Friday, November 10, 2006

The 'SmallGantic' world of Bent Image Labs

A gigantic world opened up for me when I pulled back the tiny curtains of Bent Image Labs. Although FEED has beaten me to the autopsy there is still plenty of flesh for me to pick at. Starting with the morsel of a video, Harrowdown Hill, for Thom Yorke that uses 'SmallGantic' technology and shows off the pixelation wizardry of David Russo. You may have been fortunate enough to have seen David Russo's short film, Pan with Us, in last year's Animation Show. If not, check out this snippet of his first short, Populi (via AWN) for a glipse of his time-lapsed Midas touch (or maybe I should say Vulcan touch). If you are in the New York area, you have a chance to go see his latest film, I am Not Van Gogh @ the Black Maria Film Festival (MoMA), plus many other experimental investigations!! Keep your eye on the bird and guess which hand it is in.
Now that David has been sliced open and left exposed, let's turn our attention to the scalpels behind Bent Image Labs. First, let's show the medical wonders that have already made it onto the curiosity shelves of this bunny show: Pascal Campion and the Londons. The other lab mates include the moving image alchemy of Chel White, David Daniel, Kazuo Ohno, Paul Harrod, Jim Clark, Robin Willis and Lisa Yu. You can view a sample of each of their work under the 'Directors Specimen' or Option 2 on the Bent labs site. I especially liked Lisa Yu's "Vessel Wrestling" short film but check them all out. You can also see their latest commercial 'Lux' and one that I saw at this year's OIAF, Ashtraymouth.com! Also, see why they are regularly mentioned in respectable scientific journals here, here and especially here! So, shrink down for the cosmetic testing of Bent Image Labs. I'll even put the rocking chair by the fireplace for you. I can't go without mentioning our friend Toni Hafkenscheid too!

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