Francis J Honey, Chief Engineer, Computer Image Corporation (CIC), Denver, Colorado
A NEW APPROACH TO COMPUTER ANIMATION IS OUTLINED. A NEAR OPTIMUM ARTIST-COMPUTER INTERFACE ALLOWING DIRECT ARTIST CONTROL OF IMAGERY AND MOTION IN REAL-TIME IS PROVIDED. THE INTERFACE ALLOWS THE ARTIST TO MAKE USE OF FAMILIAR TECHNIQUES AND LARGELY ELIMINATES EXPENSIVE AND TIME CONSUMING SOFTWARE PROGRAMMING. APPLICATION OF THE CIC COMPUTER TO THE PRODUCTION OF 16MM MOVIES AND T.V. ADVERTISING AND PROGRAM MATERIAL IS DESCRIBED. PRODUCTION TIME IS SIGNIFICANTLY LESS THAN THAT REQUIRED BY MORE COMMON TECHNIQUES AND THE APPROACH IS ECONOMICALLY COMPETITIVE WITH CONVENTIONAL ANIMATION.
IN THE PAST, COMPUTER ANIMATION HAS HAD A TENDENCY TO FOLLOW THE ATTITUDE: "I HAVE A LARGE COMPUTER INSTALLATION. HOW CAN I ANIMATE WITH IT?" THE RESULT HAS OFTEN BEEN A SLEDGEHAMMER APPROACH TO A DELICATE PROBLEM. TO BE SURE SUCH AN APPROACH CAN HAVE FAIRLY SATISFACTORY RESULTS WHEN THE DESIRED OUTPUT IS A REPRESENTATION OF WELL DEFINED MATHEMATICAL PROCESSES. BUT MORE IMPORTANT TO THIS PAPER IS THE CONSIDERATION OF COMPUTERS AS AN ART TOOL. IN THIS AREA CONVENTIONAL COMPUTERS MAY BE A LIABILITY. TO BEGIN WITH, ARTISTS ARE OFTEN AFRAID OF OR HOSTILE TO COMPUTERS. COMMUNICATION BETWEEN ARTISTS ON THE ONE HAND AND ENGINEERS AND MATHEMATICIANS ON THE OTHER IS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT AND OFTEN TOTALLY UNPRODUCTIVE. THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ARTISTS AND COMPUTERS CAN BE IMPROVED BY GOOD SOFTWARE BUT THIS STILL REQUIRES ART-SENSITIVE ENGINEERS AND MATHEMATICIANS TO CREATE THE SOFTWARE IN THE FIRST PLACE. FOR EFFECTIVE CREATION, THE ARTIST NEEDS MAXIMUM FLEXIBILITY, NEARLY INSTANTANEOUS RESPONSE TO HIS IDEAS, AND FREEDOM FROM PRESSURE CAUSED BY TIME LIMITS, UNFAMILIAR TOOLS AND A HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT.
COMPUTER IMAGE CORPORATION IS THE OUTGROWTH OF THE DREAMS OF AN ARTIST. IT ILLUSTRATES THE VALUE OF MAKING THE EFFORT TO BREAK DOWN THE COMMUNICATION BARRIERS BETWEEN ENGINEERS AND ARTISTS. THE ENGINEER MUST NOT SIMPLY SAY "WELL, THERE'S THE COMPUTER. IT WILL SOLVE ALL YOUR PROBLEMS. USE IT!" THE ENGINEER MUST DEVELOP A SENSITIVITY TO THE PROBLEMS OF ARTISTIC CREATION. HE MUST TRY TO OVERCOME HIS PREJUDICES AGAINST THE "UNRATIONAL" NATURE OF THE ARTIST. THE ENGINEER MUST REALIZE THAT THE BEAUTIFUL MACHINE THAT IS ALMOST A MISTRESS TO HIM CAN BE AN UGLY, FRIGHTENING MONSTER TO THE ARTIST. THE FORMATION OF COMPUTER IMAGE CORPORATION HAS PROVIDED AN EXTENSIVE INTERFACE BETWEEN ART AND ENGINEERING. THE RESULT IS AN EXCITING DEVELOPMENT IN THE USE OF COMPUTERS IN ART.
