Fall SIFF 2015 - My faves

Ok. SIFF review time :)

So this season's SIFF was fairly good, but I couldn't help thinking it didn't quite reach the heights of Spring's 2015's SIFF. Don't get me wrong, there were some excellent films - but there just weren't as many of them.

I think the main reason for this was because quite a few Machinima Masters pulled out of the festival. I know there were about 3 or 4 that I was especially looking forward to, but sadly they were absent. I'm 90% sure at least two of them would've made my favourites list.

Anyway, with that being said, here is a list of my favourites, and honourable mentions.

Top 3 favorites

Dead to Me hosted by TheElonianCass

A fabulous looking MEP and a great song. Gorgeous editing work by all.
(Note, if the embed doesn't work, you can view directly by clicking here)

Odd 1x01 - Taken by Adriano Magnavita
A story about odd happenings, this pilot drew me in immediately. It was mysterious and engaging the whole way through. The characters were well-written and it had some unexpected moments of humour.


Circles by JuliLux3
Another stunning film by JuliLux. Man, I looove her work. A lot of powerful emotions are created in this machinima through her thoughtful camerawork and wonderfully artistic editing. This machinima tells the story of a soldier gone to war and the love he left behind (that is my interpretation of it, anyway :)

☆☆☆Honorable Mentions ☆☆☆

To the Moon and Back by Ansett4Sims

Staying Up Late by MsRockTheClock

Overall impression of SIFF Fall 2015 in .gif format:

SIFF Fall 2015 soon!

Only about two weeks until the Sims International Film Festival begins on the 15th September 2015!

I'm not participating, but I'm looking forward to watching the submissions - there are a HUGE amount of films this season!

I will be watching all Masters, Films, Music videos and MEP's and will be posting a list of my favourites a couple of weeks later. However, I will not be viewing series unless a few happen to fall into the Master category.

Gonna be honest here , and I have stated this before, but I'm not really a fan of Sim's series - there are very few I like.  While I respect the dedication that goes behind them, Sim Series just aren't my thing when it comes to SIFF.

(But still looking forward to SIFF overall)

- Ballantyne

Source Filmaker tutorial vid

Finally finished the tutorial video :P




For comparison, here is Valve's much more polished one:

I didn't add the film grain & colour correction to mine, as I wanted it more colourful.

Yeah.

Sims 4: Get Together EP

Thoroughly unimpressed by the new Sims 4 EP trailer.

Just sayin'

SFM Test

My first test using Source Filmmaker! :D

This program is hard! D:

But also badass

Anytime But Now [Sims 3 Machinima]

*Warning, contains mature content*

This is a very old, unfinished project that has been stagnating on my hard drive for a couple of years. I was originally hoping to release it for SIFF 2013, but couldn't get it done before the deadline.

I shelved this project for a while, but it got to a point where I couldn't bring myself to finish it, yet I couldn't bear to throw out all the footage, so in the end I thought I'd edit together what I had on hand and hope that it's at least semi-watchable.

(I'm still not happy with it, which is why I'm not uploading it publicly - just here and on Simatography)

By the way, this is a fan-film about two characters from the Resident Evil series, Leon. S. Kennedy and Ada Wong. I ship them very intensely, but you probably noticed that from the video :P

"My Demons" MEP

Hi guys,

Here is a new MEP I participated in, hosted by JuliLux3. yay! :D



This is probably my last MEP with The Sims 3, I'm uninstalling my game and going to be making videos with another program for a while. I don't like to say the word "quit"when it comes to The Sims 3, so I'm gonna call it an "extended hiatus".

- Ballantyne

P.S. Still haven't bought The Sims 4. If an animation player is released... I might change my mind. But, the game still looks very mediocre to me.

Spring SIFF 2015 - My faves

Sorry for the delay with this guys, real life has been busy! :O

Here are my favourites for Spring SIFF 2015. I must say, I it was a great SIFF this season!

As a result, I have five favourites instead of three this time :D

Top 5 Favourites in no particular order:

It Only Hurts by JuliLux3
My god, this was gorgeous to watch. Stunning cinematography, beautiful editing and emotional story. The sims are damn sexy too! I don't know how she does it, but it's awesome!



Tangled Wires by Tali Sims Morgan
This film. Wow. I know this list is in no particular order. But in terms of story, this was my favourite piece of storytelling at SIFF. Tali has an amazing imagination and she has created a deeply moving, disturbing and emotional film. This needs more recognition. Seriously.



Truce by Apocalyptic Dog Films
Another well-crafted and emotional story. I was blown away by the dialogue in this film.  It also had great voice acting and a creatively used indie soundtrack.



Actor by Machinima Will
This was an intriguing story about acting and jealousy, creatively told through a use of black and white and colour. This story was loosely inspired by "Rope" by Alfred Hitchcock, and so, has a wonderful "hitchcockian" atmosphere.



Unbreakable Fate Episode 1 "Prologue" by DNL Films
The production value on this machinima was just outstanding, probably one of the most professionally polished machinima's I have ever seen. A great start to what looks like an intriguing series.

Honourable Mentions

Best psychedelic fight scene - "Shura" by Bahariawans

Best "omg-is-this-a-movie?" - "Tomb Raider - Lux Veritas" by vinnyvis

Sweetest Grim Reaper story  - "Shinohana The Death Flower" by Bahariawans


Overall impression of Spring SIFF 2015 in GIF Format:

Thanks for reading! :)

- Ballantyne

SIFF Spring 2015 MEPS!

Hi Guys,

Here are two MEP's I participated in for the Sims International Film Festival (SIFF). I am very proud of both MEPS and the creativity of all machinima makers involved.

"Oblivion" hosted by TitusLinde

"Sky's Still Blue" hosted by JuliLux3

Also, I forgot to post a link to the full SIFF playlist. Please visit the link below to view all films in the festival :)

http://simatography.webs.com/siff-archive-spring-2015

- Ballantyne

SIFF Spring 2015

Well guys, it's that time of year again! :D While I won't be submitting any machinimas, I'm proud to announce I will be participating in two MEPs this SIFF! One for JuliLux3, and the other for TitusLinde

At long last, I can *finally* say that I have participated in SIFF!

I will make a new post with the two MEPs as soon as they are available, as well as voting links, once they're up! Wooooo!

By the way, SIFF is only a few days away! Films premiere on the 15th of March. I will be posting a link to the full playlist on the day.

(And of course, I will be posting my personal faves from the festival in a week or two, as usual ^_^ )

Stay tuned :D