Exclusive Chat with Machinima Maker Professionals
OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT
[
[16:01] [Xfire] matteox: I will have the
machinima makers introduce themselves now
[16:02] [Machinima.com] Philip: Hi, I'm Philip
and I'm the President of Machinima.com
[16:02] [Rufus Cubed]
Ezra: Hi, Ezra Ferguson here with Rufus Cubed. I am a co-creator of Return and
Billy Maclure. www.rufuscubed.com
[16:02] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: I'm Terran (WoW:
Liadov) from Rufus Cubed production. I
shot, edited, wrote, co-directed and did special effects for "Return - A
Warcraft Motion Picture" and "Billy Maclure"
[16:03] [Machinima.com] Jason: Hello I'm Jason,
video editor of machinima.com and also founder of Riot Films, and director of
'Only The Strong Survive'
[16:05] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: z(-DW-)z(_COL.Giacomo: Matteox: Question:
What is the best way to make a machinima with a game that doesn't have a source
developer kit--ie:
Answer: The best way to create Machinima
for a game without a dev kit is to become intimate with the engine.... and find
people who make awesome 3rd party tools. ;)
[
Answer: Rufus Cubed uses Fraps exclusively
for capture as it has proven to be the most effective and stable solution for
high-quality results. Editing tools
preferences vary by artist, and most have what it takes to make great movies
whether you're using Sony Vegas, Avid, Premiere, or Final Cut Pro. We use Premiere Pro 2.0 and After Effects
7.0.
[
Answer: Thus far Rufus Cubed has only used
World of Warcraft for Machinima. We've all played a lot of games though and I
can tell you that World of Warcraft has features to the engine that make it an
incredible platform for Machinima that you won't find in most games. The
artwork and animations are diverse and very well done.
[16:09] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: ●[101]●:
About how long does it take to make your
average Machinima?
Answer: Depends on the length and
production quality of course, but on average a 5 minute show could take a
couple of months especially if you are creating custom content.
[16:12] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: Homer99: Are any of you guys in the AXE/Xfire FAN film fest?
Answer: Rufus Cubed would like very much to
make an entry into the Axe contest if time allows. We’re currently tied up in a
lot of projects, most importantly "Return Episode 2". We're planning
a May/June release for it and should have a preview out before E3. If we can
fit something in for Axe, we definitely will.
[16:12] [Machinima.com] Philip: Question: †BlackFeather]_Yeoj:
Once you have made teh mechinima, what is the best way to publish it?
Answer: Submit to Machinima.com as well as
look for other sites that show movies made with that particular game engine.
[16:12] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: PitfireX: Do you recommend different programs for a film on a
tight budget?
Answer: Certainly. Everybody has to start somewhere. However fraps is very reasonable and
extremely robust for the cost. If you
have any aspirations in Machinima or even just want to record your guild events
in game pick it up. For just starting
with Machinima windows movie maker will allow you to become more versed with
the process of creating movies. As with
many things however, your results will be tied to your investment.
[16:13] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: darkness213: Where did you get the name Illegal Danish?
Answer: The name Illegal Danish was
originally Zinwrath's idea. It was a parody of the guild I'm in called
"Forbidden Donut". We originally used it in "Zinwrath: The
Movie".
[16:13] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: [†BlackFeather]_Yeoj: Once you have
made teh mechinima, what is the best way to publish it?
Answer: You'd want to get your film out
there as much as possible, there are tons of sites out there now such as
YouTube or Google Video, as well as traditional file hosts like Fileplanet and
Filefront, that you can upload your film to and get seen.
[16:14] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: Homer99:
Are any of you guys in the AXE/Xfire FAN film fest?:
Answer:
Heya Homer99 ).
Nope. We have too many other
projects going on at this time to enter into any other contests.
[16:14] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: WNxSirRetro: Is this what you could do for living?
Answer: We believe that the door is opening
right now for people to get involved in the motion picture industry via
Machinima and other web-video. There's never been a better time. It is because
of Machinima that "Rufus Cubed Productions" is an actual company
today... though we're still waiting for a chance to shift our day jobs to doing
this full time.
[16:14] [Machinima.com] Philip: More and more
people are being able to do so. We're
always looking for great ideas for series that we could help produce and
distribute. There's
a small but growing number of machinima filmmakers making a living at it - that
number will continue to grow.
[16:14] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: [Xfire] matteox: who was singing in Billy Maclure?
Answer: That would be Ezra. He also did the voice for
"Voldigar" in Return. He does
a rather good king of pop impersonation.
[16:14] [Myndflame]
Gobbler: Question: Charlie: When will the
sequel to "Illegal Danish Super Snacks" be out.
Answer: We planned on starting the next
episode of ID sooner, but as of now we've only just began
to get started. We're hoping to release it sometime in June or July.
