And Now For Something Completely Machinima
Machinima, real-time filmmaking, virtual production and VR. Four veteran machinimators share news, new films & filmmakers, and discuss the past, present and future of machinima.
Episodes
What happens when real-time graphics stop trying to impress technically and start feeling like cinema? In this episode of And Now For Something Completely Machinima, Phil Rice, Ricky Grove, Tracy Harwood and Damien Valentine explore “Nine” (IX) by Moppi Productions - a landmark 2003 demoscene work that bridges machinima, digital art and real-time filmmaking.
⏱ Chapters -
0:00 Intro
1:01 Welcome & episode overvie...
What happens when a Twitch streamer can’t talk about a game because of an NDA… so they recreate the experience inside another MMO instead?
In this episode of Now For Something Completely Machinima, Phil Rice, Tracy Harwood, and Damien Valentine unpack a bizarre, brilliant, and surprisingly cinematic machinima created in Final Fantasy XIV that channels the mood of Dune, social media culture, and fan-driven storytelling.
<...
In Episode 217 of And Now for Something Completely Machinima, we explore “Ersatz” a haunting new solo animated film by Saint Greaver created in Blender’s Eevee engine. Set within a surreal World War I–inspired landscape, the film blends virtual production techniques with painterly concept art aesthetics to create a disturbing, dreamlike vision of war, identity, and memory.
The discussion unpacks the film’s themes of rep...
In this episode of Completely Machinima, Damien Valentine, Tracy Harwood, and Phil Rice unpack the biggest talking points at the intersection of machinima, AI, and creator rights.
We start with a quick birthday nod to id Software’s 35th anniversary—a foundational influence on game culture and the machinima scene—before diving into the headline debate: the Disney + OpenAI partnership. Tracy breaks down why Disney choosin...
In this episode of And Now for Something Completely Machinima, the team dives deep into the chilling Blender short I Made a Self-Aware Robot by the enigmatic creator Lights Are Off.
Tracy brings the film to the table, praising its haunting realism, uncanny robot design, and smart use of found-footage aesthetics. What begins as a seemingly grounded “scientist vlog” quickly spirals into a modern Frankenstein story—raising...
In this episode of Now for Something Completely Machinima, the team revisits Ozymandias (1999) — one of the earliest and most controversial works of machinima, created by Hugh Hancock and Strange Company using the experimental LithTech Film Producer toolkit.
What begins as a straightforward critique quickly turns into a deeper debate:
👉 Is Ozymandias a “bad film”… or a groundbreaking prototype that helped shape virtual ...
Starfield is one of the most cinematic games Bethesda’s ever shipped… so why haven’t we seen much machinima from it? Today we’re looking at a mod that might finally crack that open: a fully built settlement with lore, characters, quests, and surprisingly strong voice acting, presented with a “lore trailer” that feels like a slice-of-life tour through a corporate-controlled mining town. We’ll break down what it gets right, ...
What happens when Tolkien’s world, Enya’s music, and cutting-edge virtual performance collide?
In this episode, we explore a breathtaking Second Life film that reimagines “May It Be” as a haunting, hopeful journey through shadow and light. From gothic landscapes and cinematic lighting to an unexpectedly intimate motion-capture reveal, this episode showcases how virtual worlds can deliver not just spectacle, but genuine ...
This week, we review a supporter-recommended iClone fantasy machinima that surprised us with its polish: “Quest of a Key - Chapter One” by AuroraTrek. We’re always saying we want more story-driven iClone machinima (and fewer tech-demo vibes)… and this one delivers on craft: strong shot selection, confident editing, excellent music cues, and character animation that’s smoother than you’d expect.
But then the conversation get...
We begin with a heartfelt tribute to the late Frank Fox — filmmaker, musician, and beloved member of the machinima community. From his classic MovieStorm film Morning Run Amok to his live music performances as “Frank Leonatra,” we reflect on his creativity, generosity, and the lasting impact he had on virtual filmmaking and the people who loved him.
Then we dive deep into one of the most visually unique and emotionally pow...
