As promised, here’s the first in a series of tutorials showing how to take advantage of the Flash capabilities within ArKaos GrandVJ. Note that it will also work for NuVJ and MediaMaster since the variables are the same.

In this tutorial I’ll explain how to tap into the EQ data to create some simple audio-reactive animations. We’ll be using some basic ActionScript 2.0 for the inexperienced Flash programmer. I won’t go into much detail on the how the code works but it should be enough of an introduction to allow some experimentation in creating new content for your VJ arsenal.

You can download the final .fla and .swf files here or follow along the video tutorial below.

While a lot of VJ content is produced with high-end motion graphics, 3D modeling, and video editing software, Flash provides some advantages over these platforms not immediately obvious. Although its primarily purpose is as a tool for web development and user interface design, its now a portable weapon of choice that fits nicely into any VJ’s arsenal. Besides its scalability, small file size and custom programming abilities, many video mixing software companies like ArKaos, are now embracing its capabilities by adding the ability to feed Flash EQ and text data for real-time visual manipulation.

Adobe’s Flash has grown significantly since its initial 1.0 release that focused solely around animation. Not until version 4.0 did it receive full scripting implementation allowing for some exciting new visual opportunities. It was widely considered nothing more than a toy by serious programmers until the release of ActionScript 2.0. With the recent release of ActionScript 3.0, the majority of new Flash users typically come from a development background. Animators attracted in to 1.0 have likely moved on to other packages or embraced ActionScript for all of its frustration and glory. Even then, Flash still attracts all forms of designers, developers animators and dabblers.

Since my discovery of VJ’ing I immediately saw the advantages of using Flash. With the majority of my content being video I shot with my Sony Digitial8 camcorder, the juxtaposition between the gritty scenery I filmed and the hard crisp lines of vector objects of Flash, provided the visual style I was aiming to achieve. Some simple vector animations on a black or white background are great matte’s for luma key effects showing the footage in or behind those animations.

One of Flashes strengths lies in its ability to be completely resolution independent. As we grow to higher resolution standards, Flash grows with us. Additionally, changing aspect ratios to accommodate various display environments is as simple as opening the source file, changing the document properties and publishing. No need for re-renders or rebuilds with higher resolution source material.

Compared to After Effects, Flash may seem limited in its abilities. The seasoned motion graphics artist might gawk at the simplicity of the Flash timeline and tools available. Its strengths lie in the simplicity of its vector animation tools. With a little bit of ActionScript knowledge combined with a few timeline tweens you can create some pretty incredible particle style effects. I’ve found trying to achieve similar effects in After Effects using mask layers & plugins tedious and time consuming. Don’t get me wrong, After Effects is still damn incredible, but they each excel in their own way.

ArKaos GrandVJ provides some new Flash functionality not available in ArKaos VJ Midi by way of a 9 band audio EQ. Additionally, it no longer relies on the Flash 5 player and ActionScript 2.0 can now be utilized. GrandVJ works best with timeline based scripting so the class based system of ActionScript 3.0 isn’t recommended. In addition to the 9 band EQ there’s also variables for Low, Mid & High. Tying movie clip properties, X position, Y position, rotation, etc, to any of these variables gives some pretty cool audio-reactive effects. Crawl outside of the standard EQ style audio-responsive box and you can build objects that grow and populate based on any of the 9 bands values. Consider a simple rain animation where the speed and size of the rain drops increase exponentially. Use an additional band to control the direction of the rain and you end up with a raining life form that reacts and grows with the music.

I spend my day job as a web developer so I continually see new ways Flash can be used in my VJ sets. It’s sometimes difficult to stay focused on work when all I wanted to do is spend my time building new content. Fortunately there’s a trade-off in that the ideas I have for Flash VJ content sometimes carry over into the websites I build and can provide a new approach to the execution of my projects. With a little ActionScript and some simple vector shapes, the opportunities are endless.

Keep an eye out for a future article covering the basics on creating audio-reactive Flash animations for use with ArKaos GrandVJ

They have setup a very creative system to trigger visuals involving a NuVJ, a video camera, a MediaMaster controlled from a GrandMA console and.. a custom controller made of a simple plexiglass panel with duct tape, the so-called “PixelFucker controller”..

Philipp from LoopLight explains his creation:

Installation schema

I have setup ArKaos MediaMaster, ArKaos NuVJ and grandMA ultralight in one network session. The headlights were Jarag-5 in a matrix with par30 and 52 Movinglights with CMY. I made a led mapping patch in MediaMaster to control both the Jarags and the CMY of the movinglights.

MediaMaster was fed with two input streams:

The first input came from a camera filming a plexiglass panel divided in two areas, the left side was for Jarag and the right side for the CMY.

The second input was fed with the output of a NuVJ that I used to trigger SD Clips.

In MediaMaster I scaled my live input from the camera to match only the left part of the plexiglass and configured different effects like Edge detect, Greyscale and Contrast so that, by moving my hand vertically and horizontally in front of the camera (behind the left part of the plexiglass that I was using as guide), I could dynamically create visuals in combination with the SD Clips played by the NuVJ.

For the CMY, I prepared four large Colourwheels in different bright colours so just by moving them in the right half of the plexiglass I could change all CMY in the moving lights.

As you can see it’s a great example of creative processing involving video, lighting and a good dose of creativity.. And that’s exactly what the guys from LoopLight are known for!

If you read this article from Momo The Monster himself at Create Digital Motion you will understand that VJing when done professionally is a very serious job which requires good software, quality hardware, nice visual content and an incredible lot of planning and organization – in case you didn’t figured this out already..

Momo explains how he’s been part of the VJ crew in charge of playing visuals at the Coachella festival for the bands that had nothing prepared and details the whole material and organization they have setup.

The article: Reflections on Being a VJ at Coachella: Mega VJ, VJ Gear Round-up