[16:15] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: darkness213: What did you use to
edit Illegal Danish?
Answer: I used Adobe Premiere for the basic
cutting and After Effects for all composite work and other lights and flashes.
[
Answer: Machinima is a term coined by Hugh
Hancock and Anthony Bailey. Hugh was the original founder of machinima.com.
Before it was named, it was just called 'Quake Movies', since that game was
where video game filmmaking was born. They wanted a cool name and chose to mix
'machine' and 'cinema', hence 'machinima'. Originally it was 'machinema', but
they changed it when Hugh accidentally mispelled it in an email and ended up
liking it.
[16:16] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Hugh Hancock is an
extremely talented Machinimator as well. Check out www.bloodspell.com
[16:16] [Machinima.com] Philip: Name was coined
by a few people including Hugh Hancock who was the original founder of
Machinima.com. It came from the idea of
machine + cinema and machine + animation
[16:16] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: Qwiggalo: What compression did you use, such as MPEG 1 or 2,
AVI, DIVX etc
Answer: We usually distribute final results
in Windows Media 9. The newest
compression utilities in Premiere and even the Stand-alone Windows Media
compressor available from Microsoft.com delivers high resolution with really
great quality and low file sizes.
[16:17] [Dementia]Tivas: I
typically use MP4v2 to compress my final renders unless I really need to crush
them down into nothingness.
[
Answer: VC was completely done with Apple's
latest Final Cut Suite
[16:17]
[Rufus Cubed] Ezra: For Return
Episode 2 I am using Adobe Audition 2.0 and Steinberg Cubase VST 5.1
[16:17] [Machinima.com]
Jason: When you make a machinima, which
generally comes first? Deciding on a script or making a map/character emotion
design?
Answer: Machinima or film or whatever, any
kind of motion picture should always start with a script. But of course it's
always possible to be influenced by a drawing, or map or character design. But
you should always start the actual production with a script.
[16:18] [Rufus Cubed]
Terran: Deciding on a script or making a map/character emotion design? - We start with a script. We think this is important because if you
think of the limitations of the game too much from the creative on-set of the
project you will en up unintentionally limiting yourself from the get-go,
whereas if you have an idea that you think might be impossible in the script,
you might find some wat to pull of something you wouldn't have tried.
[16:18] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: Charlie: What do you
use to make/edit sound in your movies?
Answer: I use Nuendo 3 for all sound
recording and editing. All of the sound in our movies is edited separately from
the video and used as a backbone to form video around similar to how they make
cartoons and CGI movies.
[16:18] [Machinima.com] Jason: I use the Adobe
Production Studio.
[
Answer: The writing for Return
has been exhaustive. It includes countless hours of research and revision and
also draws on years of experiences from playing MMORPGs
[16:20] [Machinima.com] Jason: I storyboard
everything first, but I don't follow it religiously. Always leave room for
adding little things or changing things - that is the art of film. A lot of
times you'll get ideas in the middle of the production, and you don't want to
be stuck with an older, inferior idea once it comes. Mostly, I storyboard for
organization rather than as a blueprint.
[16:20] [Dementia]Tivas: Ad-libbing
is very important in work. We work with
a lot of ideas and everyone kind of freaks out with them. I storyboard a lot of the composite scenes in
my head. In the very rare instance that
I draw anything it's usually in the form of stick figures. People ask me what they are.
[16:19] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: rpgsuperfan: Heh. Hmmm, one question that's been on my
mind: What program do you use to record
the ingame video before you edit?
Answer: Fraps, Fraps, and only Fraps.
[16:20] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: rpgsuperfan:
Another
question! Where do you (Myndflame) dig
up the comic genius behind your movies?
Answer: My opinion is that it is much
easier to cut video to dialogue than it is dialogue to video, so we always
create the scene dialogue and some sound effects prior to any video synchronization.
[16:20] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: darkness213: What
was happening in the end of Billy maclure, Did he
level?
Answer: Heh in a sense. It's pretty much a shot-by-shot parody of the
original 'Billy Jean" video by Michael Jackson. If you haven't seen it, check it out. Billy Maclure is a lot more entertaining when
you've seen the original ;)
[16:21] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: matteox: Do you all make movies outside of the computer? In RL?
Answer: Rufus Cubed has been making independent
movies for about 10 years
[16:21] [Machinima.com] Philip: Question:
●[101]●: How would you go about contacting a game making company to
get the rights to publishing a machinima in the pursuit of revenue?
Answer: You could start with their
marketing department and find out who the brand manager is for that game. Then you would pitch them your idea and see
what happens. Alternatively, you might
want to go ahead and make the film, get it out there, build an audience and
then go to them. That's how Rooster
Teeth did it with their Red vs. Blue series.
