Create Analog Motion: Stroboscope Creation Animates Sequences, Syncs to Game Boy Music

The stroboscope, dating back to 1832, is likely the earliest animation device. This is motion graphics, 19th Century-style: rotating a series of images and sync the speed of the rotation so the observer sees motion. Modern hacker, bender, chiptune musician, and artist Gijs Gieskes has his own spin on the idea: he’s built an electronic stroboscope that can record sequences of motion and sync the animations to the clock of Game Boy musical app LSDJ. It’s a mind-bending combination of vintage animation techniques, 8-bit music, and VJing.

strobovj from Gijs on Vimeo.

Gijs’ description:

• The left knob sets the speed for the rotating plate.
• The strobe frequency, and the bike lamps light are set in sequence, recorded with the knob with the two push buttons below it.
• The cameras pan tilt servos, can be recorded in sequence, with the two knobs and the toggle switch below them.
• The next toggle switch sets the sequencer to 3/4 or 4/4.
• And the next toggle switch sets the sequencer to 32 or 64 or 128 steps if 4/4 is selected. Or 24 or 48 or 96 if 3/4 is selected.

For a little added Game Boy goodness, many of the animations are created in the low-fi Game Boy camera accessory Nintendo made for the device.

He tells CDM:

yes i have used it live, 3 times so far.. but the last time there were some technical problems ): the other concerts went fine (:
there is a small camera on the machine itself, its on the pan tilt servo, so that’s the camera i use. but because of the technical problem at the last concert, i will probably be replacing the camera with a none wireless camera.
i also experimented with putting just materials on it, and that looks quite nice also, just the wooden plate rotating already looks quite good.