Getting back to Projectors

Now that I can let my website rest for a bit (although I haven't finished the phone app yet), I'm back to the projectors. It's time to work in Jitter. To the left is a simple patch, although it took me forever to get the right hi (human interface) element correct. It was simpler than my mind wanted to make it tonight. In any case, the scrolling mechanism is working through Jitter. Next thing I need to do is tweak the video a bit so it projects at the correct size and ratio.

I think I'll get some sleep though before starting the next phase. Tomorrow is a full day of reconstructing the second projector and  getting the videos for the first projector tweaked for a demo. These projectors and the videos going through them need to be done this week!

One Projector Done - One to Go

At last! The Lindstrom projector is finished and it works fabulously.  One thing I might want to do though is secure the metal that holds the reels and the crank to the back compartment. We had to cut away on part of the metal that anchored the two areas together and now I can see the metal flexing a little bit when I crank. I think it'll be a simple fix, but for all intents and purposes, this projector is ready to go!

And now for the second projector, the Keystone. The construction will be similar, but now I need to decide if I make a base or situate the mouse circuit board inside the back compartment.

This newer model (newer in comparison to the other two - this one is probably late 1920s) will have to wait till the next project. The power cable needs to be replaced. It's not a handcrank, but it still has that feel about it. I could probably place a pico projector in the back compartment and deal with Jitter patches to manipulate the video footage in different ways.  For now though, it's going to sit in a box.

Wednesday's Progress

Only one thing to do on the projector tonight - affix the mouse circuit board to the bottom of the projector and then wait for it to set. Tomorrow while it's still upside down, I'll visit Andy again to work on the other projector. With any luck I'll have both the projectors finished really soon!

The re-design of my website should also be finished soon. I just need to load photos and write up an artistic statement. There are some things I'd like to work on still, but I need to give it a rest and go on to other things like, say... choreography.

Tuesday Evening - Further Progress

Sunday night David and I took some measurements and then headed to Lowes to by some hardware. I decided to add feet that would allow enough room for the mouse board underneath the projector. I opted not to build a wooden base because 1) I don't have time to make the kind of wooden base I would like, 2) I don't want to spend a ton of money, 3) I want to have relatively easy access to the mouse board should I need it later, and 4) I kind of like the idea of possibly seeing someone trying to peek to see where the flexible wire cable leads.

In my package of hardware, I had two little rubber o-rings. Yay! Now, the reels won't fly off! (Thanks for this cool reel, Jean Pitman!)

David has a much steadier hand than I, so he had the honor of drilling through the metal and also the rubber feet. He countersunk the rubber feet so the screws wouldn't stick out the ends. When I install this projector at Urban Arts Space, I'll get longer screws that will also go through the top of the cabinet on which the projector will sit. The projector is simply not heavy enough not to be mounted.

The last task tonight for this project (because I also need to work on the website re-design) was using epoxy to affix the flexible wire cable to the crank shaft. I'll leave it alone to set. It's so tempting to test it out and to get this all done tonight, but I'll wait...

Hand-crank Projector Progress - Lindstrom

I'm getting further along with the reconstruction/re-imagining of the hand-crank projectors. Thanks to Andy Hensler at the Wexner Center, I'm learning a lot about these projectors and the mechanics of how to turn an antique hand-crank film projector into a digital video projector. Although my approach isn't as "orthodox" as Andy would prefer, I think we're finding some good solutions. For example, I had to resort to buying the projectors on ebay. I can only see so much in the pictures that the sellers provide. I made it part of the project to do the best I could with what I could get. I don't have all the time and money in the world to start amassing a lot of projectors. In any case, we're figuring things out. Our biggest concern, no matter what projector we use, is how long the cranking mechanism will hold up against all the churning that might happen.

Here's the crank-side view of the Lindstrom, my favorite projector. The metal is thin and a lot of things were screwed into place instead of pressed or soldered. This was helpful for my simple mind. I could take things apart quickly and easily to get an idea of how things worked. First thing we took off was the back compartment that housed the light bulb. Next we took the clamp off that held the film in place which would be in the way of the lens of the video projector. Andy took the lens off and then we decided how the back compartment needed to be cut to eventually house the video projector - which turned out to be a slot in the back to give room for the electrical cords and a slotted notch in the front for the lens of the video projector. Also, there's sturdy foam cut into a useful base that holds the digital projector firmly in place inside the compartment.