[16:22]
[Machinima.com] Jason: Question: Charlie: Do you think Machinima
will eventually "get big" and expand into other areas such as TV
commercials?
Answer: Absolutely, it's already happening.
:) Machinima is growing at a rapid pace and has already been featured on major
networks like MTV and Spike TV.
[16:23] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: rpgsuperfan: Do you have any suggestions for making Fraps run
better in WoW? I have tried using it to record other games
with higher requirements and it works, but it always suffers terrible slowdown
in WoW
Answer: I talked to Fraps developers at
length about this. The optimum setup for
Fraps capture is PCI-E, non-SLI, recording footage to a 2nd hard drive that is
not being used for other applications.
Also WoW is very CPU-intensive and will frequently over-limit your fraps
capture. try recording in a less-CPU intensive part of
the game (check your device manager for CPU usage) or ensure that your
processor is clean. Other than that,
Faster CPU will help a lot.
[16:23] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: Ŋoţhĩnģ- ЯanduM: What inspired you
to get into the machinima business?
Answer: Terran and I love everything about
film-creation (except maybe the exhaustion) but Return specifically (our first
Machinima venture) was born from our experiences playing Asheron's Call with
"The Brotherhood of Amn", an extremely dedicated role-playing guild
back in the day. The story transferred right in to World of Warcraft and
Machinima gave us a chance to deliver the movie we've always wanted to.
[16:24] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Will Zinwrath ever come back?
Answer: I killed Zinwrath. For him to come
back he would be required to rise from the dead. I can foresee this happening.
[16:24] [Machinima.com] Philip: Question:
Warp: What are your thoughts on the troubles of advertising machinima films
outside of the game and machinima communities?
Answer: I don't think there are
"troubles" but I do believe some machinima is very
"game-centric" and the story and humor is very
"game-oriented". I do see more
and more machinima being created that has a large audience appeal such as
series like "Medieval Weapon".
[16:24] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: rpgsuperfan: Another
question! Where do you (Myndflame) dig
up the comic genius behind your movies?
Answer: We eat a lot of pizza rolls and drink
3 gallons of Tang a day. Plus we each
have the power of five gorillas.
[
Answer: Start Small. Shoot for a 5 minute
movie with two characters, and just do it, start to finish. Then do another one
that’s 6 minutes with three characters. You’ll be a pro in no time
[16:24] [Machinima.com] Jason: Do you usually voice act to the motions you have already
recorded, or do you voice act and then move the model? I know it can depend on
teh game.
Answer: I would always advise on recording
the voices first. This way you can be very precise in what scenes you need to
shoot, especially if you want to lipsync, you don't want to waste work on shots
you won't use because the voice track was shorter than you thought. Also a
prerecorded track can let you edit the sound first & shoot footage needed.
[16:25] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: Qwiggalo: How far do you think Machinima will go in the media
industry?
Answer: Very far. We have already explored
TV deals and I think you will see Machinima increasing in exposure throughout
this year.
[16:25] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: Qwiggalo: How long do you think it will be until the first
full length feature film using Machinima?
Answer: There are feature length machinima available,
since years ago. Though they're old, a few examples are 'The Seal of Nehahra'
and 'Anachronox The Movie'. Search for them on
machinima.com if you want to see them.
[16:25] [Machinima.com] Philip: Question:
Ŋoţhĩnģ- ЯanduM: What inspired you to get into the
machinima business?
Answer: The ability to allow everyone to
tell their story...it's a cool idea that anyone could do this -- the
democratization of animation
[16:25] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: rpgsuperfan: Ok, question: Were you guys inspired by existing
Machina to create your own, or was the choice more out-of-the-blue?
Answer: Moreso out of the blue ... we were
inspired by Warcraft itself and our Roleplaying experiences in other games to
create a fan-fiction storyline. I didn't
know that the artform had a name or community until we'd already been shooting
Return. Our storyline actually spans the
last 7 years of our guild-to-guild roleplaying.
[
Answer: Every BlizzCon, if we’re lucky…
lol!
[16:26] [Machinima.com] Philip: Question:
Charlie: Do you think Machinima will eventually "get big" and expand
into other areas such as TV commercials?
Answer: Absolutely...a lot of advertisers
are currently looking into how to use machinima...
[16:26] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: darkness213: Will there ever be a Illegal
Danish movie?
Answer: We've talked about it. But that's a
lot of work and would require many sponsorships....or
winning the lottery. Or a life of crime, i really haven't decided yet.
[16:26] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: Do you all make movies outside of the computer? In RL?
Answer: I do live action independent films,
but am concentrating on machinima at the moment. My goal is to direct in
[16:27] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: WNxSirRetro: Do you often meet each other in real life?
Answer: We've met the guys from Myndflame,
Johnny (maker of Condemnation and VC), Hugh Hancock, and several other
Machinimators.
