If you go

What: dd@bb

When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 27

Where: Atlas Black Box Theater, 1125 18th St., 320 UCB, Boulder

Cost: Free

More info: colorado.edu/atlas/events-0

"Technology" doesn't quite scream art, but it will. With canvases as LED screens and artists rooted in applied science, the future of interactive art will one day glow in real time.

"You say the word 'technology' and people automatically think, 'That's not interesting, that's not art,'" said Ivar Zeile, the brains behind Denver Digerati, a company that runs Denver's Supernova Festival. The festival showcases digital animation on giant outdoor LED screens. "But there are really interesting things going on in technology right now and we're trying to be pioneers in that regard."

University of Colorado's Sonic Arts program is also riding the wave. The technology-focused assemblage of faculty, staff and students explores disciplines for those interested in the applied science of art. CU doctoral student Ryan Wurst aims to bring a melange of these aspects to the stage, debunking the misconception that science and art don't mix. Wurst pitched his idea to Zeile, and

A still from New York digital animator Victor Morales' 2016 Supernova entry, "Jam@Imir." (Courtesy photo)

Technology and art have been mixing for decades, but not this kind. Zeile said real-time digital animation is art's next frontier.

"This performance is new territory for me, and that's one of the greatest realms of excitement," said Zeile. "There's been a foothold in Boulder for these kinds of collaborations and it's not something that the mass public is engaging with. I love to support collaborations that bring talent out in a visible manner, particularly with animation."

Wurst said that since CU's Communikey event folded, Sonic Arts at CU (formed by the College of Media, Communication and Information professor Michael Theodore) is helping to fill the void.

"Communikey tapped into some momentum," said Wurst, who is studying Intermedia Arts, Writing and Performance. "When it stopped, the audience was still there. People are still very interested in how all these aspects come together."

Sonic Arts looks at how music, performance, art and technology can collide in various ways.

"It's really pushing these intermedia disciplines," said Wurst. "It's pretty awesome, I get to help do this and there's definitely interest. It's opened a lot of opportunities around the area, and I have time to make some of the craziest work while bringing in great artists to collaborate."

"We're building unique ideas with the visual end in Denver and I think the infrastructure is pretty sound," said Zeile, who also runs Denver's Plus Gallery. "Ryan brought to us an idea that we can show what can be done in that context with music."

Wurst got his bachelor's degree in music competition at CU and his master's degree in visual arts at University of Minnesota, where he founded the electronic-music label Almost Human Tapes in 2013.

For dd@bb on Saturday, Wurst has enlisted Denver producers Duluoz (Ponyrok, aka Pete Nyvall), who will take the audience on "a journey into the unknown, an aural voyage through a darker world," and Zone Motif (Miles Hurwitz, aka Lone Dancer), who will debut "rhythmic experiments and spaced-out synth jams," a press release states.

"They make really awesome music," said Wurst. "This project is people doing awesome things while working together — and that's the best thing possible. Once Ivar told me he wanted to bring out Victor Morales, I thought these two artists would fit really well with his work — a little dark and off the wall."

Snagging New York animator Morales for the project was a no-brainer, said Zeile. Morales has been experimenting with real-time animation and game design since 1991. His work was featured in both the 2016 and 2017 Supernova Festival.

Morales said he works with the video game engine Unreal and has been tapping into real-time simulation for years. With a background in theater from his time at a university in Caracas, Venezuela, he uses body mechanics to puppetize the simulation, making sure it flows from every possible angle. (Think interactive video games: Gamers have control of the character and the camera.) Morales is digging into a form of storytelling that ultimately has the user moving the character and driving the story.

"It's all about performance," said Morales. "At the live show, you want to keep it simple. I'll mostly do an improvisation. I'll go on stage and improvise and show the potential of this storytelling."

Morales said he's charting territory that's not widely been explored. He'll often collaborate with musicians to create music videos, which is similar to what he'll be creating with Duluoz and Zone Motif on Saturday.

Morales said the near-future of real-time animation could involve technology achieving photorealism in real time.

"Then after that, it will hopefully start in developing psychological images, more related to subjectivity," said Morales. This will be his first-ever trek to Colorado. "That's when animation will reach its peak. But for now, real-time live has value because it's interactive."

Zeile — whose fervor of exploring innovative storytelling grew after working with Sundance Film Festival for a decade — said the environment of the Black Box theater, with its giant screens and quality surround sound, is a good fit for the event.

"When I see work that's fresh and I realize it's somebody local, well that really perks my attention," said Zeile. "Ryan opened up a huge world to me. He comes across as someone who is hyper-intelligent, and he is immersed in a unique and exciting environment. This new technology is doing what experimental film has done from the start, but the tools are bringing it into a more expansive art form. It may take time to become more firmly rooted, but it's not far off."

Performance from Denver Digerati, Sonic Arts pairs music and animation

New York animator Victor Morales featured in dd@bb