StudioSintagma︎
The Cabinet
The Cabinet is a musical piece from the album INkBlot, by composer and guitar virtuoso Daniele Gottardo.
StudioSintagma collaborated with Gottardo to bring his vision to life, creating an animated interpretation inspired by the legendary 1920 German silent film Das Kabinet des Dr. Caligari, directed by Robert Wiene.
In Wiene’s film, the Somnambulist symbolizes a humanity asleep, unknowingly controlled by higher forces. In The Cabinet, this figure awakens from the hypnotic state and transforms into a scientist, exploring the wonders of Creation through the microscope.
The animation translates music into visual narrative, blending experimental imagery with storytelling to reveal curiosity, discovery, and the awakening of perception.
The main technique is traditional stop-frame sand-animation executed on a rear-illuminated lightbox. Sound vibrations are brought to the visual plane in form of "Cymatics", by projecting the beam of a military grade laser onto a mirror fragment. Making of pictures below.
The cinemicrography is from the marvelous scientific film "Imaging the Hidden World: The Light Microscope" by Bruce J. Russell, courtesy of Eric Russell.
"Imaging the Hidden World: The Light Microscope" is part of the Academic Film Archive of North America directed by Geoff Alexander.