Minecraft: Legends
Real-time in-engine cinematics in a procedural world.
Directing . Cinematography . Tool Design
Core NIS Team Members:
Engineering: Galo Rojo, Alex Vyskocil, Mark Tigges, Germain Le Chapelain
Art: Mike Thistle, Joel Beaudet
Production: Alexi Nijathaworn, Nadia Lohan, Crystal Lau
FX: Danielle Aichler
All other assets produced by Black Bird Interactive
There were a lot more people that helped us out from other diciplines within the Legends Team, could not have done it with out you!
Engineering: Galo Rojo, Alex Vyskocil, Mark Tigges, Germain Le Chapelain
Art: Mike Thistle, Joel Beaudet
Production: Alexi Nijathaworn, Nadia Lohan, Crystal Lau
FX: Danielle Aichler
All other assets produced by Black Bird Interactive
There were a lot more people that helped us out from other diciplines within the Legends Team, could not have done it with out you!
It was a priviledge to Direct the in-engine cinematics of Legends. Our small team was tasked with producing over 60 real-time cinematics, which was particularly difficult given the procedural nature of the game. To make matters even more challenging, we had to create a cinematic tool from scratch on an engine that was not meant for cinematics to facilitate this process.
We developed a cinematic language that was tailored to each of the different hordes and the player, which proved to be instrumental in guiding us through production and helped us quickly adapt when script changes were made.
One of the biggest hurdles we encountered was the need to convey emotion without the benefit of dialogue or expressive characters. However, we rose to the occasion and delivered a memorable result. Another obstacle was working within the confines of limited space for crafting cinematic scenes. Given the procedural nature of the terrain, our scenes were primarily situated within designated "stages." While this restricted camera angles and actions, it also safeguarded against information loss caused by unnecessary elements.
When we had to use the procedural ground, we designed scenes using the camera obstruction system we created. A hierarchical system which cuts to secondary or terciary cameras if it finds it self occluded. It also was design to "edit" it self following a intricate set of rules.
Despite the obstacles we faced, I thoroughly enjoyed the production of Legends and I am very proud of the results the team delivered.
Intro to the Horde of the Spore
Horde of the Spore Boss Arrives
Final Boss Death
First of Stone
Creepers liberated.
Village Occupied
A Portal Destruction