THERE ARE SIX MAJOR REQUIREMENTS THAT SHOULD BE MET BY A COMPUTER IF IT IS TO HAVE WIDE APPLICATION IN ARTISTIC CREATION. IT MUST:
THE IMPORTANCE OF REAL TIME OPERATIONS IS OFTEN OVERLOOKED OR MINIMIZED BY ENGINEERS. EFFECTIVE CREATION DEPENDS ON A FLUENT TWO-WAY COMMUNICATION BETWEEN ARTIST AND COMPUTER. THE ARTIST NEEDS THE ABILITY TO TRY AN IDEA AND IMMEDIATELY MODIFY THE RESULTS. THIS PROCESS CONTINUES UNTIL THE ARTIST HAS A SATISFYING CREATION. BOTH DRAWING AND ANIMATION MUST BE IN REAL-TIME. EXPERIENCE AT CIC HAS SHOWN THAT A PROPERLY DESIGNED COMPUTER CAN BE AN EFFECTIVE AID TO VISUALIZATION. THE COMPUTER CAN ALMOST BE CONSIDERED TO HAVE ARTISTIC ABILITY OF ITS OWN AND THE DIALOG BETWEEN COMPUTER AND ARTIST RESULTS IN A FINAL CREATION THAT LIKELY WAS BEYOND THE ORIGINAL CONCEPTION OF THE ARTIST.
REAL TIME CAPABILITY OFFERS OTHER REWARDS. SYNCHRONIZATION OF IMAGERY TO EXISTING SOUND TRACKS IS OFTEN REQUIRED. VISUAL MUSIC CONSISTING OF CHANGING PATTERNS ALTERED BY SOUND ARE EASILY CREATED IF THE COMPUTER OPERATES IN REAL TIME. LIP SYNC, THE SYNCHRONIZATION BETWEEN VOICE AND LIP MOVEMENTS IN CARTOONING IS AUTOMATIC IN THE CIC COMPUTER. FINALLY, ANIMATION OF CHARACTERS OR OTHER OBJECTS CAN BE CONTROLLED BY "ACTORS" RESPONDING TO SOUND TRACKS AND OBSERVING THE RESPONSE OF THE COMPUTER TO THEIR ACTIONS. THIS RESULTS IN HIGHLY EFFECTIVE ANIMATION. THE ARTIST MUST BE ABLE TO USE FAMILIAR TECHNIQUES IN A FAMILIAR OR AT LEAST FRIENDLY ENVIRONMENT. THERE ARE, TO BE SURE, ARTISTS WHO CAN ADAPT QUICKLY TO A COMPUTER BUT THE IDEA HERE IS TO MAKE THE ADAPTATION AS SMOOTH AND PAINLESS AS POSSIBLE, AND THEREBY ATTRACT EVEN THE MOST SKEPTIC ARTIST. THE CIC COMPUTER ALLOWS THE ARTIST TO CONTROL THE SHAPE AND SURFACE CHARACTERISTICS OF ARTICULATED STRUCTURES IN 3-SPACE BY SIMPLY SHADING ON PAPER WITH CHALK OR ON BOARD OR CANVAS WITH PAINT. THE TRANSITION FROM TENTATIVE CURIOSITY TO WILD ENTHUSIASM THAT OVERCOMES AN ARTIST AS HE WATCHES A DULL CYLINDER BECOME A BEAUTIFUL SCULPTURED FORM IN RESPONSE TO HIS SKETCHING IS ENOUGH TO MAKE EVEN THE MOST DIE HARD ENGINEER BELIEVE IN THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS CAPABILITY. "DO THAT WITH YOUR OLD FUNCTION GENERATOR!" IS A COMMON CHALLENGE AT CIC NOW THAT OUR ARTIST INPUT IS OPERATING.
