Two new tutorials

I just made two new tutorials, one that shows how to enable Syphon in Modul8 and a second one that shows how to send track info (id3 data) as an image from an iTunes visualizer to a Syphon server so that you can display the track info in any Syphon enabled software. I’m using Modul8 and VDMX to display the track info. There is also a little walkthrough how the Quartz Composer visualizer is constructed.

How to enable Syphon input in Modul8

How to send track info from iTunes to Syphon

Akira Miyanaga for Volt 2011

Last year I went to Japan, traveling around Hokkaido and Kansai. The trip was a part of my current art project, as well as a chance to check out the local VJ-scene. For Japanese VJs Kansai is a good place to be. Osaka boosts club-visuals connected to the big city nightlife, and neighboring Kyoto offers a more artistic approach, with smaller bars and galleries. In Kyoto I met up with my college Akira Miyanaga during his exhibition at Kodama Gallery. VJ Akira has a master degree in fine art and teaches at Kyoto Seika University & Kyoto University of Art and Design. He is also the co-founder of Gura Studio, where several artists live and work. Located in an old sake storehouse, this is a great place for inspiration as well as avant-garde house parties. I invited Akira to Sweden and on the 11th of June he will be performing at Volt festivalen in Uppsala. This is Akira’s first visit to Europe, so I hope that we all make him feel super welcome!

Martin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lk6X0OpE90c

 

Interview with Akira

Martin: Please describe your VJ style. When and how you became a VJ?

Akira: I’d been studying video art at the university. Within that period, I’d been interested in experimental video work, animation whether artistic or commercial, motion graphics and so on. But musicians, mostly electronic and classical, also attracted me through their real-time effective performances. I didn’t have enough time to master playing instruments, and loved the moving image too much to switch to music. So naturally I started to focus on VJing. I usually VJ only with a Korg Kaptivator though I’ve been using a laptop and Motion Dive Tokyo or other VJ software. I always use clips made from live-action video footage, I mean heavily layered structure of high bit rate materials in the clips, and many video effects applied on, so inevitably they need very fast processing speed compared to simple flash videos, and often 3D computer graphics, regardless of compression format. The combination of laptop and software didn’t work well until few years ago and that’s why I use VJ hardware. Comparatively the Kaptivator have stability, and it enables me to intuitive VJ playing. But now I’m interested in VJing with software like Modul8, or Max/Msp/Jitter. It will be attractive to do multi-screen performance, and seek original ways to generate images.

Martin: Please describe the VJ culture in Japan. What is it like working as a VJ?

Akira: I think Japanese VJs have a high technical level. Fortunately we can get most devices and information. But few have solid concepts, cultural background, and originality. We have lower position than DJs, our visibility in the public is lacking. It can be said that the VJ culture is developing now. Some exciting approaches are done in the Japanese club scene like DOMMUN broadcasts real time performances on Ustream.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bg2CH8L019g

Martin: What do you think about the future of VJing in Japan?

Akira: The most important thing would be to find our original background, identity and approaches. That applies to every people living in this period. I’m not talking about technology. Too much relying on technology sometimes causes homogenization. The more homogenization go along, by globalization, the deeper we should know about ourselves or what our identity is. Then we would know what is worthwhile or lowlight.

Martin: Please suggest some Kansai clubs where you could find good visuals.

Akira: There are several clubs in Kansai but I like CLUB METRO the best. Not a big space but there is a mixture of pioneering atmosphere and the history as old-line club in Kyoto. In Osaka, I’m interested in CCO which is an art complex at the site of a shipyard.

Martin: What is your view on Swedish/European VJing?

Akira: Progressive. I respect the approach of AntiVJ. And I think visual mapping has great potential not only as decoration for city spaces but also restructuring people’s notion of landscape. It would be an exciting way of spreading the VJ culture among many people.

Links

Akira Miyanaga on MySpace

Mapping worshop at Arvika Music Camp


I (The Midi Thief) will be holding a video mapping workshop at the Arvika Music Camp. Saturday night I will be doing a live performance at the local Tiki Room with about 50% traditional projection and 50% video mapping. Frank “D-Nox & Beckers” Beckers and Tomasz “ATMOS” Balicki will handle the music.