[16:27] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: Homer99: What’s the best way for editing out back ground
noise for the voice actors audio files?
Answer: There's not really any *good* way
to do this. The most important part of
audio is ensuring that the original signal is clean. Try recording in a quiet room and hang blankets on the
walls to reduce the "echo" or reflections in the room. There are tools for reducing noise, but
nothing will beat a clean original signal.
[16:27] johnnyxfire: Record clean, clear audio
in a room with little or no background noise - throw some blankets up in your
closet, get a flashlight, and you’ve got your very own studio - if your mic is
long enough… ;)
[16:28] [Machinima.com] Jason: With Adobe
Audition there is a well documented feature where you can do this very easily
(and very effectively).
[16:27] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: Charlie: How much money do you normally spend on an average
Machinima movie?
Answer: Only The Strong Survive took $0 to
make. It's very possible to do this but of course it gets harder and harder as
you ramp up the quality. For the sequel OTSS 2, I'm looking to budget it at
around $3000, only because we require lots and lots of custom content such as
models and animations.
[16:28] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: TnG^Showgo178: What would I have to do to get in one of your
movies?
Answer: If you are a talented Voice Actor, that is your best way into one of ours movies. We
always have need...
[16:28] [Machinima.com] Philip: Question:
Qwiggalo: How far do you think Machinima will go in the media industry?
Answer: No stopping it..commercials,
series, movies, plus new ways of self-expression, etc. "The French Democracy" is a good
example of someone using THE MOVIES game to express their political views on
what was going on in
[16:28] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: rpgsuperfan: How does one go about getting a position in
Myndflame? ;P
Answer: That depends...how much money you
got?
[16:28] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: Qwiggalo: Any of you use Ventrilo or Teamspeak or any other
voice-over IP program to record your actors?
Answer: The quality of these programs makes
me cry. So no.
[16:29] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: FreakTrap: Have you guys concidered
creating a full-length feature machinima film?
Answer: Yes we have. that's one of our
major goals.
[16:29] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Do you all play "The Movies" or is that like a coloring book
that does all the work for you?
Answer: Hah ... we make Warcraft Machinima
because we are passionate about the world and our story ... we would make
Return a Real Life series if we have the 10 million dollar budget necessary to
make it happen.
[16:29] [Machinima.com] Jason: Philip and I
have made a piece for The Movies (for Activision) called 'Slightly Later Man'.
[16:29] [Machinima.com] Philip: Question: Qwiggalo: How long do you think it will be until the first full length
feature film using Machinima?
Answer: Right now, today..go
to our site and click on the first episode of BLOODSPELL created by Strange
Company. It's a feature film that is
being released over a number of episodes....more features to come including
some that may be released theatrically.
[16:29] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: Tyralis: Would you say that machinima lends
itself more easily to a certain genre, such as comedy or horror?
Answer: In light of the vast amount of it,
I'd say Comedy. But that's true for all internet video.
[
Answer: I was lucky enough to have access
to a sound booth for VC, but as things change, as do certain perks - but the
advantages of it are unbelievable.
[16:30] [Myndflame] Gobbler: I have a small
recording studio at home that I use to record all the dialogue and music.
[16:31] [Machinima.com] Jason: I always use a
professional recording studio for the best quality for my films. Though if
you're clever you can use a lot of household equipment and get a similar
result.
[16:32] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: We converted an old
server rack-mount into a sound booth. But we can get away with a lot of
recording in the living room, we have a great set of
mics
[16:30] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: darkness213: If you are making a movie in WoW in contested
territory, how will you evade getting ganked?
Answer: This simply makes for good outakes.
Return is filmed on Frostwolf. :D
[
[16:31] [Dementia]Tivas: You
don't. If you watch the Stranglethorn
Vale scene in Illegal Danish with Dirti and Floivan you'll notice that there
are many skeletons on the ground near them.
Eventually we hired a bodyguard who turned the would
be gankers into cinders. Dirti really is
only level 2. I believe in character
acting.
[
[16:31] [Machinima.com] Philip: Question:
TnG^Showgo178: What is the best way to get started in game movies?
Answer: Just go out and make one and post
it out there and see what happens...it all starts with an aidea or a need to
express something...then find the right engine for you..and
sometimes a game will inspire something..
[16:31] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: <{AI}> FreakTrap: Gobber, Do you know what
a Codec is, or do you just fail at VOIP?
Answer: Tell me your PC mic sounds better
than my vintage AKG condenser and I'll use VOIP
[16:32] [Rufus Cubed]
Ezra: Question: rpgsuperfan: Hahahaha, on
Frostwolf? My friend's on Frostwolf and
that's the stupidest server ever :) Do
you have to deal with a lot of stupid people ruining your shots?