CREATION OF ARTICULATED STRUCTURES IN 3-SPACE MAKES THE THIRD SYSTEM REQUIREMENT POSSIBLE. BY ROTATING THE STRUCTURE WHILE HE SHAPES IT, THE ARTIST LITERALLY SCULPTS A SOLID. WHEN THE SOLID IS SHAPED TO HIS LIKING THE ARTIST OR OTHERS CAN NOW DIRECT ATTENTION TO ANIMATION WITHOUT FURTHER CONCERN FOR SHAPING. THE ARTISTS SKETCH SERVES AS A MEMORY OF THE OBJECT SHAPE AND THE COMPUTER AUTOMATICALLY DRAWS THE PROPER VIEWS AS THE OBJECT IS ANIMATED.
ORGANIC SHAPES ARE PROVIDED BECAUSE OF THE NATURE OF THE ARTIST INPUT. ARTIST PRODUCED DRAWINGS TEND TO BE NATURALLY ORGANIC. IF INORGANIC OR MATHEMATICALLY PRECISE SHAPES ARE REQUIRED THESE ARE CREATED BY FUNCTION GENERATION IN THE CIC COMPUTER. ANIMATION CAN BE ACCOMPLISHED BY FUNCTION GENERATION OR SPECIAL INPUTS. AN EXAMPLE USED OFTEN AT CIC IS TO INSTRUMENT AN "ACTOR" WITH AN ANTHROPOMETRIC HARNESS. IN THIS WAY MANY INPUTS CAN BE CONTROLLED BY ONE MAN. ONE-TO-ONE CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN THE ACTOR AND AN ANIMATED CHARACTER IS POSSIBLE. THE ACTOR CAN EVEN SEE HIMSELF "ON-STAGE."
IN SPITE OF THE EMPHASIS ON ARTIST INPUT, THERE ARE MANY REQUIREMENTS FOR AN ANIMATION COMPUTER IN THE WORLDS OF MATH AND SCIENCE. AN EFFECTIVE ANIMATION COMPUTER MUST NOT IGNORE THE HUGE EXISTING COMPUTER WORLD. THE CIC COMPUTER HAS A NATURAL INTERFACE WITH THE DIGITAL WORLD. MANY LOW BANDWIDTH CHANNELS EXIST AT THE INPUT OF THE CIC COMPUTER. THESE CAN BE COMMUTATED AND FED BY A DIGITAL COMPUTER. THIS MODE OF OPERATION CAN BEST BE UNDERSTOOD BY GENERALIZING ON EXISTING GRAPHICS TERMINALS. PROBABLY THE SIMPLEST GRAPHICS TERMINAL CONSISTS OF A DIGITAL-TO-ANALOG CONVERTER (DAC) FEEDING THRU DEFLECTION AMPLIFIERS OF A CRT. POINTS ARE PLOTTED ONE AT A TIME UNTIL THE PICTURE IS COMPLETE. ADDITION OF INTEGRATORS BETWEEN THE DAC AND THE DISPLAY IMPROVES EFFICIENCY BY PERMITTING THE COMPUTER TO DESCRIBE SLOPES AND STARTING POINTS OF LINES. REPLACING THIS TRANSFORM BETWEEN DIGITAL COMPUTER AND CRT WITH THE CIC COMPUTER FURTHER SIMPLIFIES THE CALCULATIONS REQUIRED OF THE DIGITAL SYSTEM.
