Forget needing a million-pound budget and a year-long sabatical - Electronic Arts has launched a online competition to help you make a film from the comfort of your own home.
The Sims Shorts competition aims to encourage the UK public to embrace a growing online phenomenon and the latest revolution in independent filmmaking - machinima, a genre which combines filmmaking, animation and game development, allowing users to shoot a film using their PC.
Launching with Vue Cinemas, The Sims Shorts competition invites players to make a two and a half minute minute short film using The Sims game as their platform.
Players are invited to take the director's chair and use their PC as their camera, the other players as actors and their friends as the scriptwriters.
A spokesman said: "With an easy to use drag and drop option, even the most technically innocent can create their very own blockbuster and the opportunity to see it on the big screen."
The search for The Sims Shorts winner began today with a call to action by comedians Mathew Horne and Ben Willbond who will be premiering their first machinima film, When Romantic Things Happen for No Apparent Reason and Everyone is Happy at the End.
They said: "This short Machinima film takes a broad swipe at the standard issue romantic comedies that seem to pop up in our cinemas from time to time."
"As it's being shown primarily in cinemas before the main feature, we wanted to create a short film that poses as a film trailer.
"When Romantic Things... spoofs the kind of film trailer that divulges all the film's secrets in one short sitting - the kind of film trailer where you come away thinking, 'Hmm, there really is no point me going to see that film now. I know EXACTLY what happens and what to expect'.
"Over and above that we thought that it was a nice way to introduce this style of animation to a cinema crowd, to demonstrate just how much is possible with Machinima."
EA have partnered with Vue cinemas to bring When Romantic Things Happen for No Apparent Reason and Everyone is Happy at the End to screens across the country throughout November and December. The film will also be available for download at www.simsshorts.com and machinima site www.roosterteeth.com.
The Sims Shorts will be judged by a panel of judges including Perrier Award-winning comedian Ben Willbond.
The winner of The Sims Shorts will have their film shown throughout December in 58 Vue cinemas across the country alongside some of the biggest Christmas cinema blockbusters. The winner will also win a cash prize of £1000 and will have their Short available for download on www.simsshorts.com.
