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Cinemassively: Double Happiness Jeans recruits virtual workers
Over the weekend, we'll be looking at an art project led by Stephanie Rothenberg and Jeff Crouse in January 2008. They first found an island, Eyebeam, which would serve as the base of operations for Double Happiness Jeans. Then they began recruiting residents to work in their factory.These new employees would work for five days, in three hour shifts, and in return, receive a tiny parcel of land and 200 Linden dollars per real hour. A variety of positions were available, including laser cutters and dye vat operators. The catch is that while they were pressing buttons in Second Life, they were actually part of an assembly process for jeans manufacturing at the Sundance Film Festival! Tomorrow, we'll view the results of their project.If you have machinima or movie suggestions from any MMO, please send them to machinima AT massively DOT com, along with any information you might have about them.
Cinemassively: Visit Mexico in Second Life
The Mexico Tourism Board has made quite an impression on Second Life with the recreation of some of their most famous landmarks. Now, they've released this outstanding video by Kronos Kirkorian, with music performed by Dizzy Banjo. We'd normally point out the liberal use of transitions and special effects, but he is a video professional with incredible talent. Every scene in the video makes this blogger want to call a travel agent! To check out the sim in SL, visit Ruta Maya.If you have machinima or movie suggestions from any MMO, please send them to machinima AT massively DOT com, along with any information you might have about them.
Cinemassively: SocioTown gameplay
Yesterday, Outside the Box released a gameplay footage video of their virtual world, SocioTown, which recently entered open beta. Described as a cross between The Sims and Animal Crossing, players are able to experience this social space right from their browser. As a member, you can socialize, level up, play games with other players, take missions, own an apartment, and even get a job!Being a machinimator, this blogger was interested in the cinematic abilities of Sociotown, so we put it to the test. While the camera isn't as easy to manipulate as is Second Life, you can use the up and down arrow keys to change your views from front to back, or use the left and right arrow keys to move the camera horizontally in increments. However, it doesn't look like you can turn off the user interface. For a closer look at the gameplay, check out the high quality version of the video![Thanks, Chris!]If you have machinima or movie suggestions from any MMO, please send them to machinima AT massively DOT com, along with any information you might have about them.
Cinemassively: Second Life Bravia commercial
Two years ago, Sony dropped 250,000 colorful, bouncy balls down a street in San Francisco to show the clarity of their Bravia televisions. Last month, Second Life resident Dorky Mohr decided to recreate that commercial as a machinima. While it pokes fun at the physical balls not crashing the sim due to the Havok 4 upgrade, this blogger still saw the beauty of the original commercial in this one.[Thanks, Dorky!]If you have machinima or movie suggestions from any MMO, please send them to machinima AT massively DOT com, along with any information you might have about them.
Cinemassively: Star Wars Galaxies gets Footloose
Seeing this video of Star Wars Galaxies makes this blogger long for the days when she used to beta test in 2003 as a dancer. LaurenMisha gathered her friends almost two years ago, and instructed them in Teamspeak, in order to recreate the party scene from the 1984 classic, Footloose. Lauren would have her character act as the "camera" so that she could look around and be able to film specific things. While she has moved on to World of Warcraft, her legacy in SWG machinima lives on in the extensive works she has made there.If you have machinima or movie suggestions from any MMO, please send them to machinima AT massively DOT com, along with any information you might have about them.
Cinemassively: The Device Has Been Modified
Let's say that Gnomeregan merged with Aperture Science. What would happen if you installed GLaDOS on mechanistriders? Baron Soosdon put that question to the test, in The Device Has Been Modified. If you like Rick Astley, Shepiwot, and Linkin Park, then this is the machinima for you! Baron turns World of Warcraft into the belly of the beast, as the heroine, a lone gnome on a journey to save her life, must fight her way against the rogue MechaMurlocs and mechanistriders. Will she survive, or will she go the way of the weighted companion cube?[Thanks, Baron!]If you have machinima or movie suggestions from any MMO, please send them to machinima AT massively DOT com, along with any information you might have about them.
