The master of motion Chris Bjerre and I were approached by Motion Plus Design to create an experimental film using tools provided by Adobe, Dropbox and Maxon.  After a month of work, we completed our film 'Permutations,' which is based on the process that many artists go through as they try different variations of media to discover their own creative identity.  The piece alternates between different permutations of live action, 3D and 2D techniques.  As each scene displays a variation of media, an artists body is slowly revealed.  

We had the honor of working with Wynn Padula for cinematography and Megan Low as our model.  We also were very lucky to have the support of Bonfire Labs for our live action shoot.  The music was composed by yours truly using Ableton Live.  Special thanks to our friends Kook & Ronan for making this project happen and to our sponsors for putting their trust in our vision.
 

The first scene of our film features a finger print, representing the concept of identity.  The design was built in adobe illustrator and laser cut at TheShop.build in San Francisco.  We then illuminated the structure with a laser projector and added particles in After Effects.

The second scene focuses on a tactile approach to represent the artists hand forming.  We created this scene by animating a 3D sequence, then printing every frame.  We then painted each frame with ink and white acrylic paint, which gave it an organic feeling.  

Our third scene focuses on the full arm growing in an organic style.  We decided to shoot microscopic video of an LCD screen, which we used as video textures on our 3D model.  We then used After Effects to mirror the footage and create mandala-style patterns.

For this scene we used an MRI scan and stacked the layers in cinema 4D.  We then used octane scatter objects to create a point cloud effect based on the luminance channels of the scan.  Our UI system was built in illustrator and then stacked using the same technique as the scans.

This scene involved a lot of experimentation with UV makeup and camera settings.  We used fishnets as a stencil to make UV skin patterns on our model Megan Low.  We then set up blacklights to make the patterns pulse.  Wynn Padula was nice enough to collaborate with us on his Red camera, which allowed us to work with 8K footage and his in-camera color settings.  Bonfire Labs allowed us to use their stage space, which gave us ample room to try a few different looks.  A few unused takes include our model in a black leather suit and with laser patterns reflecting on her face.  Chris took the live action footage and gave it a new layer of glass spheres swirling around the model.

The final title reveal was laser cut at The Shop.Build from ribbed acrylic.  We then used a laser to illuminate the letterforms.  As the letters were bounced on a flexible panel, they passed in and out of the laser path, which made them appear to flicker.  

Created by: Chris Bjerre & Peter Clark
Curated by: Motion Plus Design
Made with: Adobe, Maxon and Dropbox
Music: Enternull
Cinematography: Wynn Padula
Special Thanks: Megan Low & Bonfire Labs