The forgotten art of the zoetrope | Eric Dyer

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Helen Chang

A long time ago,

很久以前，

I was a professional animator.

我是職業動畫師。

(Music)

（音樂）

[Eric Dyer]

〔艾瑞克戴亞〕

[Animator]

〔動畫師〕

[Compositor]

〔排版員〕

And at night,

在晚上，

I would make my own experimental films.

我會做我自己的實驗電影。

(Music)

（音樂）

And I was spending a lot of time, way too much time, in front of a screen

我花很多時間， 太多時間，在螢幕前，

for work that would be presented on a screen,

做要被呈現在螢幕上的作品，

and I had this great need to get my hands back on the work again.

我迫不及待要不停地工作。

Now, before "The Simpsons,"

在「辛普森家庭」之前，

before "Gumby,"

在「甘餅人」之前， （註：美國知名黏土動畫）

before "Betty Boop,"

在「貝蒂娃娃」之前，

before there was such a thing as cinema and television,

在有電影和電視之前，

animation was hugely popular in this form.

這是一種非常普遍的動畫形式。

This is a zoetrope.

這是「幻影箱」。 （註：也稱走馬燈、西洋鏡）

And you spin this drum,

當你轉動這個鼓，

and you look through the slits into the inside of the drum,

透過狹縫看鼓的內部，

and you see the animation pop to life.

你就會看到動畫活起來。

This is animation in physical form,

這是實體形式的動畫，

and it's animation I could get my hands on again.

這是我可以再次繼續做的動畫。

I took these ideas to Denmark.

我把這些點子帶到丹麥。

I went there with my family on a Fulbright Fellowship.

家人和我以傅爾布萊特獎學金去的。

That's my daughter, Mia.

那是我女兒，米雅。

I rode around the city on my bicycle

我在城市裡騎著腳踏車到處跑，

and shot all the interesting moving elements of Copenhagen:

拍下了哥本哈根各種 會動的有趣元素：

the boaters in the canals,

水道上的划船遊玩者、

the colors that explode in spring,

春天爆發出來的顏色、

the free-use city bikes,

免費使用的城市腳踏車、

love,

愛、

textures,

構造紋理、

the healthy cuisine --

健康的菜餚──

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

And I brought all that video back into the physical world

我把所有那些影片帶回了實體世界，

by printing it out on these long strips of ink-jet paper

做法是把它印在這種 長條的噴墨影印紙上，

and cutting out the forms.

再依形狀剪下來。

Now, I invented my own form of the zoetrope,

我發明了我自己的一種幻影箱形式，

which removes the drum

不需要用鼓，

and replaces the slits with a video camera.

用攝影機取代了狹縫。

And this was very exciting for me,

我感到非常興奮，

because it meant that I could make these physical objects,

因為這表示，我可以 做出這些實體物品，

and I could make films from those objects.

且我可以用那些物品來製作電影。

That's me riding on my bicycle.

那是我在騎我的腳踏車。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

I made about 25 paper sculptures,

我做了大約 25 個紙雕，

each the size of a bicycle wheel.

每個都和腳踏車輪子差不多大。

I brought them into the studio,

我把它們帶到工作室，

spun them

轉動它們，

and shot them to make the film "Copenhagen Cycles."

拍攝它們，製作了名為 「哥本哈根腳踏車」的影片。

(Music)

（音樂）

This project not only allowed me to get my hands back on the work again

這個專案不僅讓我能再回到工作，

but it helped me get my life back.

也協助我找回人生。

Instead of spending 12, 15 hours a day with my face plastered to a screen,

我不再花 12、15 小時 把臉緊貼在螢幕上，

I was having these little adventures with our new family

而是和我的新家庭 展開這些小小冒險，

and shooting video along the way,

在路上順便拍攝影片，

and it was kind of a symbiosis of art and life.

有點像是藝術和人生的共生。

And I think that it's no mistake

我想，幻影箱的確可以

that zoetrope translates into "wheel of life."

直譯成「生命之輪」。

(Music)

（音樂）

But film and video does flatten sculpture,

但電影和影片確實會讓雕塑變平面，

so I tried to imagine

所以我嘗試想像

a way that animated sculpture could be experienced as such,

有什麼方法可以讓動畫雕塑 被確切地經歷和體驗，

and also a completely immersive kind of animated sculpture.

能成為一種完全 身歷其境的動畫雕塑。

And that's where I came up with the idea for the zoetrope tunnel.

於是我想出了這個點子： 幻影箱隧道。

You walk through with a handheld strobe,

你手持著頻閃觀測儀走進隧道，

and wherever you point the flashlight,

不管你將閃光指向哪裡，

the animation pops to life.

哪裡的動畫就會活過來。

I plan to finish this project in the next 30 to 40 years.

我打算在接下來的三、四十年 完成這個專案。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

But I did build a half-scale prototype.

但我確實做了一個規模 只有一半的原型樣品。

It's covered in Velcro,

它用魔鬼氈包著，

and I could lay inside on this bridge

我可以躺在裡面的這座橋上，

and stick animated sequences to the walls

把動畫串貼在牆壁上，

and test stuff out.

來測試效果。

People would comment that it reminded them of an MRI.

人們的評論是，這讓他們想到 MRI（核磁共振攝影）。

And that medical connection spoke to me,

那和醫療的連結，讓我有了想法，

because at the age of 14,

因為在 14 歲的時候，

I was diagnosed with a degenerative retinal condition

我被診斷出視網膜退化病變，

that's slowly taking my vision away,

會讓我逐漸失明，

and I'd never responded to that in my work.

