Director of the gaming documentary movie, The Raid, gives us the scoop.
We recently had a chance to chat with Kevin Michael Johnson about his film. Read on for our behind-the-scenes info on the making of this intriguing documentary that's about to have its first public screening during BlizzCon 2010.
MOG: Your documentary film about World of Warcraft guilds is a fantastic idea. What made you decide that this type of film was needed in the industry?
Kevin: Well...let me say real quick, right off the top, that this film is not specifically intended to be “about World of Warcraft guilds” as much as it is attempting to speak about the experience of gamers involved in committed, collaborative gaming experiences like guilds that raid in WoW. I happened to choose a WoW guild as the specific focus of this film because of my personal history with the game; that being said, there are plenty of other games out there, as you guys certainly know, that have similar collaborative gaming efforts going on.
I have had the desire to make this film in my head for the past two and a half years. The idea hit me when I was in the middle of my first (and only) hard-core raiding experience with a guild playing World of Warcraft. My family and friends would often question me about what I was doing, why I was spending so much time on my computer with this “game.” I kept finding myself saying, “Well...it’s hard to explain...” You see, I wasn’t much of a gamer prior to my experiences with MMO’s like WoW, so my real life relationships had a hard time comprehending why I would value and prioritize the effort the way that I was. This was totally understandable to me because the individuals questioning my experiences thought I was playing a “video game,” one that you could pause and come back to at your leisure. They had no concept of the twenty-four other lives on the other end of the internet. Even when I would take the time to try and explain the social nature of the experience, the collaboration, the coordination, and the feeling of heroism that accompanied the effort, I could see they still held some sense of cock-eyed questioning over the matter. It was as if they couldn’t believe what I was saying. So...I thought the best way to handle the confusion would be to capture the whole thing in a film and invite people to come along.
MOG: Can you tell us a little more about the focus of the film and what we can expect to see?
Kevin: The backbone of the film, as it stands, follows the progression of Months Behind, a guild on the Eredar (U.S) server of World of Warcraft, as they make their way through heroic Icecrown Citadel. We watch as they make their first pull and follow them until their final attempt against the Lich King. Along the way, the film attempts to have a greater dialogue on issues surrounding the experience of virtual worlds in both culture and business. We have also made a concerted effort with educating our audience on how these experiences work, as we are intending the film to accessible to anyone. As a director, I’ve also been consumed with questions like: What are the value of these virtual relationships? Where as a culture do we begin to place and look at such human connections? What is the meaning and value of virtual achievements like “killing the Lich King”, and how should we look at that? What will guilds look like in the future of business and politics? The list goes on and on...
MOG: How many hours did you put into creating the film?
Kevin: Well...we’re still working on it, actually. Let me just say that since December of 2009 I have been pouring almost 100% of my life into the work. I have recorded three months of progression with Months Behind (on webcams, in-game, and on audio), traveled to ten different states for one-on-one interviews, and have over 18 TB of video files on my hands. So...I guess the best answer to how many hours would be “a lot and counting” :).
MOG: After working on the film did it make you want to play World of Warcraft (or MMO games in general) more or less?
Kevin: Wow, great question. Let me just say I am in love with the nuances of MMO gaming: growing, strengthening and gearing a character in a persistent, exciting, and epic environment of adventure. That concept is like the stuff of childhood dreaming. Then, when you throw in a community of other real-life people standing behind their characters, ready to work together to conquer “evil” it’s like a dream on steroids, cause it exists in the real-world, in a weird way. So...yea, I love the idea of playing MMO’s and would love to have the time to do so more in the future. Hidden behind this question, however, is a host of a thousand others regarding how we as a culture should prioritize these types of experiences as they stack up against flesh and blood. Now that’s where my intrigue as an observer gets piqued to the utmost because I think we, as a people, are still trying to figure out how to process these matters. We wonder where the value is and how we can measure it.
MOG: Many people have heard all kinds of stories about gamers who have played for more than 24 hours straight without sleeping and in some cases without eating. While filming this documentary did you encounter any wild stories or witness anything out of the ordinary?
Kevin: Yea, it’s a bit unfortunate that the media surrounding these experiences has been so astoundingly negative. I have to be honest and say that I encountered very little of this, directly, in my work on the film. That being said, there are questions I would love to ask of people’s families and friends, opinions I’d like to have in order to balance what I have acquired from the direct perspective of the gamers involved. Unfortunately, I was not in a place to acquire those kinds of opinions this go-around. The only negative thing I can say has to do with the fact that I was relying on the members of Months Behind to do a lot of the film footwork for me: starting/stopping their webcams, sending me footage, responding to my many attempts to meet in-game, scheduling raids for cinematic captures, etc. That was a challenge, to say the least. But, again, it’s understandable given the fact that the subjects of a documentary film aren’t normally asked to do the filming. It’s hard to expect people who aren’t the filmmakers to make the film.
MOG: We’ve heard that you’re currently looking for companies to sponsor the film to take it to the next level. Can you tell us a little more about the sponsorship situation and how gamers can be involved in some way?
Kevin: Absolutely. Ever since the beginning of this project’s journey the community has risen to give it life. I have been astounded by that fact, honestly. I have always intended this film’s first iteration to be a foretaste of a larger, full-length endeavor that would be handled with a normal feature-documentary budget. In order to make that happen, I have to prove myself to potentially interested parties. That’s what this current film is attempting to accomplish. That being said, we are currently looking for companies interested in being a part of the film’s upcoming screening on October 23rd.
MOG: I heard that you will be debuting the film during BlizzCon this year. Can you tell us about the film event?
Kevin: For sure. The event is shaping up to be a rather exciting evening. We will be holding it at the House of Blues in Anaheim, CA after the conclusion of this years BlizzCon. It will be an evening filled with the WoW-press and folks who’ve won tickets by participating in contests throughout the blogosphere. If you want you can find a list of all participating sites and podcasts on our website (http://www.jointheraid.com). The film will be screened here for the first time, and will be seeking feedback and interest in how we move it into the future. Also, YouTube sensation, Big Daddy, will be there spinning his takes on WoW music throughout the night and, I’m sure, making it an enjoyable evening for all who come. As I was saying earlier, we are looking for companies interested in joining us for the occasion as sponsors; so, if there are individuals who would like to get their businesses out in the public this could be a great opportunity to do that.
MOG: After this film’s production is finished, what are your next plans for another film?
Kevin: I’d love to see this idea fully expressed in a feature length film. We’ll see how it all pans out, but that would be my plan if all goes well.
Thank you Kevin! For more information on The Raid movie, go to: JoinTheRaid.com
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