Moviestorm Blog - covering Moviestorm, Machinima, 3D Filmmaking, Pre-Viz, Animation

Matt ‘The Mongoose‘ Kelland, co-founder of ShortFuze, and Creative Director of Moviestorm, as well as a talented machinima filmmaker in his own right, has taken to wearing yet another hat, that of organising the machinima segment of the Cambridge Film Festival (previous detailed post on both the Festival and its main venue). A number of machinima directors have already been approached on the subject of showing their work, but there remain some open spots, Matt has put out a ‘Call for Submissions‘.

So, for all you Moviestorm users, slaving away in the basement or the attic after a long haul at your day job, this is a GREAT opportunity to get your work seen by a wider audience. Sure, there’s your director’s page on the Moviestorm site, and maybe your YoutTube page, but this will be in a theatre, on a real screen, with real people physically in attendance! So, if you’re ready for your closeup, email him at matt [dot] kelland [at] moviestorm [dot] co [dot] uk telling him where they can see your film and why you think they should show it. (Don’t send the film, just a URL!). There are some guidelines: your film should be no more than ten minutes long, and it should be in English or have in English subtitles. Alternatively, it can be silent. Any machinima engine or environment may be utilized, but submissions must by 9.00 am UK time on Tuesday, July 28th.

It has been said that the Cambridge Film Festival “easily outclasses its metropolitan rivals” (The Times) and it has been described as “a match for the Edinburgh and London Film Festivals…” (The Guardian). Originally established in 1977, the Festival ran until 1996, and re-launched in 2001 after a five year hiatus. It has become quite a high profile event and has a well-earned reputation as one of the UK’s most prestigious and well-respected film festivals

This 28th edition, which runs from September 18th to 28th, is one of the three largest film events in the UK, and will feature a machinima track. It’s expected that around 50 films, including the winner of the Moviestorm Sci-Fi competition, will be screened in four different sessions each lasting 60 to 90 minutes each.

The films screened will be platform-agnostic and many engines will be represented; for example, entries may be made in Moviestorm, World of Warcraft, Second Life, There, Antics, Reallusion iClone, Motionbuilder, The Sims, Half-Life 2, Team Fortress, Grand Theft Auto, to name just a few game engines/virtual environments, or any combination.

Based at the Arts Picturehouse in Cambridge, the Festival - which is now run by the charitable Cambridge Film Trust - also utilizes several other venues in Cambridge, including The Junction and West Road Concert Hall, with outreach events taking place at locations across the Eastern region. The Trust was established in 2007 to manage the Cambridge Film Festival and promote film and, through a commercial subsidiary, offer support for film screenings.

the art deco cafe bar has a varied selection of refreshments

screen 1 features stadium seating, excellent sight-lines
and the latest audio-visual technologies

Ira Glass is the producer and host of This American Life (official site), which is both a weekly radio show (on Chicago Public Radio) and a television series (on Showtime).

Ira Glass is the producer and host of This American Life (official site), which is both a weekly radio show (on Chicago Public Radio) and a television series (on Showtime).

Ira Glass is the producer and host of This American Life (official site), which is both a weekly radio show (on Chicago Public Radio) and a television series (on Showtime).