What does "machinima" mean?

The rendering of computer-generated imagery using low-end (real time) 3D engines such as those found in video games, as opposed to the high-end, complex 3D engines used by professionals.

Machinima

noun

noun ·4 syllables ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1
The rendering of computer-generated imagery using low-end (real time) 3D engines such as those found in video games, as opposed to the high-end, complex 3D engines used by professionals. countable, uncountable
"Fiona's been off at some kind of anime camp in New Jersey – Quake movies and machinima workshops, Japanese staff who claim not to know a word of English beyond ‘awesome’ and ‘sucks’, which for a vast range of human endeavor, actually, is more than enough…"
2
The genre of films created by such techniques. uncountable

Example

More examples

"Fiona's been off at some kind of anime camp in New Jersey – Quake movies and machinima workshops, Japanese staff who claim not to know a word of English beyond ‘awesome’ and ‘sucks’, which for a vast range of human endeavor, actually, is more than enough…"

Etymology

Blend of machine + cinema.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.