Answer: I lubs teh Frostwolf...
[16:34] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Amazingly, Liadov
only got Ganked once in Return 1. All
other shots were un-blown. Voldigar
survived by jumping into the water outside stromgarde and running like a pansy.
[16:33] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: darkness213: If you don’t know anything about editing, How is the best way to start?
Answer: By any means necessary. Editing is just like playing a musical
instrument. When you start, it's not
going to be good. But you have to keep
doing it on new projects and finding new ways to push yourself and eventually
you'll attain the skill to create something great.
[16:33] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: [Burnt]Spooky: Is it complicated
to direct game movies?
Answer: Just getting people to show up is
complicated. Lure them in with snacky
cakes.
[16:34] [Machinima.com] Jason: Depends... it
can be very fun and simple if you're organized and know what you're doing. Most
of the times, things will go wrong and you'll be tearing your hair out. You
also should know a bit of technical knowledge for the best results, though it's
never too late to learn.
[16:33] [Machinima.com] Philip: Question:
PitfireX: How do you hire your actors, is it easy to find volunteers? where abouts would you look for help on making my own movie?
Answer: A lot of people come to
Machinima.com and post their needs in our forums and also find others who are
looking to help..We're about to launch many social
network features (like personalized pages, etc.) where you can post what you
want/need and get it out there...very similar to some of the MYSpace
functionality focused on the Machinima community.
[16:34] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: <{AI}> FreakTrap: That is a Bad Answer. What dose a mic have to do with a codec?
Answer: Mic quality > Codec
[
Answer: You’ve got your two types of actors
in a machinima film - your Voice Actors and your puppeteers - my heart bleeds
for the puppeteers, as they put the REAL time into a machinima movie - staying
logged on for HOURS just to get all the shots right - VC used an entirely
different set of Voice Actors and puppeteers - knocked out the voices in a
weekend - and filmed for 3 months with
[16:35] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: Tyralis: What would be a good size for a team to work on a 10
minute machinima?
Answer: I do the audio timeline while
Terran does the video timeline and that seems to be a good division of labor.
We have other "part-timers" who do in-house voice-acting, and
webdevelopment. To answer get 2 or 3 dedicated guys, and 4-6 good friends
[16:36] [Dementia]Tivas: Doing
Van Krakens voice really didn't take too long, but it can be very tiring
screaming and laughing into a mic for 3 hours.
[16:36] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: WNxSirRetro: Do you want to be celebrity?
Answer: We want to create compelling
fiction. The outcome of that we believe
is decided by how well we perform that goal.
[16:36] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: rpgsuperfan:
Ezra: Try not to kill Flaminio too much, k?
:)
Answer: The real Voldigar only plays a
hardcore warrior on TV. In reality, he's a newb
[
Answer: When you have this feeling, you
know you’re a true filmmaker when you keep going no matter what.
[16:37] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: Charlie: What kind of sponsors are out there that will sponsor
Machinima film makers/
Answer: Xfire is a pretty good option :) There
are many many other though, you'll need to prove your
work first.
[16:37] [Machinima.com] Philip: Question:
WNxSirRetro: Do you often meet each other in real life?
Answer: sometimes at various festivals and
events..for example there's an annual Machinima Film
Festival in NY around November. Go to
Machinima.org for more info.
[16:37] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: ●[101]●: Do you have
problems with other players entering the shot while filming?
Answer: Constantly. Sometimes someone will hang around trying to
get into the shots for hours and I have to think of clever ways to edit them
out or film around them.
[16:37] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: This goes along
with the "Good things to look out for". The NUMBER ONE thing you must keep in mind
while shooting is .. . NEVER TELL ANYBODY YOU'RE
SHOOTING. The moment the word gets out
then you will attract greifers like flies.
If somebody starts hanging around your shot, act like you don't speak english. They'll get bored and leave.
[16:38] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: [Burnt]Spooky: How long does it
usually take to make a movie perfect?
Answer: No movie is perfect... you can
spend 56 years on it and you still won't be happy with it.
[16:38] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: darkness213: In Illegal Danish, what was basuti swinging his
axe at with the part with the snack machiene
Answer: He was swinging at the Super Snak!
[16:38] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: PitfireX: What are some common set backs the
we amateurs cant afford that we should lookout for
Answer: Sound, sound, sound. 95% of amateur
stuff is obvious in the first second because of the poor sound
[16:39] [Machinima.com] Jason: Grab a
filmmaking book or two... it'll help a lot, and for cheap.
[
Answer: One can only dream…. ;)
[16:39] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: rpgsuperfan:
Are you guys adding more characters to the Myndflame series? Are you planning on doing any movies from a
Horde perspective? *hint, hint, wink,
wink, nudge, nudge*
Answer: Every episode will introduce new
characters and build the ones everyone has come to know. Most us have mainly
alliance characters, but we have a few horde characters in mind...
