This week's film review is of [GTA5] 賽銭箱に身を投げる ロスサントス市警察, made by @mzanku - its absurdist humor but also deeply disturbing, which hits us all in different ways around half way through watching the film. Following our discussions, we conclude the creator probably didn't intend for the work to be culturally appropriated as an interpretation of US pol…

This week's film is a machinima that deals with pollution in the most overt way it can. Andy Hughes' Inner Migration juxtaposes Cyberpunk 2077 against some 'found footage' taken from early 40s/60s films and General Motors corporate 'forecast' of the future of technology. We discuss how machinima is an interesting way to explore social commentary an…

This month's news omnibus covers our usual breadth of topics - from Reallusion's Character Creator contest; to a 'how to create in SL', available only in SL; to Project Odyssey's contest for genAIers; to the winners of the second AIFF; to some fabulous projects such as @EpicSpaceman latest film, an Elden Ring band, Jennifer McKnew's Sydney and Sock…

In this episode, we analyse our picks' cinematics, beginning with 'Day of Darkness' made in Eve Online by Dire Lauthris and completing with 'The Wanderer' made in the Source engine by Dominzki. We discuss the use of ambiguity, character development, and narrative qualities, as well as the advancement of video game cinematics and in-engine technique…

Another solo episode of Mario's Minute for this month, my apologies for no guest but between a hectic schedule and bronchitis recovery, things have been busy! Talking a bit about Midwest Fest, the excitement behind the Nintendo Direct for June 2024, and getting DIY like a Villager in Animal Crossing.…

Haven't done any solo episodes in a while but figured I could post this interview here anyway. Hope you enjoy the conversation, I had a great time chatting AI with them!By John Coogan

This week, we discuss the art of machinima filmmaking, emphasizing the importance of craftsmanship, freshness, and humor in exceptional storytelling, as evidenced in 'Lonely Episode Two: The Package Thief' by TheBizTheBiz. We analyze the efficiency and density used in delivering witty lines and twists in what is essentially a modern retelling of th…

Welcome to our latest bonus episode. We had the pleasure of catching up with Phil Rice aka zsOverman to talk exclusively about his latest machinima, called Being Moses. If there's such as thing as a parody of a Let's Play, this film is it! Check out Phil's comments and watch the film - links on our show notes web post. Credits - Speakers: Phil Rice…

This week we celebrate Nvidia's investment in machinima, discuss latest AIs and give you the heads up on some great projects we want to highlight - there are just too many for us to fully review everything we're seeing that we want to share with you these days! Do check them out, we'd love to hear your thoughts too - links and notes on our website.…

A compelling and powerful story of one man's quest to remain sane on an isolated planet. This is a very effective story by Lens Nation, given its only 60 seconds long - its probably not just this one creator's worst nightmare in a game, but several of us. Check out our review and don't forget to give us some feedback on your thoughts too. 1:01 Rick…

The Choking Hazard Podcast - Episode 89 - Settling Some Old Bets More Podcast Content: https://broughy.com/podcast See all podcast episodes as videos in this playlist Contributors [Host] Broughy1322: https://broughy.com [Co-Host] Sugar Free Nos: https://twitch.tv/sugar_free_nos [Co-Host] RDT33: https://twitch.tv/rdt33 [Co-Host] Joshimuz: https://tw…

This week, we review a pretender for a new Disney show called Forlorn, by @projectforlorn (aka Alex St Pierre). Well, it may well be at some point in the near future! Starting life as a tech demo, this short has an interesting back story and has evolved into something even more interesting. Check out our review and add your own thoughts! Credits - …

A shorter solo episode this month on Mario's Minute. Talking about Limited Run Games selling D: The Game for 3DO on CD-R discs instead of pressed discs, Sony walking back their decision to require Helldivers 2 on PC to be linked to a PSN account, and sharing a particularly stomach churning game store story.…

This week, we discuss two stunning music videos: Children of Pain by @VincereSylph with video created by @TomJantol and @tanyasubaBg ; and Firefly by @TheEsotericaChannel in Unreal Engine. Children of Pain is a perfect example of Tom's 'anymation' approach whilst Firefly demonstrates just how far Unreal Engine has come as a creative toolset in one …

Not for the first time do we discuss the gorgeous cinematic qualities of GTA5, and this week we share a beaut by @Salva.Padilla. This one has a distinct vibe to it, but it is its general ambiguity that we especially love about the machinima. We each see something a little different in it! What do you see in it? Credits - Speakers: Ricky Grove, Phil…

