MILAN MACHINIMA FESTIVAL MMXXIII
Neither Artificial Nor Intelligent
March 19 - 26 2023, Milan and online
Special screening on March 25 2023 at the
Viale Fulvio Testi 121 20162 Milano
Curated by Matteo Bittanti
The sixth edition of the MILAN MACHINIMA FESTIVAL features a diverse selection of 19 machinima and game videos from 23 artists representing 12 countries.
“Neither Artificial Nor Intelligent” (NANI) is how Kate Crawford— research professor of communication and science and technology studies at the University of Southern California and a senior principal researcher at Microsoft Research — describes artificial intelligence in her award-winning book Atlas of AI (2021). According to Crawford, “AI is neither artificial nor intelligent. It is made from natural resources and it is people who are performing the tasks to make the systems appear autonomous.”
Likewise, the new edition of the Milan Machinima Festival will address the growing influence of artificial intelligence on storytelling and visual narrative, but also the rhetoric surrounding this technique
This year the festival features two distinct sections: NEITHER INTELLIGENT NOR ARTIFICIAL (March 25 2023, in-person) and MACHINIMA IN THE AGE OF AI (March 19-26 2023, online), featuring 9 programs overall.
Experience the best of machinima and game videos through our curated programs:
NEITHER INTELLIGENT NOR ARTIFICIAL (Museum of Interactive Cinema, Milan, March 25 2023): NEITHER INTELLIGENT NOR ARTIFICIAL, THE POLITICS OF GAMING, DYSTOPIA and a selection of works from MADE IN ITALY and THE NEO AVANT-GARDE which will be presented exclusively on site, specifically
LUCAS AZEMAR, LIFE ON EARTH, 2019
SOREN THILO FUNDER, GAME ENGINES (Orange Bulletproof Kids) (2021)
TOTAL REFUSAL, HARDLY WORKING, 2022
BEN NICHOLSON, THE TONIC OF BATTERSEA PARK, 2023
ANDREA GATOPOLOUS, HAPPY NEW YEAR, JIM, 2022
KENT SHEELY, WELCOME BACK, 2022
CHRISTIAN WRIGHT, BODY LANGUAGE, 2022
STANISLAW PETRUK, THE REMNANTS, 2022
MACHINIMA IN THE AGE OF AI (March 19-26 2023, online): MADE IN ITALY, THE NEO AVANT-GARDE, COUNTER-NARRATIVES, and UTOPIA.
Featured artists: Babak Ahteshamipour, Lucas Azémar, Martin Bell, Marc Coverdale, Iain Douglas, Søren Thilo Funder, Andrea Gatopoulos, Nicholas Gebbe, Luca Giacomelli, Manuel Ghidini, Kara Güt, Ben Nicholson, Stanislaw Petruk, Kent Sheely, Brenton Alexander Smith, Colin Stagner, Nanut Thanapornrapee, Total Refusal, Rhett Tsai, and Christian Wright.
The festival’s poster was designed by Jordy Veenstra, one of the most talented artists working with machinima today. “The initial keywords given to me were NPC and AI”, said the Dutch artist and filmmaker. “In tandem with this year’s theme, my first thoughts were: pseudo-intelligence, digitization, dehumanization, empty shells, algorithms, compulsory movement and/or execution — as in NPC speech and movement —, the contrast between real/fabricated and the visualization of code.“
Consistently with this premise, Veenstra used AI-based tools to generate the artwork. As he explains: “The work was created with the Dall-E AI provided by OpenAI and in my eyes ideally captures this idea. White experimental, dehumanized masses looking like NPCs, with truly absurd poses; just standing there, surrounded by experimental ‘white’ code blobs; simply looking around restlessly and waiting for someone, anyone, to give a quest to, to be useful and to have their code finally executed. To have their own quest completed.”
03/11/2023
EVENT: MILAN MACHINIMA FESTIVAL MMXXIII (MARCH 19 - 26 2023, MILAN AND ONLINE)
04/07/2012
Game Art: Ashley Anderson's "Tiny" (2012)
Ashley Anderson, Tiny, Billboard design, found game image, 2012
Link: Ashley Anderson
Submitted by Matteo Bittanti
08/23/2011
Game Art: Joe Alterio's "There's No One There" (2011)
Joe Alterio, "You Can't Use That Here" poster, 18 * 34, 2011 (link)
Joe Alterio, "You Don't Have The Key" poster, 18 * 34, 2011 (link)
Joe Alterio, "There's No One Herey" poster, 18 * 34, 2011 (link)
"A series of images in plate and silkscreened poster form that ask questions about the level we're stuck on. [...]
As a 33 year old now, a great deal my youth was spent indoors, camped behind a computer screen, playing the early versions of first-person-shooters and walk-through RPGs in the Sierra line. My parents were barely on speaking terms, I was getting shit in school, and the glow of childhood was fading rapidly; I found solace in these games because provided not only a distraction, but a sense of real accomplishment – getting to the next stage, unlocking the door, gaining access to the spacecraft – these felt like real wins. It’s through this lens that a difficult level to beat was an acceptable challenge, but one in which there seemed to be no real solution brought bubbling forth some existential fears that stick with me to this day. To use a clunky metaphor, a man with a gun blocking my exit from a dark alley is a scary but solvable puzzle. However, if the man is absent, but the alley has no exit, and I’m forced to explore endlessly for a way out, one that doesn’t exist – I find this terrifying beyond belief." (Joe Alterio, 2011)
Link: Joe Alterio
Submitted by Matteo Bittanti (source: .tiff)
01/16/2011
Event: Multiplayer, the aftermath
Images courtesy of Johnathan B of Things to do in LA
See Jonathan's fabulous photo gallery of "Multiplayer" @ Gallery 1988 (January 15 - February 4, 2011, Los Angeles, California) here (Things to do in LA)
Submitted by Matteo Bittanti
01/10/2011
Event: "Multiplayer" @ Gallery 1988 (January 15 - February 4, 2011, Los Angeles, California)
Todd Slater, The Overworld, 2010 (via OMG!Posters)
Reminder: Gallery1988 (Venice, Los Angeles) is about to unleash its inaugural show, "Multiplayer," on January 15th. It will feature 30 artists, all creating limited edition screenprints inspired by classic video games. The show is curated by OMG!Posters.
link: Gallery 1988
Submitted by Matteo Bittanti
12/22/2010
Poster Art: The Art of Game-Inspired Posters @ Gallery 1988 (January 15 - February 4, 2011, Los Angeles, California)
link: Gallery 1988
related: Poster Art: Maicon Costa's "Alphabetical Poster" (2010)
related: Poster Art: Rachel Morris' work for the NYU Game Center (2009-2010)
Submitted by Matteo Bittanti (via Eric Caioli @ GameSetWatch)
Poster Art: Maicon Costa's "Alphabetical Poster" (2010)
Brazilian illustrator and designer Maicon Costa's "Alphabetical Poster" (2010) wants to "stimulate memory and sensitize the audience,", in the creator' words (A printed version of this artwork is on sale here).
link: Maicon Costa
related: Rachel Morris' work for the NYU Game Center
Submitted by Matteo Bittanti (thank you, Steve!)
12/18/2010
Poster Art: Rachel Morris' work for the NYU Game Center
We featured Rachel's astounding work before but we simply cannot get enough. Outstanding.
link: Rachel Morris
Submitted by Matteo Bittanti