[16:39] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: Charlie: What are you guys looking forward to in E3?
Answer: Rufus Cubed plans on being at E3...
[
[16:42] [Machinima.com] Philip: check-out the
latest games being released for the new boxes (Xbox 360 and PS3) to see what
kind of tools machinima filmmakers will have at their disposal...
[16:39] [Machinima.com] Philip: Question:
Charlie: What kind of sponsors are out there that will sponsor Machinima film
makers/
Answer: Besides sites like ours (if the
project is right), some advertisers, cable networks like IFC...but it all
starts with making something good and gettingit out there..
[16:39] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: Charlie: What kind of mics do you use?
Answer: We use Audio-Technica and Shure
Electret Condenser Microphones with a 48v phantom powered preamp. We use other techniques to shoot appropriate
audio for 3D space as well.
[16:40] [Myndflame] Gobbler: I use an AKG
CK451E, and also a standard Shure Beta 57 and also a few others like a nuemann
shotgun.
[16:39] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: matteox: Besides your own movies which WoW movies did you
think were the hidden gems?
Answer: Redshift was incredible. I loved
the one with the stabbin hobo gnome that was a runnerup too,
I can't remember the name of it
[16:40] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: [†BlackFeather]_Yeoj: What recomendations do you have to
making a serious mechinima - as in not a comedy, but still some racks here and
there.
Answer: Taking it seriously. Not just a little, but 200%. The greatest failing of dramatic machinima is
makers who are not able to take themselves seriously. Your personal dedication to the project will
shine through in the result.
[16:41] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: Charlie: How much do Audio-Technica and Shure Electret
Condenser Microphones with a 48v phantom powered preamp cost?
Answer: A couple hundred dollars.
[16:41] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: You can probably
approximate a decent condenser + preamp for 150-200 dollars. The quality will go as high as you have money
to blow into the 1000's for microphones.
[16:41] [Myndflame]
Gobbler: How many hours per day or week you work in this? During the last month of production
Tivas and I work 60-100 hours per week.
[16:42] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: darkness213: How did you get the
fight scene in Illigeal danish like that?
Answer: The fight scene is 100% composites.
A lot of twisting, pulling and shoving the models around.
[16:42] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: [Burnt]Spooky: Ok then how long does it take to make a movie
relatively good?
Answer: It took us 8 months to create Only
The Strong Survive... we could've finished it in 3, but we chose to keep adding
stuff, changing stuff, etc. It all depends on what engine you use, how much
custom stuff you're doing, how long you're film is, etc. A general idea is to
take twice the amount of time you think it will take... but that's totally up
to you. :)
[
Answer: Dual 2.0 G5 PowerMac - 4.5 GB RAM -
1.1 TB HD - Nvidia 6700 Mac Edition
[16:42] [Rufus Cubed]
Ezra: Question: WNxSirRetro: How many
hours per day or week you work in this?
Answer: AS many as possible. During the
creation of Return it was about 50 hours a week in addition to the 40 hours a
week spent at a full-time day-job
[16:43] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: [Burnt]Spooky: Do you guys have
super amazing computers or what are the specs?
Answer: PC1 - P4 3.2 - PC2 AMD FX60 ...
6800 Ultra ... over a terrabyte of hard drive space.
[16:43] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: Tyralis: What did you use to edit
in images to MMORPG's like WoW that don't support modding. For
example, the salmon with the hat? - Adobe After
Effects.
Answer: It's all in the wrist.
[16:43]
[Machinima.com] Jason: Question: darkness213: Is a Mac better for
making these movies?
Answer: No. :)
[16:43] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: MAchinima requires
tons of third party tools. Mac is spelling the doom of your project
[
[16:43] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Unless you are a
ninja
[
[16:44] [Myndflame]
Gobbler: Question: matteox: How many
hours of WoW do you play a day and what other games do you like?
Answer: I play way too many. I have a 60
druid and priest, a 41 shaman, 30 warrior, 14 warlock
and 14 mage. There's other games besides WoW?
[16:44] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: WNxSirRetro: Do you take
volunteers for some scene shots?
Answer: Definately. Sometimes someone is just running by and
we're like "Hey stand here... now... wave... yes good good now... cry and
jump off this cliff!"
[16:44] [Rufus Cubed]
Terran: Question: WNxSirRetro: How many
hours per day or week you work in this?
Answer: Well that depends on if it's crunch
time or not. Anywhere between 1-20 hours
a day. Return 1 took 90 man hours total
to produce, and Return 2 is shaping up to be in the several hundred hours.
[
Answer: There’s
weeks that go by where I don’t kill anybody, but then there’s days that I just
can’t stop! ;)
[16:45] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: [Burnt]Spooky: How much room on your
hard drive do these movies usually take up?