This week on And Now for Something Completely Machinima, snacks are flowing, pretzels are implied, and Tracy throws us a curveball of a film pick. 🍪🎬
We dive into “Demoram” by Livviathen, a lightning-fast, 90-second burst of animated chaos made in Team Fortress 2 and Garry’s Mod—and somehow packed with more storytelling, personality, and punch than films ten times its length.
At first glance, it looks like old-school m...
🎮 What if the “bad ending” of Half-Life… wasn’t the end at all?
In this episode of Completely Machinima, Phil, Tracy, and Damien dive into one of gaming’s most legendary “what ifs.” We explore a fan-made Half-Life mod that does the unthinkable: it turns the game’s infamous impossible ending—the one where you’re meant to die horribly—into a brutal but beatable continuation of the story.
Instead of accepting your fate...
🎬 This week on And Now for Something Completely Machinima, we’re shaking (and stirring) things up with a deep dive into Benjamin Tuttle’s long-awaited James Bond machinima, Endgame – Part One 🍸💥
Host Damien Valentine kicks things off by revealing he actually voices Q in the film (recorded years ago!), before the panel digs into why this project is such a standout. Created in iClone and rendered in Unreal Engine, Endg...
🚍 This Week on Now for Something Completely Machinima 🎮
What if the most boring video game ever made was actually a goldmine for creativity?
This episode kicks off with Ricky’s unconventional pick: Desert Bus, a notorious 1990s “anti-game” by Penn & Teller where you drive a bus from Tucson to Las Vegas… in real time… for eight hours… and earn one point. That’s it. No explosions. No shortcuts. No pause button. J...
This week on the podcast, we’re diving into a grab-bag of big creator news, starting with YouTube, and yes… the “slop” situation.
Tracy kicks things off with what looks like YouTube’s latest attempt to clean house: platform changes that claim to improve privacy and the viewing experience, but also mess with how videos behave when embedded on third-party sites. If you stream shows inside places like Second Life, that’s ...
A special ep but unfortunately for the main content, most of this you need to hop on to our YouTube channel to watch as its mainly video footage... here is the intro by Tracy, with part of Paul Marino's keynote from his 2007 Introduction to the Machinima Europe Film Festival and the occasional part of a conversation. Enjoy nonetheless.
Credits -
Host: Tracy Harwood
Editor: Phil Rice
Producer: Phil Rice (introducti...
On this episode of And Now For Something Completely Machinima, Damien, Tracy and Ricky dive into one of Machinima.com’s most unexpected gems: the documentary series “All Your History Are Belong To Us”, focusing on the Stamper brothers and their legendary studio, Rare.
💬 We talk about how the series charts Rare’s rise from a small UK outfit in Ashby-de-la-Zouch to a powerhouse behind classics like Donkey Kong Country, Gold...
In this episode of Completely Machinima, hosts Phil Rice, Tracy Harwood, and Damien Valentine explore the stunning AI-powered operatic machinima “Arido Taurajo” — a groundbreaking short film created by Chantal Harvey (aka Mamachinima) in collaboration with digital artist James Morgan, AI composer Roboccini and soprano/AI researcher Maya Ackerman, among others.
🎮 About the Film:
Set in the World of Warcraft universe, Ar...
In this episode of Completely Machinima, hosts Phil Rice, Tracy Harwood, and Damien Valentine review two creative Star Citizen machinima commercials — Dumpers Depot and Big Benny’s Grab Eats — both made for a Star Citizen video contest.
They explore how these 45-second in-game ads show off community creativity, storytelling, and production skills. Tracy breaks down what made Dumpers Depot Commercial more sophisticated i...
We're beginning Season 6 with one of the best machinima-animated shorts we've ever seen (probably)!
🎥 Back to the Future UNHINGED, Machinima Film Made in Blender
In this episode of The Completely Machinima Podcast, hosts Phil Rice, Damien Valentine, and Tracy Harwood review “Back to the Future Unhinged”, a viral machinima short film by Landon’s Animation Wheelhouse, created entirely in Blender 3D.
This chaotic, hilario...
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