Cause and effect

The following animated images provides an insight of the research that is happening right now to understand how springiness and bounciness can be translated though animation. The work is a hybrid process between physics and key frame animation.  None of the small animated images will have sounds yet as this will be a different research, and process at a later phase in the production of the film. Questions like the behavior of unbaked spring steel which has been brought in motion, through micro servos, fitted with a small lightweight head, that functions as both anthropomorphic element in its appearance, but also as micro volume to hit a mini sound board. This latter are the micro instruments of the musicians. These instruments will also be affected by the motions created on the musicians. Cause and effect are inherently important in creating a simulated digital reality, where a synergy between the musicians and their instruments will be created, and later enforced through the additional element of sound. We can not experience them through tangibility in this digital world, but strictly through audio, visual  and motion through time.

On this new post in a blog format, you can follow the development of the works that i am producing. Starting with the musicians part II, digital realities. Which is a second work derived from a physical, interactive art installation made in 2017. Here the previously created world turns completely digital and provides you with an insight in the making methodology and the technology behind this project. It is still a WIP (Work in Progress) and expected to result in a animated film targeted to be finished approximately in September 2018. Which has been delayed with almost a year mostly caused by to the unforeseen amount of extra work this animation generated. More than 700 objects have been modeled for this work, and some are extremely complex. The full project has been targeted to be made in open source software, like Blender, Krita, Gimp, Inkscape, Ardour, Natron and others.

Above a double screenshot of the two monitors i use to produce the work in Blender.

NOTE: A small overview, about the schedule and some previous written ideas. As a note, all this material, as it is a WIP, will be kept sketchy and as a draft of information. Sometimes things will be double mentioned, and sometimes information might change in due process or even contradict earlier mentioned information. I will keep it as clean and organized as possible, but expect it to become soon quite messy. I have no idea where this coule lead to, and will give it a try, so please bear with me,

The work “the Musicians” made and exhibited in 2017, will get a second round. It existed in the physical realm and lived only because of the integrated code which controlled the movements as well the reactions of the various components, called musicians. In that sense the musicians were a hybrid installation between the physical material realm and the digital electronic, or virtual realm. Each existence has its limitations, and the physical realm, although fully tangible and able to be experienced in the same reality as we (humans) move and exist in. A question came to mind if this limitation could be bypassed. Could we cheat reality by rebuilding reality, but now fully digital. Could we improve reality, striving a non-tangible, non-material perfection, which can exist and function disconnected from location and time. These and other questions will be investigated through this work.

Target is to create at first an animation which will be hybrid digital and filmed footage. The second part will be a game environment, which will be fully responsive to the digital visitor, presented, when finished at this side, through the internet. Making the exhibition accessible from everywhere by everyone. Thus the musicians will lose their physical matter (which they are stored in a box at this moment), but will gain a digital life.

The work Progress

• The Digital model

The digital model is finished somewhere in the end of June 2018, and there are several options to output them in different renders later for the animation. What follows is a small experiment in different outputs. The full color is a fully rendered version, which uses material textures and full light paths tracing, global illumination and soft shadows. The light caustics are semi simulated to safe time and memory in the final render.

• Animating the digital model. The next stage will be a period of animating all the moveable components, synchronizing the used code from the physical sculpture.
• Building Camera trajectories, and syncing the sound and animations with those trajectories.
• Rendering the camera tracks
• Editing the new footage and the existing film footage of the sculpture into a short movie
• Publish the small movie

Stage two: The digital interactive game environment

Rebuilding the material shaders on the model corresponding to the game engine to use. There will be a period of experimenting through trial and error. Expected period to run the game environment will be earliest in 2019.

More will follow.

For questions don’t hesitate to drop me a line in the contact form, and i will get fast back at you.