Answer: Depending on the complexity of the
shot, a few seconds can take several gigabytes.
Usually around 6-12 megs per second of recorded
footage.
[16:45] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: Tyralis: What
would you say is the single best upgrde you should get to a computer to improve
the quality of the machinima (like mic/RAM/graphics card)
Answer: Either a fast dual core processor,
or dual SLI video cards.
[16:45] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: PitfireX: how many girls are on the team and dedicated
Answer: Just Liadov for us. She's an amazingly talented voice actor who
lives next door to our studio.
[16:46] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Liadov is voiced by
an in-house actor
[16:45] [Rufus Cubed]
Ezra: Question: harlie: How many hours of WoW do you play a day and what
other games do you like?
Answer: I stopped playing World of Warcraft
in September, not by choice, but from the demands of the project.
[16:45] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: Tyralis: What would you say is the single best upgrde you
should get to a computer to improve the quality of the machinima (like
mic/RAM/graphics card).
Answer: It really depends on the gear
you're using and how out of date it is. One thing we can all agree on is that
you can't have enough RAM.
[16:46]
[Machinima.com] Jason: Question:
[Burnt]Spooky: How much room on your hard drive
do these movies usually take up?
Answer: A lot... you definitely want more
than 500gb. The more the better.
[16:47] [Dementia]Tivas: Way
way way way way too much. I eat Hard
Drives for breakfast. I try to conserve
space by deleting things I hope I won't need later. Compared to some video artists I don't keep
much space but each project easily takes up anywhere from 200-400 gigs.
[16:46] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: rpgsuperfan: Do machinima... uhhh... makers... get lots of
chicks?
Answer: Yes, but we don't know how many are
actually chicks.
[
[
[16:47] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Nik (this ass
slapping succubus from our Blizzcon video) actually flew out and visited us. It
was sweet.
[16:47] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: Tyralis: What would you say is the single best upgrde you
should get to a computer to improve the quality of the machinima
(like mic/RAM/graphics card)
Answer: Processor is where it's at. Fraps
and editing are all about the processor
[16:47] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: Charlie: What FPS do you recomend
using in FRAPS that wont take up to much hard drive?
Answer: Depends on your production. Going too low will sacrifice the quality of
your film. 24 or 30 fps is broadcast
standard for television and film however, so that is a good target.
[16:48] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: WNxSirRetro: Who is your idol?
Answer: Uwe Boll :D
:P
[16:48] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: darkness213: In Zinwrath, If the
gnome didnt bite him what would he have said?
Answer: Actually Dirti bit Burakubuu... so
I have no idea!
[16:48] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: =HT=Gamma: What kind of video cards do you guys use?
Answer: nvidia ... only....ever.
[16:48] [Rufus Cubed]
Ezra: Question: Homer99: Whats your favorit
Machinima movie/series besides your own?
Answer: I enjoyed Rise of the Living Dead
and Bloodspell is shaping up to be incredible
[16:49] [Myndflame] Gobbler: I can't exactly
say a flat out #1 favorite, but I really enjoyed Goth Girl, a music video that
was in the Xfire Contest.
[
[
Answer: RAM it up, and you should be fine…
and have plenty of HD space… and… caffeine…
[16:49] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Should be
great. Return 1 was produced on a a 3.2 P4 HT
[16:49] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: TnG^Showgo178: How do you pay for the large hard drives and
such when you don't charge for these videos?
Answer: Hard drives are cheap.... a 320gb goes for around ~$120.
[16:49] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Money does get
generated as a result of this work, just not profit-money (so far). It's enough
to keep things alive. We do end up significantly burning our own cash too
[16:52] [Dementia]Tivas: Actually
you can get a decent 300 gig HD for pretty cheap. Around $120 and sometimes
with a rebate. But making the
space for them can get expensive. I sit
out on street corners 8 hours a day with a sign that says "Feed the
starving children"
[16:50] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: darkness213: If you could choose one character to come alive
from Illigeal danish, who would it be?
Answer: Dirti, so I could punch him in the
face.
[16:50] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: =HT=Gamma: Which card from NVIDIA do you use?
Answer: Return 1 was a 6600 GT. Return 2 will be a 6800 Ultra.
[16:50]
[Machinima.com] Jason: Question: PitfireX: what games do you plan
on building off of in the future, BF2142?
Answer: I'm personally looking forward to
Crysis... it looks amazing.
[16:51] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: [Burnt]Spooky: so what do you guys
like to do in you spare time (if you have any)?
Answer: I played semi-pro football up until
about a week ago...
[16:53] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: I'm actually in a
band. We play songs about Tax Writeoffs
and Starbucks Baristas.
[16:52] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: [Burnt]Spooky: So you spend your own
money on the WoW playing time or what?
