CGI Film, FREEZE! is 3D Printed to Show Each Frame Together in Amazing Presentation

Film making isn’t a simple task, whether it is a blockbuster movie or a simple hand drawn cartoon. It takes time, and a lot of work by a production team to get everything just right. As of late, when it comes to animated film, a technology called Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI) is the most popular method of creating these works of art. Most of the popular animated movies you see on the big screen today are created using this technology.

For one animation, illustration, character design, and music studio, run by three individuals, Job, Joris, and Marieke, CGI is nothing new. Their studio was founded in 2007, in Utrecht, the Netherlands, and it has remained there ever since.

Several weeks ago, the three designers emailed us to inform us of a project they were working on. However, things got delayed when their short film “A Single Life” was nominated for an Oscar. Now back from the Academy Awards, unfortunately without an Oscar, Job, Joris, and Marieke can resume their other design work. They also now have the time to share with the world another very unique project that they have completed.

“The installation ‘FREEZE! an adventure in 100 frames’ is an installation we made for an exhibition about the history of animation,” the three designers tell 3DPrint.com. “We tried to capture and explain animation in a static sculpture.

To do this, they used 3D printing to print out each one of the individual 100 frames that make up the CGI adventure film and display them all at once within the installation. 3D printing has been used for a lot of unique art and design creations over the past few years, but I have never seen anything quite as unique, entertaining, and educational as this installation which currently is on display for the MOVE ON….! exhibit in Kunsthal KAdE, in the Netherlands. It will remain there until May 10th.

“The whole animation is made in CGI, and we used a 3D printer to print each frame,” the designers tell us. “The result is a weird string of characters in different poses. This explains the principles of animation beautifully, without a single bit actually moving. It is a static installation: a frozen movement. If you look closely, you can figure out what happened on that table.”

The 3D printing of this film allows for those interested in film production to see exactly what goes into creating CGI works like this one. Looking at the installation, you can see each one of the frames sitting on the table in front of you, as though you yourself are part of the film.

As for details on the film itself, the designers explain it to us as so:

“In a room that looks like our studio, a character emerges from a piece of paper and runs over a table like a madman. He breaks a few things on the table and eventually he jumps into a preserving jar on a shelf. No one knows why he’s in such a rush. All we know is that he doesn’t want to be recognized…”

Job, Joris, and Marieke have quite the résumés when it comes to animation. What they are doing doesn’t only appear to be groundbreaking within the film industry, but within the 3D printing space as well. What do you think about this film, and the 100 3D printed frames that make up their art installation? Discuss in the FREEZE! forum thread on 3DPB.com. Check out the video of ‘FREEZE! an adventure in 100 frames’ below, as well as some additional photos of the 3D printed exhibit.