THE FINAL SYSTEM REQUIREMENT CONCERNS LOW COST OF OPERATION. HERE, WE ATTACK ANOTHER ENGINEERING MISCONCEPTION OF ARTISTS. IT IS NOT, "ALL FOR ART AND DAMN THE PROFIT!" MOST ARTISTS LOOKING FOR COMPUTER TECHNIQUES ARE ATTRACTED INITIALLY BY HOPES FOR DECREASED COSTS. THE REALIZATION THAT THEY CAN DO THINGS WITH A COMPUTER THAT THEY CAN'T WITHOUT COMES ONLY AFTER EXPERIENCE WITH THE COMPUTER. MANY OF OUR PROSPECTIVE CUSTOMERS ARE T.V. AND MOVIE PEOPLE. THESE PEOPLE ARE LOOKING FOR WAYS TO GET THEIR CREATIONS BEFORE THE PUBLIC CHEAPLY AND EFFECTIVELY. THEY WILL USE ANY TECHNIQUE THEY CAN. THEY COULDN'T CARE LESS HOW IT I5 DONE AS LONG AS THEY CAN USE IT QUICKLY AND EFFECTIVELY. AS A RESULT, IT IS NOT ENOUGH TO PROVIDE SOMETHING BETTER. IT MUST BE CHEAPER AND QUICKER. THE CIC COMPUTER IS A HYBRED UNIT. MOST CALCULATION IS ACCOMPLISHED IN AN ANALOG MANNER ALTHOUGH THE DRAWING IS NOT A RESULT OF SOLVING DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS. THE CONTROL AND TIMING IS ACCOMPLISHED BY DIGITAL CIRCUITRY. STORAGE AND EDITING OF ANIMATION WILL SHORTLY BE DONE DIGITALLY. A SINGLE ENGINEER IS USED TO PROGRAM THE COMPUTER AND HE USES MACHINE LANGUAGE. AS FAR AS THE USER IS CONCERNED THE ENGINEER BECOMES A SOFTWARE PROGRAM. AS A RESULT OF THIS PROGRAMMING APPROACH A GREAT DEAL OF SPEED AND FLEXIBILITY HAS BEEN ACHIEVED AT LOW COST. THE METHOD HAS SHOWN ITSELF COMPETITIVE WITH CONVENTIONAL ANIMATION AND IN MANY CASES THE APPROACH IS COMPETITIVE WITH LIVE ACTION.
THE CIC COMPUTER HAS BEEN USED IN THE COMMERCIALLY COMPETITIVE MARKET. THE MARKET REQUIREMENTS OF LOW-COST, RAPID PRODUCTION AND IMAGINATIVE CREATION ON DEMAND HAVE BEEN REALIZED BY CAREFUL USE OF OUR COMPUTER CONCEPT. AT THE PRESENT STATE OF DEVELOPMENT, THE CIC COMPUTER IS STRONGEST IN THE AREA OF RAPID, IMAGINATIVE IMAGE GENERATION. IT IS WEAKEST IN THE AREA OF TOTAL COMPLEX ANIMATED SEQUENCE AND UNABLE TO PRODUCE REAL-TIME COLOR COMPATIBLE WITH FILM INDUSTRY QUALITY. BY PROPER APPLICATION, THE LIMITATIONS HAVE BEEN TURNED TO ADVANTAGE.
THE CIC COMPUTER IS USED BY THE ARTIST-PRODUCER TO DESIGN AND CREATE IMAGERY. THE IMAGES ARE FILMED FROM THE CRT IN 16MM B&W 3X FILM. THE COMPUTER DRAWS AT CINE SPEED (24FPS) AND IS FILMED IN REAL-TIME BY A 16MM ARRIFLEX 16M OPERATING AT 24FPS. THE FINAL ANIMATED SEQUENCE IS COMPOSED BY A FILM EDITOR WORKING WITH THE ARTIST-PRODUCER. CONVENTIONAL MOVIE EDTING TECHNIQUES ARE USED AND COLOR IS IMPARTED BY PRINTING THE IMAGES IN A FILM PRINTER. TOTAL COLOR SEQUENCES ARE COMPOSED OF SEVERAL SINGLE COLOR PRINTS COMBINED OPTICALLY IN A PRINTER. THE PRODUCT OF THIS PROCEDURE IS COLOR COMPATIBLE WITH CONVENTIONAL FILM TECHNIQUES.
CONSIDERATION OF THE FOREGOING PARAGRAPH WILL CLARIFY THE CIC PHILOSOPHY OF COMPUTER ANIMATION. WE HAVE CREATED A UNIT WHICH IS EASY AND INEXPENSIVE TO USE AND FRIENDLY TO THE ARTIST, BUT AT THE SAME TIME WE ARE NOT HAMSTRUNG BY THE IDEA THAT THE COMPUTER SHOULD TURN ON AND GRIND OUT A FINISHED PRODUCT UNTOUCHED BY HUMAN HANDS. THE COMPUTER IS USED FOR THE JOB IT DOES BEST BUT THE ARTIST IS IN COMPLETE CONTROL AND USES ALL TECHNIQUES AT HIS COMMAND.
The three photographic images have not survived intact so alternative images depicting a similar view have been added.
