This animator created a pixel version of Childish Gambino’s ‘This is America’ video using a 1984 Macintosh computer

One month and 470 frames later...

An animator has recreated Childish Gambino‘s ‘This is America’ video using an ancient computer.

The pixel animation is the project of Pinot Ichwandard, who has spent a month on the task, so far. At the time of writing, he’s created 470 frames, spending about two-three hours per night on the video.

He described his process as “pixel-knitting”, telling VICE “it’s like riding a classic car.”

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“[The technology’s] limitation becomes a new value, new art. All forgiven, every single flaw like ‘not enough memory’ is permissible… with this method, the process itself becomes more important than the result. The process is the story,” he adds. “This is the reason I posted the process on my Twitter thread. Without those processes, the result is just another piece of pixel art, generated by modern machine.”

Ichwandard listed the tech used for the project, which uses a a 1970’s Summagraphics Tablet connected to a 1984 Macintosh 128k’s MacPaint program. He then transfers each frame via a floppy disk to a 1987 Macintosh SE, animating them with the MacroMind VideoWorks software.

You can see some of Ichwandard’s work on the Childish Gambino video below.

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In the aftermath of the video’s release, Glover previously admitted he had avoided online reaction.

“Some friends have sent a couple [of the pieces], but, for real, I haven’t been on the Internet since [it came out],” he told Jimmy Kimmel.

“It’s bad for me. I’m really sensitive. I see one negative thing, and I track that person down. I go to their Instagram and be like, ‘You’re not so great. That baby’s not even that cute!”

Meanwhile, Childish Gambino is gearing up to play a huge show at London’s O2 Arena for the end of the year.

The rapper and singer will play the Greenwich venue on November 4. It will mark Glover’s second London performance of the year, after his headline slot at Gunnersbury Park’s Lovebox Festival this month.

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