Our May update on machinima and virtual production related news highlights some of the latest generative AI tools, warts and all, and brings to attention several of the latest machinima potential games, including Jaws, Jurassic World Evolution, Rise of the Hydra and Harold Halibut. We discuss the challenges filmmakers face when developing games fro…

This week we celebrate Star Wars with a fabulous short portraying the infamous AT-AT death walkers as 'nature-creatures' in their natural habitat - this is a beautifully observed work, made in Unreal Engine by Jeremy Cummins. Cummins is an experienced character creator, now working for Tippett Studio, with an impressive list of credits including An…

This week, we cover three outstanding music videos, demonstrating different genres of music and different game engines - a re-imagined Simon and Garfunkel classic, a pop-tacular and a rap. We discuss the perfect match between the lyrics, the game and the images our three selected creators have demonstrated in these shorts. We suggest comparing and …

Harcroft joins in for this month's Mario's Minute in an original Xbox focused episode! We talk about his personal Title Update and DLC archiving projects, new projects such as XCAT, and a big delve into the OXHD which aims to be an open source solution to install internal HDMI output on an original Xbox.…

The Choking Hazard Podcast - Episode 88 - A Chaotic Story About World Records & KFC More Podcast Content: https://broughy.com/podcast See all podcast episodes as videos in this playlist Contributors [Host] Broughy1322: https://broughy.com [Co-Host] Sugar Free Nos: https://twitch.tv/sugar_free_nos [Co-Host] RDT33: https://twitch.tv/rdt33 [Co-Host] J…

This week, we discuss one of the most outstanding presentations of space science, by @EpicSpaceman , called I put 4M Suns in a Blackhole. Made in Blender, we discuss the creative workflow adopted, from zero to hero - and why the @BlenderOfficial Foundation should take note. We make a few suggestions for enhancing the work even more and discuss the …

A packed review this month, with some sad :( better :| and happy news :) 1:42 Demise of Rooster Teeth and yet RVB will outlive the corporate brand! We reminisce about the early days of machinima and the influence Rooster Teeth had on the emerging creator community 26:30 Drax Files: World Makers comes to a close 33:37 Awards! Sam Crane’s continuing …

The Dog Days is an unusual machinima that combines the glitchiness of AI generated content composited with a Second Life avatar. Whilst not realtime, the performative aspect of this work is evident and we reflect on the fit of the current state of generative AI with the Fluxus art movement. We discuss what The Dog Days means, metaphorically and lit…

In this ep, we discuss two machinima films dealing with thematically similar issues, albeit presented with different treatments: Vigilante is made in GTA5 and tells the shocking story of how the lead character became cyberpunk. The second is a futuristic yet somehow more traditional gender-based story made in UE5. It is presented as a proof of conc…

A bit of a shorter solo episode this month, but mostly gaming related! Talking about some personal StreetPass memories at the thought of it being over 13 years old, a dog story related to a bowl of stolen salmon, and uncovering an old story that I thought back to related to a game store employee trying to downplay a remake of Final Fantasy VII.…

The Choking Hazard Podcast - Episode 87 - All About The Racing More Podcast Content: https://broughy.com/podcast See all podcast episodes as videos in this playlist Contributors [Host] Broughy1322: https://broughy.com [Co-Host] Sugar Free Nos: https://twitch.tv/sugar_free_nos [Co-Host] RDT33: https://twitch.tv/rdt33 [Co-Host] Joshimuz: https://twit…

This week, we take a look at a spectacular particle show in a machinima that has been documented and edited by Tutsy NaVaRaThNA in Second Life. The show is called Flowers of Evil and was created by Lalie Sorbet and Chrix as an interactive installation inspired by the most scandalous literary works of Charles Baudelaire, with the support of a Second…

This week’s podcast episode is our curated news omnibus for this month. We cover lots, and enjoy reflecting on the significance of the stories we highlight for the world of machinima and virtual production. Links and show notes on our website, as usual – skip to our highlights about each item with our timestamps here – 1:23 Learn UE5 in less than 6…

In all our years of involvement with machinima (and that's over 75 years between us), feature length has been something we've rarely found watchable... but with this week's pick, we were proven wrong, mostly! Emesis Blue, made in Source Filmmaker using the Team Fortress 2 characterisations by Fortress Films, is an incredibly well-made if very compl…