generative live video
animation generative realtime
We’re currently working on a real-time fluid simulation that catches the fascinating complexity and physics of drops and blobs and liquids.
As a real-time generative animation, Fluid Antagonists is a succession of generative scenes about the never-ending clash of two physically opponent forces. Liquid forms, heavy and light textures, amalgamation, extrusion and the tension of materiality, though mathematically precise processes, generate a narrative of affective behaviour.
An advanced version of the animation software, Liquid Type, lets the real-time simulation depict typefaces and symbols in a dynamic, fragile and ephemeral way.
The generative animation premiered on big facade projections at the Generativa(Outdoor) exhibition as part of Mostra SESC de Artes 08 city fair in Sao Paulo, Brazil, October 2008.
Liquid Type
In the Liquid Type simulation, the fluids are attracted by or steer away from a loaded type board. This effect is based on algorithms similar to the flow field simulations used in weather reports, to illustrate the motion of air masses and pressure areas.
An application of Liquid Type for a print use.
Short test videos made with the fluid antagonists system.
Short test videos made with the fluid antagonists system.
About the Process
Ink in water, paint in oil, lava lamps and snow globes – before developing Fluid Antagonists, we succumbed the age-old and timeless appeal of the amazing shapes two amalgamating liquids create.
In a fizzy photo session, Marcus experimented with water, oil, ink, paint, soy sauce and detergents and took a closer look. His photographs were our inspiration and point of reference to create a digital simulation of liquids with a look of its own.
See more of these photos on flickr.
The animation software is based on a particle simulation and uses metaballs to form the liquid shapes.
While only the blank particle simulation is computed on the CPU, the metaball shapes and the graphic surfaces are calculated on the graphics card / GPU.
This approach creates plastic shapes without a highly resource-intensive 3D drop simulation, and allows for the software to create high-res animations in real-time.
We used photographic textures in the OpenGL shaders to create a special non-realistic and vivid surface look.