Minecraft –Create the Setting
Submission deadline delivered by Thursday, October 8
Contestant is defined as an individual
Grade groups 6-8, 9-12
Awards will be presented on Saturday October 24 in The Winston School Gymnasium
Purpose: Recreate a fictional or historical setting in Minecraft
Background:
When you read a story or learn about an historic event, the smallest details can be the most important. Through a recreation of the scene in a story or event you gain great insight and a new perspective to what happened.
Competition & Rules:
Using Minecraft as your medium – create the setting from a fictional story or a famous historical event. What inspires you? Did you love the story Treasure Island? Maybe you are in awe of bravery displayed by the Western Allied forces during the storming of Normandy in World War II. Use your imagination to create this setting in Minecraft.
On a separate paper you will need to list out the details you are creating and how they relate to the story or event.
How to submit your artwork:
Your electronic work along with your entry form and list of details in the scene should be emailed to
Several options for your art submission:
1)Utilize screen capture software to create either a still frame picture or short video (maximum of 90 seconds).
2)Screen shots can be printed and delivered or mailed (post marked no later than October 6)
3)Video your screen with your iPhone – the competition is to evaluate your Minecraft art – not your cinematography skills.
4)Video in a .mpeg4 format can be emailed directly or upload your video to Youtube and submit the link.
Audio/voice over is not necessary, but it is allowed. Be sure to tell us what scene you are creating (e.g. title of book and chapter or scene).
Scoring:
80 points - Number of unique details tied to event or story
30 points - Workmanship
20 points - Originality
20 points –Creativity
Additional information – tutorial on how to create a Minecraft video:
The PC version of Minecraft is the most popular version of the game. To record your PC Minecraft gameplay you simply need screen capture software. Below are some of the most popular ones.
Fraps
Bandicam
DXTory
Hypercam(Free)
Screen capture software is often pay-to-use. However, these programs usually offer a trial version so you can test it out and see how it performs. Trial software either has an expiry date or includes a watermark (a logo etched onto your videos).
Unfortunately, recording smooth, high FPS (Frames per Second) Minecraft gameplay really bogs down your system. You'll want a high-powered machine with a lot of ram to get really good quality videos. If your videos stutter, try turning down the settings within Minecraft. Reducing your view distance is a good place to start, as that is a power hog.
RECORDING VOICES
Most screen capture software contains voice capture software also. You'll simply need a microphone to record your voice. Microphones are cheap, and many laptops already have them built-in.
Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition
Recording Minecraft gameplay on your Xbox is a lot trickier than its PC counterpart. Rather than simply downloading software to record your screen, you'll need external hardware to capture your footage. These are called Capture Cards and are available in a variety of formats. Below are some popular capture cards.
Elgato Game Capture HD
BlackMagic Intensity Pro
Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition
Roxio Game Capture HD Pro
Roxio Game Capture($65 - $99)
Some capture cards, like the BlackMagic Intensity Pro, are internal and require a powerful computer to install them into. Many capture cards these days are external, though, and simply require an open USB port.
There are many different brands and models of capture cards on the market, so be sure to do your research before making a purchasing decision.
RECORDING VOICES
Like recording footage on a console, recording voices is also more difficult than on a PC.
To record your own voice, you'll need an external microphone. This microphone can be hooked up to your PC or standalone. There is no way to record your voice within the Xbox software.
To record the voices of others, you need to change some settings on your console. Follow these steps to set voices to play through your speakers.
Press the Guide button.
Go to the "System" tab on the right.
Press "Preferences".
Go to Voice and change the setting to either "Play through speakers" or "Play through both". The "Play through both" setting will make other voices come through both your TV and your headset. This is the recommended setting to play with other and record at the same time.
By changing this setting, the voices of other players will now come through the same channels as the in-game audio. The game audio can sometimes overpower voices, so be sure to change the volume levels of voices and game volume within that same menu. Your capture card will now capture the voices of other players along with in game audio.
Editing Your Footage
If you want, you can simply upload your captured footage as-is to YouTube or another video upload site, but chances are you'll want to do a bit of tweaking here and there to get the perfect end product. Here's the bad news: All great video editing software comes at a price. That doesn't mean there aren't cheaper alternatives, though. Do some investigation into the following software to see what's right for you.
Sony Vegas Pro
Windows Movie Maker(Free)
Final Cut Pro
Adobe Premiere
Uploading Your Footage
YouTube is the most popular video site on the net, so naturally that's the place to start.
YouTube supports a variety of video formats, including
.MOV
.MPEG4
.AVI
.WMV
.MPEGPS
.FLV
3GPP
WebM