Cartoons unashamed of coming from a computer

March 1, 2007 8:59 PM

Somewhere deep inside a fractal.... Bizarre, nonlogical, glitchy cartoons that are "not ashamed of coming out of a computer." Satire? Or serious attempt to point animators away from "cushioned, balletic movements" and traditional stories, and towards "an aesthetic which adopts the native idiosyncrasies and flaws of the software in which it was born"? (Note: the 'PLEASE DO NOT WATCH THESE CARTOONS IF YOU SUFFER FROM PHOTOSENSITIVE EPILEPSY' applies mainly to the flashing intros, forward through the first 25 seconds in each cartoon and there's other stuff.) [via]
posted by mediareport (22 comments total)

The dance club scene in the third one [mov] had me laughing out loud, for what that's worth. So did the Memory Bird near the end of the 2nd one.
posted by mediareport at 9:00 PM on March 1, 2007

What sort of chemicals is one supposed to be on to enjoy these?
posted by b1tr0t at 9:08 PM on March 1, 2007

Silicon, I'm guessing. :)
posted by mediareport at 9:09 PM on March 1, 2007 [1 favorite]

What sort of chemicals is one supposed to be on to enjoy these?
posted by b1tr0t

It seems to be the result of inhaling industrial solvents of some sort.

I used my 500th post for that?
posted by Burhanistan at 9:21 PM on March 1, 2007

"11/02/2007" ?

This was... kinda cool, actually. But the club scene makes me want to go play Rez. Which now looks much more coherent by comparison :)
posted by Foosnark at 9:50 PM on March 1, 2007

My cat just fainted.
Advise?
posted by Dizzy at 10:29 PM on March 1, 2007

"11/02/2007" ?

You've never seen how we write dates in the rest of the world, Foosnark?
posted by Jimbob at 10:34 PM on March 1, 2007

Administer 50cc of PaperRad followed by an enema of MilkyElephant and call me in the morning.
posted by tighttrousers at 10:36 PM on March 1, 2007

Mmmkay... No big whoop, but today I got into the Joost Beta and the first thing I watched was a Bullwinkle cartoon, so maybe I'm jaded. And am I the only person for whom this thing that flashed by in the opening to Ep.2 reminded me of the geography of Mainframe City on "Reboot"? Probably.
posted by wendell at 10:39 PM on March 1, 2007

tighttrousers---
I did what you said.
Then I caught him making a bong out of an old tuna can and wearing a very small beret.
He is in The Bad House now, but I hear him humming "Terrapin Station."
Thoughts?
posted by Dizzy at 11:03 PM on March 1, 2007

I got that stupid greenscreen quictime bug with the looping audio again, only this time I couldn't tell it from the actual video. This is like the video equivalent of nighttime college radio.
posted by BrotherCaine at 1:33 AM on March 2, 2007

I only hope its satire, because if they're serious, yeessshhh....
posted by sotonohito at 4:31 AM on March 2, 2007

Now we know how long it would take to make a cartoon in Videoscape on your Amiga 500, if you started in 1989.
posted by dansdata at 4:42 AM on March 2, 2007

This is your Amiga... This is your Amiga on drugs. Any questions?
posted by Rhomboid at 5:25 AM on March 2, 2007

"get your money for nothing, and your chicks for free..."
posted by vronsky at 7:08 AM on March 2, 2007

I find these brilliant, but hard to watch.

Animation made on computers is stuck in a "special effects" rut, and an obsession with realism has overshadowed the fine art possibilities of experimental animation made with any medium.

It's a challenge to recognize the beauty of cut-ins, aliased edges, and 8-bit color, but it's there.
posted by Chinese Jet Pilot at 9:11 AM on March 2, 2007

I love the third one.

"We are going to the night club, or else you are gay."
"Yes. Or else you are gay."

Classic.

I was going to make some kind of joke like "techno or German? Too hard to tell." But then I read the .rtf and saw it was signed "Berlin, January 2007." Nuff said.
posted by slogger at 9:40 AM on March 2, 2007

that is amazing.
posted by empath at 10:30 AM on March 2, 2007

Holy crap, these are awesome. I can't understand a thing they're saying, but apparently it's english... "would you like a glass?" - "yes I *%)#*(JSDKJJJsomething"
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 11:46 AM on March 2, 2007

I love these. Love 'em mediareport. Great post.
posted by vronsky at 11:49 AM on March 2, 2007

By the way, if you're looking for more computer animated fractal nonsense, there's always Grau, Gestalt, Flam3.com and Spotworks. The first three are serious, the last has a DJ soundtrack so .... at your own risk.
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 12:19 PM on March 2, 2007

nothing could have prepared me for the insane joy of watching ep3 of RGB XYZ. Thank you!
posted by namagomi at 6:49 PM on March 2, 2007