With my RU-vid channel, I'm working on bringing a similar artistic expression back but with a rather modern and current touch :) I was searching for inspiration and found that video. I didn't know John Whitney before. His work just blows me away!
I ran across this old digital computer patent 3190554 that uses compressed air to run the logic gates instead of electricity. Was such a computer ever built and used for anything? Could a 3d printer be used to make such a computer today?
I guess so. I read about this kid Horton Billy Mitchusson Patent 3107850 that came up with this digital air computer idea in the 1960's and if you check out the patent, he gave the idea to the world . ( Electronic digital made the idea a non starter even then I suppose.) However if you check the links from the patent everybody was giving the idea a look see. I like the idea that if Babbage had gone this way he could have had the pipe organ guys make his Analytic Engine for him and Lady Ada would have invented COBOL. Now I'm checking around to see if anybody is using Brush Bots to demonstrate Collision Based Computing. The kids have got to dig that!
I built for my pseudo-PhD in ~1971 a bottle filling machine using only fluidic elements (some of which which were self made), where compressed air steered the fluid (=water) and fluidic elements made the digital part (very elemental!).
Whitney trained in music as well as photography. He composed soundtracks for several of his films. For others he used composers such as Terry Riley (for "Matrix III"). The music in this video has been added for the documentary.
The narrator of this film claims that these 'analog computing machines' are responsible for creating the 'Star Gate' effects in 2001 Space Odyssey. What about controlling the movement of the cameras?
Some of the spfx demonstrated in this video are like those used in Star Trek: The Motion Picture from 1979. Another example is in a 1970's film: UFO Target Earth
The narrator is not quite correct. The slit-screen technique was also invented by John Whitney Sr. but is not the machine shown. Further, Whitney did not work on "2001"... his idea was basically stolen after he sent Kubrick a demo.