但我從未在作品中回應那件事。

So I responded to it in this piece called, "Implant."

所以我在「植入」 這件作品中做了回應。

It is an imaginary, super-magnified medical device

它是一個想像的、繞著視神經的，

並被放大到超級大的醫療裝置。

that fits around the optic nerve.

And the public is, in a sense, miniaturized to experience it.

而在某種意義上，大眾 就像是被縮小之後來體驗它。

With a handheld strobe,

手持著頻閃觀測儀，

they can explore the sculpture,

他們就可以探索這個雕塑，

and discover thousands of cell-sized robots

並發現數以千計細胞大小的機器人，

hard at work, leaping in and out of the optic nerve,

努力工作，一下跳進、 一下跳出視神經，

being deployed to the retina

被部署到視網膜上，

to repair it.

去修復它。

It's my science fiction fantasy cure of my own incurable disorder.

對於我這無法治療的病， 這是我的科幻奇幻療法。

(Machine buzzes)

（機器唧唧響）

Now, in the real-world gene therapy and gene therapy research,

在真實世界的基因療法 和基因療法研究中，

healthy genes are being administered to unhealthy cells using viruses.

會用病毒把健康的基因 傳給不健康的細胞。

There's a lot of colorful, fluffy hope in this,

在這兒有許多顏色豐富 且鬆軟的希望在其中，

and there's also some creepy, threatening idea

還有一些很令人毛骨悚然、 威脅性的的點子，

of viruses maybe becoming an invasive species in your body.

比如在你的身體內， 病毒變成了侵略性的物種。

Vision loss has helped to take me away from the things

喪失視力協助我遠離

that disconnect me from the world.

那些切斷我與世界連結的事物。

Instead of being sealed off in an automobile,

我不坐在封閉在汽車當中，

I ride my bike,

而是騎著腳踏車，

take buses and trains

坐公車和火車，

and walk a lot.

也常常步行。

And instead of a visually intensive process in the studio, primarily,

我不再把時間都花在工作室中 非常耗費視力的工作流程上，

I'm also getting outdoors a lot more

而是更常外出，

and using more of my senses.

多用我的感官。

This landscape is a couple hours east of San Diego, California.

這景觀位在加州聖地牙哥東邊 大約幾個小時車程的地方。

My brother lives out that way.

我的哥哥住在那邊。

He and I went camping there for four days.

我和他在那裡露營了四天，

And I grabbed my camera,

我拿起我的相機，

and I walked through the canyons.

走到峽谷當中，

And I tried to imagine and figure out

我嘗試想像和思考

what kind of motion would be present

要在這個非常的靜態、

in this place that was so still and so devoid of motion.

完全沒有動態地方， 呈現出什麼樣的動感。

I think it's the stillest place I've ever been.

我想這是我去過最靜態的地方了。

And I realized that it was the movement of my own body through the landscape

我了解到，是我自己的身體 走過這個地景的移動，

that was creating the animation.

創造出了動畫。

It was the motion of changing perspective.

是變化視角的動態。

So I created this piece called "Mud Caves" from those photographs.

所以我用那些照片創作了 這個作品，名為「泥洞」。

It's a multilayered print piece,

它是個多層次的平面作品，

and you can think of it as a zoetrope laid flat.

你可以把它想成是攤平的幻影箱。

It's kind of my western landscape panorama.

算是我的西部景觀全景。

And next to the print piece there's a video monitor

在這平面作品的旁邊， 有一個影片顯示器，

that shows the animation hidden within the artwork.

呈現隱藏在這藝術作品中的動畫。

I think one of the best parts about this project for me

我想，對我而言， 這個專案最棒的地方是

was that I got to hang out with my brother a lot,

我得以和我哥哥一起消磨大把時間，

who lives 2,500 miles away from me.

他住的地方離我有 2,500 英哩遠。

And we would just sit in this seemingly eternal landscape

我們就坐在這個 看似永恆的風景當中，

sculpted by water over millions of years

被水雕塑了數百萬年而成的風景中，

and talk.

聊聊天。

We'd talk about our kids growing up

聊我們的孩子漸漸長大，

and the slowing pace of our parents,

我們的父母步伐漸慢，

and our dad who's suffering from leukemia, memory loss and infection.

我們的爸爸身受白血病、 記憶喪失、及感染之苦。

And it struck me that, as individuals,

我突然想到，以個人來看，

we're finite,

我們是有限的。

but as a family,

但以家庭來看，

we are an ongoing cycle --

我們是個持續不斷的循環，

a kind of wheel of life.

是一種生命之輪。

Now, I want to leave you with a tribute to one of my mentors.

最後，我想以一件作品 對一位導師致敬，來做作結。

She reminds me that physical presence is important

她提醒我，實體呈現的重要，

and that play is not a luxury,

玩樂並不是奢侈品，

but a necessity.

而是必需品。

She's Pixie,

她名叫小精靈，

and she's our family dog.

是我們家的狗。

And she loves to jump.

她喜歡跳來跳去。

(Dog barking)

（狗吠聲）

(Dog barking and spring boinging)

（狗吠聲與彈簧聲）

And this is a new kind of zoetrope

這是一種新的幻影箱，

that I developed at the Imaging Research Center

是我在馬里蘭大學巴爾的摩分校的

at UMBC in Baltimore.

「影像研究中心」發展出來的。

And I call it a "real-time zoetrope."

我稱它為「即時幻影箱」。

(Dog barking)

（狗吠聲）

(Dog barking and spring boinging)

（狗吠聲與彈簧聲）

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）