A 3D whale meanders unhindered through open space, its blue-glowing, holographic surface transparent with the complex technology humming underneath. This enthralling short video is the final presentation of a technologically advanced project by animation studio, [Treat](http://www.treatstudios.com/synergy), who used a stop-motion animation technique with three-dimensional images to create a smooth series of moving pictures.

In an online description of the project's development, the studio shares how the sequence first began out of simple, animated CGI files. Following that, the movie entered another layer of the animation process by playing on an iPad situated on a moving rig, effectively "re-drawing the shape of the 3D whale in real space," as Treat explains. In another phase of the process, while the iPad moved, a DSLR camera captured the results.

Creating the hologram also involved a tiling CGI model, a tool that Treat calls a "looping seabed." Despite the insider jargon and laborious methodology, the final product is a compelling blend of animation technologies.

With piercing, glitchy sound effects, the mechanical nature of _Synergy_ is not lost on the viewer. Even as a proportionally-accurate whale swims leisurely over the rough terrain of mountain range, the striking digital patterns coasting under the presence of a natural form renders the short film both beautiful and tidy. Take a look here:

Treat Studios directors Daniel Boyle and Alex Robinson are fascinated with the idea of taking their work outside of the computer and working in ways that leaves the viewer unsure of how it was created.

This short experimental piece of animation was was created using several processes, all of which began off life inside the computer. With the help of simple laser cutting, an iPad, a homemade motion rig and DSLR Danny and Alex created a unique stop-frame animation using long exposure photography to bring all these processes together in perfect synergy.

The film began life as simple animation of a whale swimming. Each frame of the animation was then saved as an individual CGI file, this file was then turned into a movie, where-by the form and position of the whale was record, "CAT scan style" from head to tail. These movies were then played on an iPad which was attached to the motion rig. As the movies played out, the iPad would steadily move along the track, re-drawing the shape of the 3D whale in real space. This process was captured using the DSLR camera via long exposures, the camera would record the light from each movie, as the iPad moved from A to B on the motion rig, turning the movie on the iPad into a single photograph on the camera. (If you're struggling, think the recreation of Milla Jovovich's character "Leeloo" in Luc Besson's The Fifth Element)

The secondary process was creating the environment for the whale to exist in - our “looping seabed’’. This was designed in the computer as a tiling CGI model, which was then divided into 2mm thick slices and laser cut from MDF wood. The slices stack back together in real life creating an infinitely looping seabed for our whale to swim over.

So, combining the movies on our moving iPad with moving one slice of our seabed, the camera would capture our animation one frame at a time. This laborious process was repeated many, many, many, times over… but the result: a beautiful holographic image created with the light trail left behind by the iPad. Totally worth it.

SYNERGY

To see more work from the animation studios, Treat, visit their website [here](http://www.treatstudios.com/).

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A hologram whale pulses with 'life from inside a computer,' in a futuristic animation by Treat Studios.

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The 3D Hologram Whale Just Keeps Swimming

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The 3D Hologram Whale Just Keeps Swimming

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