Go to AMC’s Facebook page for info on how to participate (in Swedish).

Marco Tempest working on a low-cost high-speed camera

You might have heard about Marco Tempest before. He calls himself a technology magician and he is working with a big bunch of different digital media, techniques and new gizmos.

Here’s an interview with him if you like to know more about his ideas and passion for magic, illusion and technology.

I like his high-speed camera projects and he has done many nice videos under the category “two seconds”. I would really like to start doing visuals with this kind of high-speed cameras but the problem is that they are complicated to operate and on top of all very expensive to rent and especially to own.

But here’s where things gets exciting:

“Marco is working with Swiss maker AOS Technologies to develop a low-cost high-speed camera that could spread the use of this kind of photography. Marco has already been doing some beautiful work with the prototype model” – Peter Krin, Create Digital Motion.

I have contacted AOS Technologies to get more information about it but have not yet received an answer.

While waiting for more information there are some pictures on Marco’s Flickr and the “two second”-videos at his Vimeo account that are recorded with this prototype camera.

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/22727912[/vimeo]

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/16409050[/vimeo]

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/15966370[/vimeo]

I will come back to you when I have more information.

/Dan Nordgren, Startsladd

eMotions

Through the Syphon project’s Twitter I got aware of an interesting software called eMotion that just has been Syphon enabled. This means that you can bring in contents from other VJ software or send eMotions content to a Syphon enabled VJ program. eMotions declaration really spoke to me:

“eMotion is a tool for creating interactive motions of objects for live visual performances. Electronic motion seems often artificial, synthetic… well… in fact it does not convey any emotions. By defining new rules to create movements, eMotion is a new kind of software made for visual live animations.
As it is based on real world physics law, all motions seems natural, full of emphasis. It allows to manipulate different kind of objects like still image, videos, text, drawing. Targeted mainly for theatre/dance performances, it can be used in broader situations.”

As I’m interested in working more with dancers and interactivity this seems like the perfect tool. I did a quick test by bringing in eMotions output into Modul8 (using the QC Rehab trick) which worked perfectly. Bringing in Syphon content into eMotion from VDMX seemed to work fine. I’m ready to explore this software more and also investigate if it’s easy to bring this into video mapping projects.

The software is free (donation is encouraged if you decide to use it) and it’s still in Beta at the moment. Download eMotions at Macupdate.

Draw live with TagTool at SPX 2011

Cartoonist Tinet Elmgren and artist/illustrator/vj Ilan Katin (also known as the community man from Garagecube) will present TagTool at the Small Press Expo (SPX) 2011. TagTool is a DIY kit for drawing and animating live. Come and see how it works and try it out. Tinet has made an informative blog page where you can learn more about TagTool (in Swedish). We will put together an informal VJ Union gathering at SPX so watch out for upcoming blog post and Facebook event.

SPX is held at Kulturhuset, Stockholm may 6-8. TagTool will be shown on the 7th and the 8th of May in Studio 3 every hour for 15 minutes as paus entertainment. We will get back with a more specific schedule.

Small Press Expo
Liveteckning på SPX11
TagTool

Edit: Here’s the Facebook event for the VJ Union gathering: http://on.fb.me/kSZ83B

The new Twitch controller

Novation has just announced the Twitch controller that has been developed together with Serato. It’s a hybrid of a conventional DJ controller and controllers made for softwares like Ableton Live. It has also been inspired by the Monome and the controller hacking communities. It’s not in the stores yet so we will have to wait and see what people really thinks of it. The price tag is expected to be $599. Personally I think this could be an interesting controller for audiovisual DJs. Even for audiovisualists that uses Live but there are already so many controllers out there and I’m not sure this one will top them. The compactness of this controller really speaks to me and that it has an onboard sound card.

This was spotted on the Futuremusic blog and there is a nice longer piece about the history of this controller on CDM.