move around and communicate. We might even set up a big “shopping trip” in case anyone wants to spruce up their avatars a bit.

It should be a lot of fun. So PLEASE come to this rehearsal even if it’s only for 15 minutes as it will make a big difference in how smoothly the Expo runs on Nov 22nd.

The event takes place on an island in Second Life owned (and graciously loaned to us) by UCS (University Campus Suffolk). Here is the slurl (once you click this link, it will open your SL application and take you to a page that you click again to transport to the location)

http://slurl.com/secondlife/UCSville/60/173/25/

You may have to log in in order to travel to the island.

Once you are there, look for a large building (the island is small) which is where we will be going over the programming schedule. If you arrive late, you can contact either myself or Phil. My in world name is

gtoon Jun

and Phil’s is

Sol Bartz

Also, if you need to convert your time zone, here is a nice time coverter you can use:

http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html

Hope to see you there!

Ricky/Phil

Would also like to note that Kate and Micheal, who created last years superb promotional film, have re-posted it at their Pineapple Chunks website. Well, worth taking the time to see their creative efforts. Thanks to you, Kate and Michael!

We still have the Jury films and the Asian films left to announce (which we will in the next several days), so if your film is not listed here, there is still a chance it may be on the Jury or Asian list of films. Our sincere thanks to all those who submitted.

Also, we have created a separate page on our new Machinima Expo called “Films Screening at the Expo” (clumsy, but accurate) where you can see the list with a screen cap from each film which is linked to the location where the film can be viewed. They are listed in alphabetical order by title

Phil, Damien, Ingrid and I would like to thank the Machinima community for responding so strongly to our festival. We really appreciate the support.

Here is the final group of films we will be screening:

-”Ad Hominem Attack” by Jorge Campos

-”Cloud Angel” by IceAxe

-”DoubleKill: Jess” by Dave Tyner

-”Elegantly Forbidden” by Cecil Hirvi

-”Escape – chapter_11 from DREAM ON/OFF movie” by cisko vandeverre

-”Indiana Jones and the Gray Ghost” by Wayne Poe

-”re: Your Brains by Jonathan Coulton” by John Norton

-”Rise” by Brian Mayberry

-”Rising Stasis” by James D. Holbrook

-”the Graveyard” Claus-Dieter Schulz

-”What is Second Life? (For Linden Lab Website)” by Kerria Seabrooke

Rather than list all of the screeners at one time, we are going to publicly announce them in small groups over the next several weeks. Today, we are listing 10 more machinima films we think should be screened at the Expo. Remember, if your film isn’t listed here it might be on the next round.

Also, we have created a separate page on our new Machinima Expo called “List of Films Screening at the Machinima Expo” (clumsy, but accurate) where you can see the list with a screen cap from each film which is linked to the location where the film can be viewed. Of course, any filmmaker who gave us a private link to a film not yet released to the public, we will keep that link private.

Phil, Damien, Ingrid and I would like to thank the Machinima community for responding so strongly to our festival. We really appreciate the support.

Here are the second 10 films we will be screening:

-”All the Little Fishies” by Toxic Menges

-”The Body is Obsolete: Stelarc Performance” by Chantal Harvey

-”Chanel Untold” by Hardy Capo

-”Coming Home” by Lizard

-”Dignity of Men” by Kate Lee

-”Erlkonig” by Ciskovan

-”Heightfever” by Luca van Grinsven

-”Pinhead: In the S***” by afterThought

-”Lights Drive My Soul” by Donald Rack

-”To My Beloved” by Cecil Hirvi

Congratulations to the filmmakers and thank you for submitting your film.

Check out Krrish’s YouTube channel, and if you’d like to grab an HD version of the Teaser, you can download it here (right click-save link).

We were very interested to know more about Krrish and what inspires him, and he was kind enough to allow Phil to interview him below.

Phil: Where are you from? What effect (if any) does where you are from have on your approach to film and/or story?

