Felicia Dat Tapped by Machinima.com To Write and Star in New Series

July 30, 2008 by Lon Haber

Machinima.com has hired the internet phenom Felicia Day to write a sitcom set in a place close to her heart - a popular video game. Five short-form episodes will eventually be combined into a half hour pilot with plans to hit the web this fall, and it's rumoured audience feedback will affect the creative direction for four more such half hours. Machinima, or machine cinema, is an example or artistic computer game modification where game tools are used to render CGI using real-time 3-D engines.

If there were royalty in the world of online web series, Felicia Day would be the Grand Duchess. Her first creation, The Guild, garnered almost two million views, higher than some of the popular shows on television. She also co starred alongside Neil Patrick Harris in the sitebuster Dr. Horrible's Sing A-Long Blog, created by Joss Whedon, creator of the television series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," which features Day in eight episodes.

With her natural talent tucked into clever, current, interesting and honest choices, there's no telling exactly what she'll reveal next. Day handed off a rough draft of The Guild: Season 2 to her co-producer within the past 24 hours.

Tubefilter was lucky enough to catch up with Felicia Day to talk about her new project.

Doctor Horrible certainly hit the internet with a bang yesterday - crashing the official site and taking a few other victims with it including your own blog. I'm guessing rebuilding your own website wasn't on the top of your list of things to do when the first Act was released?

Felicia Day: Well, it was a two tier approach for my site really, haha. I had found a new skin for the whole site before the weekend, and I was rushing to get it all converted before Dr. Horrible premiered, but unfortunately, the site got broken. I have a knack for doing that. Then, while I was trying to get it back up with the help of my webmaster IM buddy, the influx of traffic kicked it while it was down. Sad face. But, good thing it's up now. Seriously under construction but up. I definitely learned my lesson and will put it on lockdown mode when anything else ever premieres with my face in it, LOL.

Tubefilter: What's the new show about?

Felicia Day: The project I'm working on with Machinima.com is a sitcom set inside a game world. I'm still developing it, so that's all the detail I can go into.

FD: So will it remind us in any way of The Guild?

Day: I guess it's the reverse of The Guild in that it's a sitcom using game machinima and characters vs. The Guild being about gamers' real work lives.

TF: Who are the characters?

Day: I wanted to take some archetypal characters from sitcoms and place them in a fantastical world. I'm sad the sitcom form is no longer considered "viable" because it's what I gre up on and love, so I took it as a challenge to mix old and new together and create something funny and enjoyable for everyone, gamer and non-gamer.

TF: Is anyone coming back from The Guild?

Day: No this is a completely separate project. It's great to have both on my plate; I can bounce back and forth between them.

TF: Is the show cast?

Day: The actors are TBD. We're still in the script stages. Getting a good script is the most important thing in making anything. If you don't have that, you shouldn't bother with anything else. I'd love to have some real gamers do the voices.

When can we expect to see the first episode?

Day: The Machinima.com project will hopefully be out this fall.

TF: Is there anything you'd like to add?

Day: The Guild: Season 1 DVD is available on the site, so check it out if you're a fan!