Cinemassively: Rouge en Bulle
As far as this blogger knows, the only time you could previously ride in a bubble was with the Starax wand, at a hefty price of 16,000L. Now that the wands have been off the market for over a year, Jacek Antonelli has made considerable improvements on bubbles. Not only are these bad boys pilotable, but they also have a built-in group chat system!Our very own Tateru Nino suggested this Second Life machinima by the unstoppable Codebastard Redgrave. Codie was asked to film the Bubble Ride Party at Cuddlefish Junction on March 15th. Blending different Windlight settings, she composed their adventure as if it were in a surreal version of reality.[Thanks, Tateru!]If you have machinima or movie suggestions from any MMO, please send them to machinima AT massively DOT com, along with any information you might have about them.
Cinemassively: Showdown at the Statehouse Corral
Second Life has been used to protest many things that are happening in real life. However, most don't break the Terms of Service in order to do so. Quick! Hide the cards! The Lindens are coming!In all seriousness, the Global Poker Strategic Thinking Society wants viewers to know that poker is a game of skill, therefore should not be considered in an online gambling ban. Showdown at the Statehouse Corral is clever, although sometimes cheesy with the fake celebrities. Hopefully it will help raise awareness for their campaign, because this is exactly the sort of cost-effective machinima that SL is useful for.[Via Popcha!]If you have machinima or movie suggestions from any MMO, please send them to machinima AT massively DOT com, along with any information you might have about them.
Cinemassively: Big Blue Dress
Before there were the Baron Soosdons of the World of Warcraft machinima world, there was Cranius. When we'd ask WoW players what videos were in their top 10, Big Blue Dress came up quite often. He's back at it with his latest video, Darrowshire, but definitely download the high quality version of the video that started it all.Cranius wrote and sang the title song, which posed the question of why these manly men should have to wear dresses during their battles. You'll find PvP, singing gnomes, and plenty of nostalgia. You see, this machinima was made back in February 2006![Thanks, Cranius!]If you have machinima or movie suggestions from any MMO, please send them to machinima AT massively DOT com, along with any information you might have about them.
Cinemassively: 3Dconnexion 3D mice in Second Life
Excuse us if we geek out for a few minutes, but the device that we're about to show you is really outstanding. In fact, it could be this blogger's best friend in Second Life. It's actually pretty funny that they're just now announcing the mouse as coming to SL, as many residents have been using it for the last eight months or more. The 3Dconnexion Spacenavigator allows you to use many programs, such as Maya, 3DS Max, Google Earth, and Photoshop CS3, among other things. For machinima use, you are able to move forward, backwards, left, right, up, down, tilt, and zoom. This makes for very precise shots. In addition, it's fun to cruise around sims when you have nothing better to do. According to the video, it even helps out with building! If you have machinima or movie suggestions from any MMO, please send them to machinima AT massively DOT com, along with any information you might have about them.
Cinemassively: Mr. Fancy Pants
We've all had those moments where we're sure that we're the biggest and the best at something. Then someone comes along and steals our thunder. Jonathan Coulton and Mike Spiff Booth know how we feel.During Jonathan's Thing a Week project, he came up with Mr. Fancy Pants, a whimsical look at the perfect pair of pants. While Coulton's songs are mainly reinterpreted by Spiffworld as World of Warcraft machinima, they are actually released with Creative Commons attributes, so they could be used in other MMO machinima too!If you have machinima or movie suggestions from any MMO, please send them to machinima AT massively DOT com, along with any information you might have about them.
Cinemassively: DiVAS, Episode 5
When the hit reality show, "So You Think You Can Prance" comes to Fairland, Phaylen and the gang will do anything to be on it. Follow them around in DiVAS: Episode 5 - Dancing QueenS as they bite, kick, and bicker their way to the top. However, there's a new girl in town that could spoil all of their plans!This could be the first episode of DiVAS that actually elicited a good, solid laugh out of us. They have come so far in their Second Life machinima journey. For up to the minute news on being an extra and when the season (or is it series?) finale takes place, check out Phaylen's blog!
Cinemassively: Pre-Alpha Everquest
In honor of the EQversary giveaway, we dug up some thoroughly ancient footage of Everquest. Tetra2012 posted a video almost two years ago that is supposedly from November of 1997! Every day, we post a machinima with qualities such as special effects, high-end graphics, or a killer storyline. This video is grainy and not very detailed. However, it's a piece of history.Sony Online Entertainment has invited players to make their own piece of history for EQ's 9th. Machinimators have until April 3rd to capture the magic of a game that's stood the test of time. Were you around for the alpha or beta of Everquest?
