I Wish I'd Done That! - We Got Time

In this music video for Moray McLaren's "We Got Time," artist David Wilson uses a modified version of an animation device called the praxinoscope. The praxinoscope was invented in France by Charles-Émile Reynaud in 1877. It uses a strip of images that are placed around the inner surface of a spinning cylinder, which is lined with 16 small mirrors. (Not to be confused with the earlier zoetrope that uses narrow viewing slits.)

For this video David used a process that was made popular in the 1950's, where illustrations were printed on the labels of vinyl records. As the record spun on the turntable, the illustrations would appear to animate if you fixed your gaze on one spot. Red Raven Records later developed a mirrored "carousel," which customized versions of it are used in this video.

I can watch this video over and over again. These low-tech animations, with their "circle of life" theme, are mesmerizing. What I enjoy most about this video, is how David goes beyond what others have done and stacked images, as well as place them side by side to interact with one another.

Below is a short video where David explains the animation process for "We Got Time." To learn more about David Wilson and see more of his art work, please visit www.davidwilsoncreative.com.

-Pete C.
Brainwerx Design



We Got Time video credits:
Music: Moray McLaren
Director - David Wilson
Producer - James Bretton
Executive Producer - Bart Yates
Production Company - Blinkink
Director of Photography - Tim Green
Motion Control - Dennis Henry at MC2
Animation - David Wilson
Art Department - Will Randall, Hattie Newman, and David Wilson
Editor - Mark Aarons at TVC
TK - James Bamford at The Mill
Post - The Mill