Threshold Digital

Threshold Digital from Richard Hunter on Vimeo.

Threshold Digital again utilises clips from the original ‘Berlin Test Footage’. The intention was to produce a more finished and stylised piece through heavily ‘effecting’ of the source material. The source audio was again electronic in nature and my response was to digitally convert my material into bold, graphic outcomes through ‘Threshold’, colour channels and ‘levels’ manipulation. The piece intentionally confuses the viewer through the removal of depth in the imagery (through its conversion to black or white only) and artificial depth through layered material. The compounded elements of camera and (reversed) subject movement such as at 01:12 and 01:37 provide alternating settings for typographic material and graphical data that seems to digitally materialise and disappear with noise rather than fade.

I set out to create a piece that was consciously different in visual appearance to my other (more commercial) work based on the source material and I feel the outcome is quite successful. There are obvious connections/influences with VJ practitioners such as Scott Pagano (particularly ‘From Brown to Green’)  and Portapak (www.portapak.be) (Portapak.be showreel) and the long-term goal to utilise the material, as visuals to manipulate live seems achievable. I have received a positive reaction from peers as a moving image piece that sidesteps convention (or at least publically recognisable convention) however, to be critical, I am unsure of the ‘uniqueness’ of the work. To me it seems to rely a little too heavily on the Threshold filter, which immediately aligns the visual feel with early video experimentation and usage by pioneering 1980’s electronic artists such as Kraftwerk (live performance) rather than forward looking material. Because of this I intend to sparingly make use of this technique in future material, particularly in development of a ‘signature style’