AutoDoc
Live video editor
ego-centric machine worship competition
2009-2010
This project started as a tool to document other projects, with the goal of producing a time-lapse video document on demand. The first principle used by the software is that when there is little movement in the video frame, fewer frames should be saved to the output video. This provides real-time "time-compression," reducing the need for an external video editor to clean up the documentation or edit out the long boring parts. I quickly realized that by extending the first principle to use multiple cameras, I could also have intelligent real-time cuts from camera to camera.
I began to imagine using this tool as a work in and of itself: I set up two cameras at an Emerging Practices event to test my theory. I explained how the system worked (more movement in a camera will switch the output to that camera) and had a projector showing the live output of the system in front of the "contestants". Several rounds were played until the contestants got tired, or there was a clear winner (whoever could keep his/her video stream live the longest). There was no dance music playing at the time, but for added entertainment each round is edited together with each video one after the other All other editing (time-compression and camera cuts) are done real-time within the software. Soundtrack courtesy of TJ Vanslyke.