The placement of the video projector proved much easier than I thought; it was made easier since the original antique lens was easy to remove. We wanted to keep the idea of the original look of the lens cylinder above the crank handle. Andy found a random object in his workshop that could serve as a substitute without obscuring the projection from the digital projector.

Andy had a really good sense of how to connect the cranking mechanism to the potentiometer of the scrolling mouse. He drilled a hole through the middle of the pulley shaft that connects to the handle on the other side. He then threaded a flexible wire into the hole and then crimped the other end of the wire into the mouse wheel.

This is a simple solution that seems to work well. We're still concerned with how long this connection will hold up. I am superglueing the end of the wire that connects to the pulley shaft just to be on the safe side. I'm fairly certain that the crimping will hold on the mouse side, but we'll find out soon enough. We had the option to use an allen wrench to connect the wire to the potentiometer, but Andy decided to use the plastic mouse wheel instead which I think is a better idea anyway. I was a little concerned that the metal allen wrench might strip the plastic potentiometer over time. I like using the connection that was originally built into the construction of the mouse.

The next issue was deciding where to mount the mouse board. We discussed mounting it below the pulley shaft which at first glance, as Andy held it in a reasonable place, disturbed my sense of aesthetics. The green circuit board might highlight the modernization of the projector, but it was all I could see. Upon hearing my response, Andy just smiled at me and said that it was no problem to mount it upside down and spray paint it black. "Oh, okay."

Ultimately, we opted to mount the board (which I still have to do) underneath the projector because the bend of the wire will be less convoluted or severe. Andy hot glued parts of the original mouse housing back to the circuit board to make it easier for me to glue the board to the bottom of the projector.

When I got the parts home yesterday, I plugged the USB connection from the mouse board into my laptop and voila, it worked like a charm.

List of things I still need to do to finish this projector:

- secure the wire to the projector with super glue

- build a small base for the projector (since the mouse mechanism will be on the bottom)

- secure the mouse circuitry to the bottom of the projector

- screw the back compartment securely into place

- find a small washer or rubber stop to keep the bottom reel from flying off

Here's a detail of the crank-side that had the lens and film clamp before we removed it. Just in case you wondered...

Class and Rehearsal for Hand-cranked Projector

This is the first draft of the montage from a class and rehearsal with Real Women Dancing (RWD), a group of women in east Texas featuring Juanita Finkenberg, Linda Choate, Vicki Baggett, Kerry Lemon and Sarah McMullan. When I watched the hours of footage I have of RWD, I became even more aware of time. RWD's concentration during ballet barre exercises requires patience, patience that women of their age gracefully embody. I am reminded of an interview with Maya Deren regarding the temporality of women. Here is a link to a youtube video that includes the interview as well as still shots of Deren's work.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhEOOpbJKEc

This silent video short (which by the way, will also be projected through a hand-cranked projector), will later have an accompanying commentary on my website.  The commentary will be taken from my interview of Juanita Finkenberg, founder of Real Women Dancing. Right now though, I'm going to publish this post, put up some laundry and then walk the dog around the block before getting ready for bed.  It's Christmas Eve and soon to be a day that I promised David that I'll refrain from working.

Suite 155 for Hand-cranked Projector

This is the first draft of Suite 155 featuring Benita Bedell and Marianne Gryder from the Bellingham group. Like Monkeys, Suite 155 will project through one of the hand-cranked projectors. This is the only footage I have where the subjects are so concerned with the camera. Benita reminds me a bit of myself as a teenager when I would be in public with my grandfather.  I would be slightly embarrassed, but entertained at the same time. This documentary-style short is somewhat reminiscent of the Lumiére Brothers's Baby's Lunch.  The movement is obviously different from Monkeys (see previous post) - no dancing, but plenty of gestural material.  I love Benita's direct look to the camera at 18 seconds into the short as if to imply, "Are you getting this?"  I'll post the video with sound for the behind-the-scenes commentary that will go on the website.

