Biography

Michael Justin "Burnie" Burns (born 1973) is an filmmaker, actor, writer, and director from Austin, Texas. His most notable contributions have been in machinima, although he has also worked with live-action. In April 2003, Burns, along with several of his friends, created the Internet machinima series Red vs. Blue: The Blood Gulch Chronicles. Filmed using the video games Halo, Halo 2, Halo 3, and Halo: Reach. Red vs. Blue was quickly acclaimed for its humor and originality, eventually elevating Burns to the status of an Internet celebrity. Such visibility allowed him to create one of the few successful machinima film-houses in the industry, Rooster Teeth Productions. Burns even attracted the attention of video game giant Electronic Arts, who asked him to create a promotional series using their new game, The Sims 2. The result, The Strangerhood, has received mixed reviews. Burns also premiered P.A.N.I.C.S., a mini-series that utilizes the F.E.A.R. game engine. He has appeared at several film festivals, including Sundance and The Sydney Film Festival. He currently lives in Scotland, United Kingdom, with his wife (Ashley Burns), son, and daughter.