ANSWER
My WoW subscription is now tax deductable :D
[16:53] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: darkness213: In the credits of Illigeal Danish, how did you
get everyone into a line like that? Is it everyone from a guild? or just random people?
Answer: Some of them were friends, but most
of them were random. When we captured that scene we had about 40 people there
to help.
[16:53] [Dementia]Tivas: Some of them were from a guild and others were
just random people who joined in. What
you don't see is all the crazy people jumping around in their skivies trying to
get into the shots.
[16:53] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: [†BlackFeather]_Yeoj: What caused
you to stop playing football?
Answer: Terran broke my knees so that I
couldn't get up from my editing station, to be honest: It was a choice between
Football and Return 2, I'm sure you'll all be happy with my choice
[
Answer: Ninja.
[16:54] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Warrior.... duh
[16:54] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: rpgsuperfan: Rasi, what was up with
the undead in the dress in the dance scene?
Answer: Ya I'm getting this one. Rasi organized this crazy event on the Horde
side and that undead in the dress was one of the guys that showed up. Except for the troll in the Cenarion Helm, all the feature dancers were based off of real people that
showed up to the film shoot. I think he
just wanted to be one of the girls...
[16:55] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: Qwiggalo: who's johnnyxfire?
Answer: What? How can you not know? The Johnny? The incredible indestructable
Johnny? He's the niceest guy in Warcraft Machinima and the talented
creator of VC and Condemnation (Blizzcon winner)
[16:55] [Rufus Cubed] TerranThat's Triodin,
Maker of the Blizzcon winning video "Condemnation" and the
[
[
[
[16:55] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: <{AI}> FreakTrap: Johnnyxifre,
do you realise that there are no ninjas in WoW?
Answer: You've never eaten a deviate fish
have you?
[
[16:56] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: Tyralis: For making the slow motion in Only the Strong wil
Survive, what editing program did you use, and how did you insure that the slow
motion wasn't choppy?
Answer: Actually Max Payne 2 has a
parameter in the game where you can slow the game down to 10% of the normal
speed. So I used that. I don't recommend slowing down your footage in editing,
unless you like the choppy look. Another way to do it is capture your video at
a high FPS like 60fps and edit in 30fps.
[16:56] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Question: WNxSirRetro: Are there still something you want to learn
more?
Answer: I'm a sound design hack to be honest, I wish I had the skill to get it done better. It's
all about trial and error these days
[
[16:57] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Every new project
is a learning experience.
[16:57] [Rufus Cubed]
Terran: Always and always and always. As I
mentioned before ... any artform is just that ... something that you can never
be "done" with. Until I've
read every book on directing and special effects and composite animation and
chatted with every great filmmaker ... my life's work will not be complete :)
[16:57]
[Xfire] matteox: ok we have time for
a couple more here
[16:58] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: darkness213: If you never became a movie maker what would you
have become?
Answer: A beautiful butterly.
[16:58] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Maybe I would have
worked tech support.... ...
[16:58] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: TnG^Showgo178: Hey Tivas, how much
do you make off the "Feed the starveing children" sign thing?
Answer: Almost as much as you'd probaby
make working at McDonalds. The gig is
much better though, you make your own hours and take vacations whenever you
want.
[16:58] [Myndflame] Gobbler: Question: [Burnt]Spooky: Do you guys play (or
have you ever played) Guild wars?
Answer: Looking into it, might buy it this
weekend.
[16:59] [Xfire] matteox: ok, we want to thank
these guys for their time!
[16:59] [Rufus Cubed] Ezra: Really enjoyed the
QA sessions folks, watch for Return 2 coming late May, early June. We'll have a
preview out before E3 we hope. www.rufuscubed.com
[16:59] [Machinima.com] Jason: Question: Tyralis: What program do you use for sound editing? or do you just use your video editor for it?
Answer: Premiere Pro 2.0 has good audio
functionality, otherwise Audition or Audacity is a great choice.
[16:59] [Rufus Cubed] Terran: Question: WNxSirRetro: You like challenges?
Answer: Every task is a challenge, if you
allow yourself to be challenged into never taking the easy path and making sure
everything you do is up to par with the extent of your abilities.
[
[16:59] [Dementia]Tivas: Question: darkness213: If you never
became a movie maker what would you have become?
Answer: A porn star for sure. I've seen enough I think I'd know what I was
doing.
[
[
[
[17:01] [Xfire] matteox: okay i will give out a
couple of games...
[
[17:01] [Xfire] matteox: Winner 1 ---tyralis
[
[17:01] [Xfire] matteox: Winner 2---Qwiggalo
[17:01] [Xfire] matteox: Winner
3---rpgsuperfan
[17:02] [Xfire] matteox: Yeah that is all === you
winners should pm me