Cinemassively: Global Kids' practices science on Teen Grid
Two weeks ago, we wrote about an interactive science lab being used for education on the Teen Grid in Second Life. Today, we'll look at another campus, Global Kids, and how they work on their scientific projects. Global Kids has one of the most popular groups of islands on TG, as part of their program is open to everyone, while the other part is exclusive to their real life after school program.In the video, the students are building homes and then measuring their carbon footprints. They are displaying the data on signs that reflect the usage of water, power use, garbage, recycling, and food products. They then discuss how they can make better environmental choices. Why wasn't stuff like this around when we were students?
Cinemassively: Virtual Firefighter Training Center
It's getting late and the sun is starting to set when you hear the fire alarm. The fire truck stops in front of a burning building, and you start to canvas the area for survivors of the disaster, while the others are fighting the fire. A man is discovered and is led to safety. This probably happens every day in real life training to be a firefighter, but how often does it happen in a virtual world?The MASA Group has prepared a Second Life area specifically for training the future heroes. An interesting tidbit to note is that, while we're not sure of the status of the firefighters themselves, the victim roles are all bots. Most departments have live fire drills, with about 99 firefighters killed between 1994 and 2004 from them. Which method do you think is more effective?For a more comprehensive video of the action, stay tuned after the cut ...
Cinemassively: Avatar Puppeteering possibly coming to Second Life in 2008
When this blogger first came back to Second Life in 2006, Linden Lab was organizing their first SL Views group. When they flew the focus group to San Francisco, that session was about avatar puppeteering. Residents have not heard much about it since then.However, Jeff Ventrella, who was brought on to LL for this sole purpose (He also invented flexi-prims!), released a quick simulation video on YouTube today, complete with a website link for more information about it. For those unaware, avatar puppeteering involves natural joint movement and ragdoll-physics. Could this mean that it will be introduced in 2008? We can only hope!
Cinemassively: Cowboy Bebop, Star Wars Galaxies-style
Fans of the anime series, Cowboy Bebop, may be interested in today's Cinemassively. It comes from Sku110ne over at WeGame, although we do believe it's straight from the archives. You know -- back when people actually played Star Wars Galaxies.Sku110ne attempted to recreate the intro to the series in SWG. This blogger knows that it's not easy to create machinima in certain MMOs, so he gets major credit for even attempting it. Throughout the remake, he shows shots of the actual intro. We assume that's because he wants to show you how close he is to the real thing. Either way, pull up a chair and enjoy this throwback to 2003!
Cinemassively: Getting started with voice chat in Second Life
Torley Linden is a tutorial-making machine! Her how-to's are great for the starting resident of Second Life, but might also teach the older enthusiast a thing or two. If you need instruction on a specific subject, there's actually a video tutorial wiki page.Yesterday, Torley did a whole series of them on voice chat. The video above is on getting started, but she also has videos on who's speaking, etiquette, improving your hearing, private calls, speech gestures, and disabling it for yourself and your land. These clips are in easy to digest lengths of just under one minute to almost four, depending on the complexity of the problem!
Cinemassively: Machiniminute, Episode 1
Second Life resident, Juiceof Prunes, started a cute series of machinima tutorials under her "Pink Paw Productions" label. In the first episode, she focuses on how to get started with machinima. I'm particularly impressed with her use of Camtasia to prepare the video, as well as her easy to follow instructional style. She even uses CrazyTalk to lipsync her character's dialogue.More specifically, episode 1 gets down to the basics. She shows viewers how to log into SL, what program to use to capture, and what settings to use in both Fraps and the SL client. As the series continues, she plans to go more in-depth into the process.
Cinemassively: Hide and Seek
For those that believe that aliens are out there, things just got more complicated. You see, they're also in our virtual worlds! At least, according to Gary Hazlitt they are.Gary created a music video, Hide and Seek, about their presence in Second Life. In the video, they cruise around in several sims, Planet Mongo, Svarga, and Deakin University, to a soundtrack by Imogen Heap. If you liked the video, check out the medium quality version. To complete the shots, he used a greenscreened picture version of the avatar and filtered it through CrazyTalk 5, then filmed real shots of movement. He placed the lipsynched picture video over the footage and chromakeyed it in Final Cut Pro.