Krrish: I am from Mumbai, India, home of the famous/infamous Bollywood. We have a completely different film culture. I cannot help but have some Bollywood influence on my approach to film, as both a viewer and maker.

I have been watching both Bollywood movies and World Cinema since I was 11 or 12. Human emotions are universal. The only effect that I might have on my approach to films, because of where I live, would be a slightly grander, larger than life, over the top Bollywood style approach (Laughs). Then again, I am fully aware of what other film makers around the world are pursing in film making (thanks to the Internet!). And I feel I am sensitive and educated enough to pick up the right kind of things from these film makers, things that help me make progressive films rather than regressive. So I think I am ok there.

Film makers here generally describe Bollywood movies as a blend of extreme desired fantasy and reality. One prominent director put it particularly well: “The average middle class Indian works hard 10-12 hours a day, 5-6 days a week. There are so many problems in the lives of people, so many tensions on a personal and professional front. They do not want to see the same misery on the big screen in realistic form… They need to be entertained with laughter, hope, and a small fantasy trip.” I think most film makers here accept and observe that.

Phil: How long have you been using machinima as an artistic / storytelling medium? What was your first encounter with machinima?

Krrish: I started learning machinima making a year ago.

I am a YouTube addict! So while watching videos on YouTube, I came across a video made in Second Life, SL 042 – a film by Chantal Harvey. I remember my first reaction after watching that SL video was “Dude, that’s so cool! Why am I not making them myself?” (Laughs) That was the first machinima I had ever watched. Chantal is a good friend now and she still laughs when I tell her she is the reason I started making machinimas.

Phil: What ways did you use to express yourself / tell stories before you started using machinima / animation?

Krrish: I used to play with my digicam til I was a college student (I completed my Masters in Business last year). I used to film random stuff with friends or just anything that I found interesting, but never got down to editing it, until I started making machinima films. That is when I started learning video editing software.

Phil: What drives and inspires you as a filmmaker? Do you have a particular goal or direction you wish to pursue with your film work?

Krrish: The idea of story telling comes very naturally to me. Watching great films only drives me and inspires as a film maker. I always subconsciously watch films with a director’s POV. I just love it when I feel challenged by the director while watching his/her film, where he/she outdoes my thinking regarding the film direction. Nothing inspires me more than that!

I intend to start making professional Real Life movies soon. That’s my dream! (Smiles). I had applied to film schools in India this year, and they are very tough to get into with very limited seats, let’s see how it goes.

Phil: Who are some of your influences as a filmmaker?

Krrish: From around world: James Cameron, Quentin Tarantino, Martin Scorsese, Danny Boyle, etc.

From Bollywood: Farhan Akhtar, Anurag Kashyap, Vishal Bhardwaj, etc.

From Machinima : Of course you sir, Phil Rice, Tom Jantol, Lainy Voom, Surrealia Anatine, Robbie Dingo, etc.

Phil: Other than Second Life, what other software or tools are a major part of your film work (pre-production, post production, etc.)?

Krrish: I am big fan of Photoshop and I tend to use it a lot in machinima with getting a certain look for background textures. Sony Vegas works best for me as video editing software.

Phil: What’s the most recent machinima film you watched that made you say, “Wow!”?

Krrish: BLACK SONIC Official PV – Takutada. This obscure artist from Japan, who goes by the name takutada on YouTube, makes some of the best machinima music videos on the internet.

Phil: What are your plans as a director for the coming year? Is there a particular technique you are studying or project you are planning that you can tell us a little bit about?

Krrish: I am working on a short story, 5-8 minutes long, based on a character Ajmal Kasab, the lone arrested terrorist involved in recent terrorist attack in Mumbai. It’s taking long due to my busy real life work and stuff.

It’s mostly about what all is going through his mind at this hotel room he is staying, few hours before he commits that act. So it would be mostly fictional and very loosely based on police interrogation of him, which was published in print media in Mumbai. It’s an attempt to highlight how poor unemployed youth is brainwashed by some terrorist organizations to carry out these heinous acts of mass human killings.

I am done with script writing, sets and character design. I am hoping to start filming and finish it off soon!

