It’s no secret that we here at Gizmodo adore our GIFs. Now, thanks to the good folks at Gifpop, everyone’s favourite internet format is going analogue. The new venture promises to translate the moving pics of your choosing into a custom lenticular card.
Founders Sha Hwang and Rachel Binx want to blow our collective minds with the possibilities of this multi-lensed medium, which has been around for nearly 70 years but seems ideally suited for this modern translation from screen to print. After heaps of testing and research, they managed to find a manufacturer willing to do unique production runs — most only allow orders in the hundreds or more — and iron out the technical wrinkles.
“The limitations are mainly to do with the amount of ghosting,” co-founder Sha Hwang tells Gizmodo. “Some means the animation is still legible, but too many frames and it starts to break down. We’re constraining the web tool to around 10 frames.”
They’re working with a selection of premier GIF artistes — Mr Div, 89-A, and David Pope — to create original work for this initial run, and plan on expanding the scope with a whole range of collaborators. Plus, once their site is up and running, anyone will have the opportunity to upload their favourites and make a tangible GIF that keeps on giving. Or as one Giz staffer put it: “I can finally send a GIF to my mum!”
The Kickstarter’s already fully funded with almost a whole month to go, but you can still get in on the early access action by contributing here. [Gifpop via @rena_tom]
