Overnight Thread: Matrix III

I think I like the idea of having "late night" movies on Ghibli Blog. It gives you something to do in the later hours, and hopefully keeps you entertained until the morning blog posts arrive. I am trying to establish something like a regular working schedule, so hopefully this helps.

John Whitney's 1972 computer animated film, Matrix III, is a personal favorite and earned a place on my Animation Poll Top 20 list. Meditative, zen-like, visually minimalist but extremely effective for its day. Keep in mind that the computer graphics in this short film were years before real-time rendering was possible, which means creating a single image, then taking a photograph, then moving the dots to the next position, then taking another photo. It's a very time-consuming process, but the results are dazzling. These graphics may appear "simple," but they were pioneering and state-of-the-art.

I'd love to see the Whitney Brothers' experimental films on DVD or Blu-Ray. The only home video release was a limited-edition Pioneer LaserDisc, which is now extremely rare and goes for very high prices. Not "classic video game price gouging" expensive, but pricey enough.

Enjoy the late movie, kids. In the morning, I'll have a new Hayao Miyazaki comic to share, and maybe show off my 1991 Fantasia LaserDisc box set. Or, I'll just throw up my hands and post Cat Bus pictures from Reddit.