Machinima Turns Guns Into Flowers

Fountainhead Entertainment has released "Anna", a movie that follows the life cycle of a flower. A blockbuster in the making, hardly. But what's special about "Anna" is that the entire movie was made using the software engine that powers Quake III, a first-person shooter video game.

This new filmmaking is called machinima, an emerging form of filmmaking where graphic artists manipulate video game software to create 3D-animated movies. Machinima has started popping up at film festivals, conventions, and online. Since the movies are digitally rendered, it's easy for people to download them directly.

While Anna is a silent film, directors have increasingly looked for voice actors and professional musicians to bring their creations to life. There's even an Academy of Machinima Arts & Sciences.