Lumiére Brothers - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEllo1o1J8g 

(I find these early documentary-style black and whites interesting, but I hate the soundtracks.  I mute them or find something of my own to play.)

Monkeys for Hand-cranked Projector

This is the first draft of Monkeys featuring Meredith Hurst and Joanna Reed from the Costa Rica group. Monkeys will project through one of the hand-cranked projectors. I chose this particular duet because of its movement qualities and the clarity of the movement with the thought that it would be ideal for audience interaction. I'm still questioning whether I really want it to be black and white with soft edges because it seems too obvious to pair up with an antique projector. Still, I really love black and white because it's a bit dreamy and maybe even a little more accessible because of it. Below are links to influences for the treatment of Monkeys:

Lumiere Brothers - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nj0vEO4Q6s

Here's an interesting study on black and white film for modern movies:
http://flavorwire.com/181969/10-modern-movies-that-are-better-in-black-and-white

And for some reason, I could help but think of rare footage of modern dance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESN6INXE0_E&feature=related

More Helmet Cam Footage

And here's scrimmage footage from the helmet cam:



I can't wait to turn some of this footage into the video that will run through one of the hand-cranked projectors!

Cannibalizing a Scrolling Mouse

So, I'm taking this scrolling mouse (see that red round button - it's important)

and its USB connection and connect it to a laptop running MaxMSPJitter.  A digital Pico projector will also be connected to the laptop.

I took the board out of the mouse and now will need to decide how to connect it to or conceal it in one of the antique hand-crank projectors.

The red scroll button normally connects to the potentiometer on the board. My next task is to create a connection between the crank mechanism of the hand-crank projectors to the potentiometer.  The potentiometer signal will deliver the speed and direction of the cranking to a Jitter patch. The Jitter patch will spit out the rate and direction of the video according to the cranking. The video will play through the digital projector that will eventually be placed somewhere inside the hand-crank projector. This is some fun stuff!!!!

Snippet of Helmet Cam Footage

A little example of the footage from the helmet cam.  It's not edited yet; it's just raw footage:

Antique Projectors - Digital Projectors

I'm turning these antique projectors into interactive digital projectors. First thing to do - find some mice and take them apart to see what I can do with them. More to come!

Fall Quarter Synopsis

I realize that I say this every quarter, but I'll pretend I don't and say it anyway - "This quarter was incredibly intense!" I think it's fair to say that I took on way more than I ever imagined I could (or probably should have) and I lived another day to talk about it. Two major factors contributed to said intensity.

1) I started my journey in WFTDA skills testing so that I could skate in bouts with the Ohio Roller Girls. WFTDA stands for Women's Flat Track Derby Association for those who are new to derby. I'm a baby in this sport. It's frightening, humbling and exciting all at the same time. And it's engrossing.

2) As for my course work, this quarter was completely tech heavy. I went to Gaga technique once or twice a week as an independent study, but other than that my physical practice really involved skating, hitting, and falling during derby practice. If it weren't for derby, I really wouldn't have had much time away from the computer. BUT a lot of great things came out of this quarter. Here goes:

Since the video file is too large, these are some snapshots from an animation I created in Maya. This was my first class in modeling, animating and lighting objects using software - yet another new world I visited this quarter. More humiliation perhaps, but a lot of little discoveries. I'm not sure what the future holds for me and Maya, but I do know that I would like to take the concept from this project and apply it to a redesign of my website.

And then there's "Women of the Flat Track." For my Dance for Camera/Video Editing class, I decided to focus on derby. Hey - it's movement! Kind of hard to deny that. What I discovered was that I wanted to make a feature-length documentary about the Ohio Roller Girls. My final project became a trailer (since obviously I wasn't going to make a documentary in less than 10 weeks). I'm super psyched to make the documentary now. Some of the footage will actually tie into my MFA project as well, which is tentative called "Portraiture and Perception." (That's another thing, I handed in my first draft of my final project to my committee. Things are moving along with this grad degree business!) You can find the trailer at my vimeo account, however, you'll need a password to see the video. Let me know if you have any questions....

