| Second Skin | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Juan Carlos Piñeiro Escoriaza |
| Produced by | Peter Schieffelin Brauer & Victor M. Piñeiro III |
| Written by | Victor Piñeiro Escoriaza |
| Music by | David Gregory Byrne |
| Cinematography | Juan Carlos Piñeiro Escoriaza |
| Editing by | Juan Carlos Piñeiro Escoriaza |
| Release date(s) | March 7, 2008 DVD August 25, 2009 |
| Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | USA |
Second Skin is a 2008 American documentary film that follows the lives of seven people as they delve in to the world of MMORPGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games). The film was directed by Juan Carlos Piñeiro Escoriaza and produced by Victor Piñeiro Escoriaza and Peter Brauer.
Second Skin premiered to positive reviews and sold-out crowds at the South by Southwest film festival in 2008. It become the No. 1 movie on online streaming site Hulu.com, before completing a limited theatrical run. The film was released on DVD August 25th, 2009.[1]
Contents |
Second Skin examines people whose lives have been transformed by virtual worlds in online games such as World of Warcraft, Everquest, Everquest II and Second Life. The documentary follows a group of online gamers whose lives are intensely woven together inside and outside the virtual worlds, a couple whose lives have changed since meeting online, and an avid player whose life spins out of control due to his addiction to playing MMOs. It also presents disabled players who have been given voice and mobility in the virtual world and explores the controversial world of Chinese gold farming and presents astonishing facts about online gaming.
The film follows three distinct stories involving seven people:
Other players, doctors, and the founder of OLGA appear.
Second Skin became available on DVD on August 25, 2009.
Second Skin made its world premiere at the South By Southwest film festival, showcased as a Spotlight Premiere.[2]
Second Skin was available for free viewing on Hulu between August 7th and August 13th, 2009, courtesy of Honda.
The film has received critical acclaim from both the cinematic and gaming communities. When it premiered at the SXSW Film Festival in 2008, Ain’t It Cool News said that it was “by far the best documentary of the online gaming phenomenon known as MMORPGs out there. The filmmakers touch on just about every angle of these online games as they could."[3] The Austin Chronicle reported that "Mixing expert opinion with amazingly true testimonials, Second Skin might just be the most accurate and entertaining glimpse of the economy and psychology of technology since Tron."[4]
Online game magazine The Escapist sums the film up in this way: "Documentary nuts walk away having seen a window into yet another strange world. And gamers walk away feeling like they had seen their life story, with slick editing, a peppy soundtrack, and the seductive polish of an Apple commercial." Richard Garriot, creator of the successful Ultima and Tabula Rasa MMO’s, cited the film as "A superb documentary unveiling a digital subculture that has bridged the gaps of time, distance and humanity."[5]