Mar. 25, 2015 | By Simon
Although additive manufacturing technologies have contributed to advancements in other ‘futuristic’ arenas including drones and virtual reality, some of the best applications for 3D printing have been in re-imagining age-old technologies with an updated twist.
Having run the successful VFX company EyelandArts, visual effects (VFX) artist Alexandrovich Friderici has expanded his skill set and is currently bringing the creative freedom given to him while working on films such as Pan's Labyrinth and Sin City to the tangible world thanks to 3D printing. Among the other projects he has been working on recently include 3D printed zoetropes.
A zoetrope is a pre-film animation device that produces an illusion of motion by displaying a sequence of movements made from either handdrawn images, photographs or 3D models similar to a flipbook. Although a zoetrope can be built in a variety of different ways, it primarily consists of a cylinder with slits cut vertically into the sides or in combination with a strobe light that enables the frames to alternate and give off the illusion of movement.
It was a DIY zoetrope kit of his own when he was a kid that inspired Friderici to enter the field of VFX and animation in the first place, so the fact that he has decided to create his own using 3D printing brings his story full-circle.
To create his zoetropes, Friderici uses Luxology MODO (which coincidentally be used both for VFX and create 3D printable models). His first zoetrope, which was designed to be used as a proof-of-concept, is his Venetian Plague Doctor model whose personality in the animation is “to be a sort of talisman to ward off ailments and dark curses,” said Friderici in an interview with 3Ders.
Using his Form 1+ SLA 3D printer from FormLabs, Friderici notes that each of the prototypes were able to be printed in less than four hour at .1mm resolution. As a matter of fact, he says that it took far longer to make his way around the model and separate the supports and organize his parts than it did to actually print them.
“The first version was a handheld one you spin with your hand. It works quite well but with the recent uptick in record player sales, I added a record player-friendly version which keeps a constant speed and looks really great,” added Friderici. “Alternatively I added a record player adapter for the handheld version. Both the handle and adapter can be downloaded and printed at home.”
Currently, Friderici is selling his zoetrope and other 3D printable designs on Shapeways. Rather than the traditional zoetrope method of using a cylinder with vertical slits cut however, he has updated the zoetrope for the iPhone generation and has designed it so that it is easy to spin either in your hand or with the provided record player adapter in conjunction with an iPhone app that provides a strobe light effect.
As for why he wants to share his zoetrope models with the world, the answer is simple:
“I wanted everyone to enjoy (animation) with their own eyes without any special equipment or (without it being) too expensive to print.”
Posted in 3D Printing Applications
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