Source Filmmaker
Source Filmmaker (SFM for short) is a tool used to create most of the videos running the Source Engine. Source Filmmaker is a video capture and editing application that works from inside the Source engine. It allows users to record themselves many times over in the same scene, creating the illusion of many participants, as well as supporting a wide range of cinematographic effects and techniques such as motion blur, Tyndall effects, Dynamic Lighting, and depth of field. (Motion blur has now been added to the games themselves, though only when the view is moving at high speeds—not per-object as in the filmmaker. Per-object motion blur is in the replay system of TF2 Open Beta.)
The tool hasn't been publicly released by Valve, but was leaked in the original Team Fortress 2 beta release. Following the discovery of the program's files inside the Team Fortress 2 beta, the community succeeded in creating a (mostly) stable version. Since then, many fan videos have been created with the tool.
Contents
Features
SFM allows you to:
- Record footage into:
- uncompressed AVI file
- TGA files
- Frames of Footage, user defined
- Single Frame, similar to a ScreenShot
- WAV files of sounds
- (All can be done simultaneously)
- Record yourself performing one part, then rewinding and record yourself performing another
- Publish videos directly to Steam (option is available in-game, but nothing happens when selected)
- This option was most likely used by Valve, does not work for current, unofficial version.
- Control camera placement and movement
- Add per-object motion blur and depth of field
- Import choreography scenes
- Ability to modify bone placement and facial expressions of characters
Recording with other games
By importing files from other Source games, it is possible to use Source Filmmaker with games beyond Team Fortress 2. However, due to the complicated nature of the program, many problems may be experienced by users attempting to film with other games.
Public release
As Source Filmmaker is an in-house production tool that was not designed to be used by community members, the possibility of a public release of the application is uncertain. Valve has not expressed any interest in releasing the application for public use, and has not openly acknowledged public use of the leaked version.
Official Valve Productions
Valve has used Source Filmmaker for their own game trailers and short films, most significantly the Meet the Team series of videos, and the intro videos for Left for Dead 1 and 2. It is mostly used when the film contains something outside of the game's capabilities, like new facial expressions and cinematic animations. Besides Team Fortress 2 videos, Valve has used Source Filmmaker with Left 4 Dead 1 and 2, Day of Defeat: Source, as well as Half-Life 2 for announcing the game's arrival on the Macintosh.
External links
- Source Filmmaker Wikia - Unofficial wikia dedicated to Source Filmmaker.
- Source Filmmaker Machinima - A site dedicated to archiving development and tutorials.
