Simple MSG Procedural Shape Animation

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Simple MSG Procedural Shape Animation

Today’s post continues off from yesterday’s as we continue to explore the “Simple MSG Shapes” preset category. Today we’ll show how to use the Shape1 MSG preset to generate an evolving shape animation.

The “Simple MSG Shapes” preset category is available for download here if you don’t already have it. Yesterday we discussed the MSG editing strategy used to build this series of MSG presets. They all generate simple gradient mapped shapes or patterns.

Since the shapes or patterns generated by these presets are procedural in nature (generated by mat algorithms as opposed to being images), they are easy to animate. You could use keyframe animation in the PASeq timeline to build structured interpolative animations, but we’ll use temporal generators instead. Temporal Generators (TG) are time based oscillators that can be attached to editable parameters associated with MSG preset processors.

The attached temporal generators will automatically adjust their associated parameter values over time in an animation, creating dynamic shape animation when used with this particular preset. The image below is a screen snap of the MSG Advanced Editor. Note that the Parameter editing tab on the right is showing the editable parameters associated with the 1C Abstract5 processor selected on the left side.

Note that the A and B parameters have attached Ramp temporal generators with cycles times of 300 and 500 frames respectively. The A, B, and R parameters are associated with the underlying math equation used to generate variable shapes in the 1C Abstract5 processor. So adding temporal generators to the A and B parameters leads to smooth shape variability as they are slowly adjusted by the temporal generators in a time based animation.

The 1C Abstract5 processor is interesting because it can generate a wide variety of different abstract shapes, some with surprising complexity. It’s fascinating that the relatively simple math formula encapsulated in this processor is capable of creating so much diversity in appearance. There’s also a 3C Abstract5 CP processor that is basically the same except that it generates color output based on a color palette stream input.

Both the 1C Abstract5 and the 3C Abstract5 CP processors overlay their generated shape on top of the image stream(s) they use as input. So you can stack multiple instances of either processor in a MSG preset to build additional image complexity by overlaying multiple shapes.

To generate an output animation from this simple MSG preset, I opened a new Movie Stream and turned on the Stream Write flag called Enable Write on Op End. I then ran the MSG preset in loop action mode and let it render out the animation. To stop loop action I pressed the spacebar key. I then closed my open movie stream. The resulting animation is available here.

You could use the procedural animation strategy discussed above with any of the different presets in the “Simple MSG Shapes” preset category to generate procedural animations. Just attach temporal generators to editable parameters associated with the processor in the preset that is generating the shape image.

Category: MSG

Tags: procedural animation temporal generator

Simple MSG Procedural Shape Animation

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