In closing, I’d like to congratulate Krrish, as one of his most recent films, Scripted, was just announced as one of the prize-winning finalists in this year’s Bitfilm Festival. We look forward to seeing what you do next, Krrish!

Rather than list all of the screeners at one time, we are going to announce them in small groups over the next several weeks. Today, we are listing 10 machinima films we think should be screened at the Expo. As we confirm more screeners, we’ll announce them here. Remember, if your film isn’t listed here it might be on the next round.

Also, we have created a separate page on our new Machinima Expo called “List of Films Screening at the Machinima Expo” (clumsy, but accurate) where you can see the list with a screen cap from each film which is linked to the location where the film can be viewed. Of course, any filmmaker who gave us a private link to a film not yet released to the public, we will keep that link private.

Phil, Damien, Ingrid and I would like to thank the Machinima community for responding so strongly to our festival. We really appreciate the support.

Here are the first 10 films we’ve decided to screen:

-”anonymous (Part 1) by Jorge Campos

-”Daddy is Home” by James Thorpe

-”Friend” by Layne

-”Hello” by Azmira Jamlus

-”Le Terroriste” by Olibith

-”Moordenar [0] What Came Before” by Anima Technica

-”Ptolemy’s Blues” by Harvey LaReau

-”7 Keys” by Casper

-”The Shadow Over Innsmouth” by Joseph Kwong

-”Welcome to the Desert of the Real” by Paolo Pedercini

Congratulations to the filmmakers and thank you for submitting your film.

Phil, Damien and I are proud to announce that the 2009 Machinima Expo will take place on Sunday, November 22 from 9AM (Pacific Time) to 2PM (Pacific Time) on the University Campus Suffolk’s island in the virtual World of Second Life. We’ve done our best to set a time that most people in northern hemisphere times zones could accommodate. Here’s a time converter if you want to see what the Expo event times will be in your time zone:

Time Zone Converter

MachiniExpo 2009 is being produced with the assistance of the University Campus Suffolk http://www.ucs.ac.uk. University Campus Suffolk (UCS) is a unique collaboration between the University of East Anglia and the University of Essex. UCS was created in August 2007 in order to establish a university campus in Suffolk, UK. The UCS island in Second Life is a teaching and learning resource available to staff and students in the School of Arts & Humanities.

When we put out the word we were looking for a space to hold the 2nd Expo event, Eddie Dugan, Senior Teaching Practitioner in the School of Arts and Humanities (and who teaches a course in machinima at UCS) contacted us and offered the school’s facilities in Second Life along with assistance in producing the festival.

We will be screening a selection of UCS student machinima films as part of our screening series and there will be several UCS students on hand as helpers and assistants at the festival. You’ll recognize them by the special t-shirts they’ll be wearing (or perhaps an unusual hat?).

After an extensive tour of the UCS island in Second Life, we are excited at how well the structures will fit with our Expo program. There is a large, three story building with open interiors for information areas, panels/presentations, screening sessions and even a top floor lounge for folks who want to talk and drink fun virtual cocktails. Here are a few pictures:

There’s also a wonderful structure just off of the island. You can see the stone walkway that leads to this cabin in the above photo. Some very smart person set the stones just under the level of the water so that the walk to the cabin is very pleasant aesthetically.

This cabin is very much like a 50’s style bachelor pad all decorated in bright colors and square furniture. Lovely views of the ocean expanse all around and an especially beautiful view of the UCS campus building on the island. Phil and I spent a lot of time here mulling over logistics and debating programming. Here’s a shot of our mull session (I’m away from the camera; Phil is closest with his legs inside of the couch)

And here is the bachelor cabin from a view a little further away. Man, I just love flying in Second Life. We awer planning a very special event to take place here. One that we will be announcing soon. There will be a very slight re-design of the space to accommodate the programming.

Many thanks to Eddie, his students and co-workers for offering to help and then for working with us to make the Expo happen. We’ll be announcing the programming and the first round of film screenings on this blog very soon.