"A Documentary about Failing Forward"
Several independent game creators retell their struggles, failures, and triumphs while discussing what it means to be an "indie", and what it means to be a creative.
Social & External
In thirty years, the video game has conquered an increasingly wide audience. Drawing on the recent work of economists, sociologists, experts and interviewing major players in this field, this investigation unravels the overwhelming domination of this new mass media.
In this hilarious arcade showdown, a humble novice goes head-to-head against the reigning Donkey Kong champ in a confrontation that rocks the gaming world to its processors! For over 20 years, Billy Mitchell has owned the throne of the Donkey Kong world. No one could beat his top score until now. Newcomer Steve Wiebe claims to have beaten the unbeatable, but Mitchell isn't ready to relinquish his crown without a fight. Go behind the barrels as the two battle it out in a vicious war to earn the title of the true King of Kong.
In 2014, YouTuber DenkOps (Chris Denker) created a fictional version of himself inside of a pro wrestling video game. 8 years and 1.5 million fans later, it's time to turn fiction into reality. This documentary follows Chris's odyssey into the very real world of professional wrestling, with every bump, botch, & breakdown that occurs along the way. Can he make it through training and prove he has what it takes to do this for real? Or will he find himself... in danger? It’s definitely not a game anymore.
The New 8-Bit Heroes began after discovering childhood illustrations of a proposed game for the original Nintendo Entertainment System. Embarking on a quest with fellow creatives, Granato and his team set out to retrofit their skills to realize the abandoned ambition of developing a brand new, cartridge based game for the 30 year old console. What began as a novelty project about making a video game quickly shifts into an analysis of the relevance of the ambitions shed in our youth and an examination of what happens when we inject them into our adult lives.
It is the year 2546. Corporations rule the world, and an agent is on a secret mission to explore the untold stories of the past. His journey leads him into a secret virtual reality where one corporation has recreated the 1980s, an era that witnessed the birth of video game development, an event in which a politically and economically restricted small European country, Hungary, had a significant role. He discovers a strange but exciting world, where computers were smuggled through the Iron Curtain and serious engineers started developing games. This small country was still under Soviet pressure when a group of people managed to set up one of the first game development studios in the world, and western computer stores started clearing room on their shelves for Hungarian products.
My reason for why people should leave TRTF alone, and let it rest. The facts, experience, what has been done, and why having other people making it won't be the same.
GET LAMP is a documentary about interactive fiction (also known as text adventures) filmed by computer historian Jason Scott.
After quitting their corporate jobs, Bartek and Rafal decided to create their first video game (Lichtspeer). The movie follows them throughout the last few months of working on the project. You’ll be able to witness their struggle to publish the game on PlayStation, the emotions of people associated with the game’s launch, and finally, Rafal’s and Bartek’s attempts to break into the consciousness of youtube stars and the industry press
From dungeon-like basements to worldwide phenomenon, ADVENTURE NEVER ENDS: A TABLETOP SAGA explores how tabletop role-playing games have fought their way through decades of trial by fire to emerge at the height of pop culture- now shaping and bringing together millions of lives through storytelling. The film takes a behind the curtain look at an open community of fans, as well as youth programs who use tabletop role-playing games to promote socialization, team building, and empathy.
Sparked by a public display of sexual harassment in 2012, GTFO pries open the video game world to explore a 20 billion dollar industry riddled with discrimination and misogyny. Every year, the gaming community grows increasingly diverse. This has led to a clash of values and women are receiving the brunt of the consequences every day, with acts of harassment ranging from name calling to death threats. Through interviews with video game creators, journalists, and academics, GTFO paints a complex picture of the video game industry, while revealing the systemic and human motivations behind acts of harassment. GTFO begins the conversation that will shape the future of the video game world.
Exile - Never Mind Reality depicts a growing phenomenon: young people developing an obsession with online gaming (MMORPG). Emil (34) from Oslo, Daniel (16), Morten (14) and Rasmus (15) from Lillehammer are all completely hooked. This has had serious consequences for them and has led to them dropping school, friends or jobs. At the same time, gaming is fun and gives them a sense of mastery.
In 2001, young Kyiv developers led by Serhiy Hryhorovych decided to create the most complex game in the world with realistic graphics, an open world and an unusual plot revolving around the Chornobyl zone. With the launch of the promotional campaign, tens of thousands of people around the world were waiting for STALKER, but the developers became hostage to their ambitions. They endlessly improved the game, postponing its release date every year. But at one point, the American publisher's patience ran out.
This documentary offers an honest look at our fraught, complex relationship to video games from the perspectives of gamers and their concerned parents.
“The Power of Glove” is a documentary that chronicles the history & legacy of the notoriously “bad” Power Glove, a 1989 Nintendo controller that promised to forever change the way humans interact with technology. Originally released by Mattel, the Power Glove was the first mass-marketed gesture-based video game controller. It was designed by an eclectic team of hard-working and bright-eyed dreamers, and its marketing hype was immense. Immediately after its release, however, gamers were disappointed by the Power Glove, and critics panned it as a worthless gimmick. Yet unlike many gimmicks and critical failures of the past, the Power Glove has not been simply swept under the rug. Nearly three decades after its release, the Power Glove continues to resonate with video gaming and technology fans, becoming the focus of art pieces, songs, videos, hacking projects, and other forms of cultural repurposing. “The Power of Glove” tells the story of how and why the Power Glove lives on.
Over 133 years in the making, from humble beginnings manufacturing 'Hanufuda' cards came one of the world's most recognized videogame companies, from the birth of Mario and Luigi to Donkey Kong and Zelda... to beating its competition and presenting itself as a platform for quality games and strong values. This is the story of Nintendo.
Magic: The Gathering is the most popular collectible card game in the world. At Magic's Pro Tour, players from around the globe compete to prove who is the best. They are writers, game theorists, jewelry apprentices, female pioneers, and teenage geniuses.
Prepare for battle! Jump straight into one of the fastest growing games of all time, with over 40 million players, and many pro teams across the globe. Creators of World of Warcraft, Blizzard introduced their first new IP in 17 years ‘Overwatch’, which has become a global phenomenon. Celebrating hope, diversity and teamwork, join the Overwatch community and hear from the people at the very heart of the game; the developers, the pros, the fans and the voice actors of Reinhardt, Sombra, Pharah, Symmetra, Ana and more, in this unofficial documentary.
Kyle wants to make a Pure Pwnage movie but he has to do some convincing because Jeremy is now living the suburban life and doesn't want to participate.
Filmmaker Robin Benger covered 14 wars in 24 countries as a veteran TV producer but nothing prepared him for the discovery that war was being waged in the basement of his own home. He discovered that "first person shooter" games, and violence-centred gaming, are taking over as the entertainment of choice for a whole generation of (mostly) teenage males. Entering into that world, he began filming in cyber-cafes, games manufacturers‚ conventions, and mega gaming tournaments, even tracking down the designer of the very game causing him so much friction with his own son.