Burnie Burns
A digital storytelling pioneer who turned video game graphics into a global entertainment company and a new filmmaking language.
Born 1973 (age 53)·American actor·Birthday: January 18·Generation X
Biography
Burnie Burns, a Texas native, didn't just join the early internet—he helped build its culture. In the early 2000s, alongside friends, he co-founded Rooster Teeth, a company that began in a spare bedroom and grew into a multimedia empire. His seminal creation, the machinima series 'Red vs. Blue,' used the engine of the video game 'Halo' to tell a witty, serialized sci-fi comedy, effectively inventing a new genre for a generation. Burns's voice—both literally as a performer and figuratively as a creative visionary—defined the company's authentic, community-driven ethos. He transitioned from writing and voicing characters to leading as CEO, steering Rooster Teeth into animation, live-action, and pioneering online video distribution and podcasting long before it was standard. His work demonstrated that compelling stories could be told with any tool available, democratizing filmmaking and fostering a direct, unfiltered connection with a global audience.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Burnie was born in 1973, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Burnie Was Born
The biggest hits of 1973
#1 Movie
The Exorcist
Best Picture
The Sting
#1 TV Show
All in the Family
Burnie's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1973Born
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1978Started school
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1986Became a teenager
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
1989Could drive
Berlin Wall falls; Tiananmen Square protests
Gas: $1.00/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Look Away" — ChicagoBest Picture: Driving Miss Daisy
1991Could vote
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
1994Turned 21
Nelson Mandela elected president of South Africa
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $90,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"The Sign" — Ace of BaseBest Picture: Forrest Gump
2003Turned 30
US invades Iraq; Human Genome Project completed
Gas: $1.59/galHome: $146,000Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"In Da Club" — 50 CentBest Picture: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
2013Turned 40
Edward Snowden reveals NSA surveillance programs
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $152,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Thrift Shop" — Macklemore & Ryan LewisBest Picture: 12 Years a Slave
2023Turned 50
ChatGPT goes mainstream; Israel-Hamas war begins
Gas: $3.52/galHome: $361,600Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Flowers" — Miley CyrusBest Picture: Oppenheimer
2026Age 53 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Co-founded Rooster Teeth Productions, a pioneering digital media and entertainment company.
- Created and wrote the groundbreaking machinima series 'Red vs. Blue,' one of the longest-running web series.
- Helped pioneer direct-to-consumer content distribution and community building in the early internet era.
Did You Know?
His real first name is Michael; 'Burnie' is a childhood nickname that stuck.
He voiced the character of Church, the cynical AI, in 'Red vs. Blue.'
He is an instrument-rated private pilot and often documented his flying adventures.
“The Internet is the first thing that humanity has built that humanity doesn't understand, the largest experiment in anarchy that we have ever had.”