As a continued independent study project, I am collaborating with Maree ReMalia and Michael Morris to develop merrygogo, Maree's website that examines her choreographic process. The attached image is a screenshot of "my" process. The mind map was started by Michael and at this point, I was just testing how the embedding of the map was going to work. I have more formating and transparency issues, but development is coming along.

It's already the week of Christmas. Now that I've wrapped up the 2010 Fall Quarter, I think I can move on (well except for the fact that all of these projects are continuing in one way or another). For now though - Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night.

Reality of Being a Grad Student

There are so many wonderful opportunities at this big university and in Columbus. I have fallen in love with roller derby. The fact of the matter though is that grad school requires a lot of time - that really goes without saying. Tonight, instead of going to derby practice I'm working on a video project for my editing class (albeit the video is about roller derby) and hopefully getting some sleep tonight. I'm exhausted!

I also have an animation project coming up. Below is a short animation that I'm building on:

Video from Rehearsal with Chafin No. 1

Below is a video from the first rehearsal with Chafin. I started playing with in-camera editing and overlaying existing sound from other clips. I plan to continue working on interview-type clips and dance clips to see what I come up with in regards to "identity" related issues. While I call this project "gender in choreography," it's really all about identity. Gender just so happens to fall within it. I like where this is going.

Methinks I Had a Weekend

It's going on 1am, but I'm not my usually dogged-self at this hour. I had a pretty good weekend. I actually spent time with David! Aside from a few hours at Sullivant Hall for rehearsal Saturday, I hung out with my husband - go figure. It was a welcomed change.

Today I got some work done in preparation for the week. I still have a lot more to do, but I'm having faith that I'll find time for everything important. (I'm learning that NOT everything is important. I'm picking my own personal battles in other words.)

Here's the video I worked on today for the Media in Performance class.

Two Things

Quick blog for the week. I'm still struggling to find time for everything, including time to decompress. This morning I had to watch an episode of "Castle" on hulu.com for example just to zone out.

Two things I've discovered this week:

1. I must like working with video. I'll stay up for hours working on things I don't even end up using. But I like it.

2. My body isn't killing me anymore. I think the weather helps. I also think Karl's modern class works well for me. Rehearsals can get strenuous, but they're definitely manageable.

Below is a video I created for texture. (I'm not using it for its intended purpose - I might not use it all, but here it is.)

My 100th post!

Wow! I can't believe I've posted 100 times already! (Imagine confetti falling.) Now on to an update:

I discovered some pictures from the Wexner Center performance. Photo credit goes to A.J. Zanyk. One of these days I'll actually update my website with new pictures!

The performance last weekend at BOMA with Robert Wechsler went quite well. David even enjoyed it. I haven't found any good pictures from that event, but if something worth posting turns up, I'll get it in here.

I'm currently doing my best to finish papers for the end of my first quarter as a grad student. Can't believe the first quarter is almost done, although I'm anxious for it to hurry up and finish already!

My 2 minute video for the Dance and Technology seminar is NOT the claymation I wanted it to be. I'll have to finish the claymation this holiday season when I have more time at home. Instead here is what I came up with from available footage.

For Jennifer's website, I will be using this image as my inspiration. If I can post the wire frame for the site, I will soon.

See ya next time for post #101!

Getting on to the Good Stuff

This week's been a good one. I feel like I turned certain things around for myself. Lisa Waugh and Kate Warren must have rubbed off on me. Lisa has always been so positive. Kate has always been proactive in taking care of herself as a dancer (and as a regular human being). Every night for the past four evenings, I have been taking time for extra stretching and reflection in order to absorb all the things that I'm asking my mind, body and soul to keep up with lately. See my yoga blog if you're interested in what I mean: http://rashanaworksyoga.blogspot.com.

David and I are working on the next video chapter about the move to Ohio. It's coming up, so stayed tuned!

I'm also excited about working on Jennifer Micallef's website. Images coming soon!

Video of the Day I Left