Boris S. Dolgovesov was born in Novosibirsk, USSR, in 1942. In 1964, he graduated from Novosibirsk Electrotechnical Institute. Today, he is head of the Laboratories of the Institute of Automation and Electrometry at the Siberian branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences. Specialized in computer graphics and real-time visualization systems, he received his Master's degree in 1973.

The film 'Shadow' has been produced by the working group (Boris Mazurok, Sergei Mihaev, Aleksandr Cherepanov) under my leadership with the specialized 3D visualisation system 'Albatros', the main task of which is the training of astronauts and pilots. The 'Albatros' system was developed at the Institute of Automation and Electrometry of the Siberian branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences.

Using real-time systems offers new possibilities in animation. Other than systems describing the dynamics of motion only through animated wire frames, real-time systems let the artist work interactively on the film. The psychology of a character can be developed as precisely as the stage stetting, the system allows for dynamic color editing. Moreover, real-time animation making does not require frame-by-frame videotape recorders, therefore it is both dramatically cheaper and faster.

The conventionality of the character and the simple 3D space transformations make the film look a bit eclectic, but nevertheless it retains the features of a detective story. It is interesting that the main character's nature is determined by the movement of the 27 cubes and the soundtrack only. These artistic means have not been selected by chance. They reflect the specific features of real-time animation, that is, a comparatively simple image and yet a psychologically complex character description.

Technical Background

HW: Albatros Real-Time Visualisation System
SW: Custom, Institute of Automation and Electrometry USSR