Digital rain animation medium letters shine

Matrix digital rain, Matrix code, is the

computer code A computer is a machine that can be programmed to carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as programs. These progra ...

featured in the ''Matrix'' series. The falling green code is a way of representing the activity of the

simulated reality The simulation theory is the hypothesis that reality could be simulated—for example by quantum computer simulation—to a degree indistinguishable from "true" reality. It could contain conscious minds that may or may not know that they live i ...

environment of the

Matrix Matrix most commonly refers to: * ''The Matrix'' (franchise), an American media franchise ** ''The Matrix'', a 1999 science-fiction action film ** "The Matrix", a fictional setting, a virtual reality environment, within ''The Matrix'' (franchis ...

on screen by

kinetic typography Kinetic typography—the technical name for "moving text"—is an animation technique mixing motion and text to express ideas using video animation. This text is presented over time in a manner intended to convey or evoke a particular idea or emo ...

. All four ''Matrix'' movies, as well as the spin-off ''

The Animatrix is a 2003 adult animated science-fiction anthology film produced by the Wachowskis. The film details through nine animated short films the backstory of ''The Matrix'' film series, including the original war between humanity and machines which l ...

'' episodes, open with the code. It is a characteristic mark of the franchise, similar to the

opening crawl The ''Star Wars'' opening crawl is a signature device of the opening sequences of every numbered film of the ''Star Wars'' series, an American epic space opera franchise created by George Lucas. Within a black sky background featuring a smatteri ...

featured in the ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...

'' franchise.

Background

In the film, the code that comprises the Matrix itself is frequently represented as downward-flowing green characters. This code uses a custom typeface designed by Simon Whiteley, which includes mirror images of

half-width kana are katakana characters displayed compressed at half their normal width (a 1:2 aspect ratio), instead of the usual square (1:1) aspect ratio. For example, the usual (full-width) form of the katakana ''ka'' is カ while the half-width form is ｶ. ...

characters and Western

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

letters and

numerals A numeral is a figure, symbol, or group of figures or symbols denoting a number. It may refer to: * Numeral system used in mathematics * Numeral (linguistics), a part of speech denoting numbers (e.g. ''one'' and ''first'' in English) * Numerical d ...

. In a 2017 interview at

CNET ''CNET'' (short for "Computer Network") is an American media website that publishes reviews, news, articles, blogs, podcasts, and videos on technology and consumer electronics globally. ''CNET'' originally produced content for radio and televi ...

, he attributed the design to his wife, who comes from Japan, and added, "I like to tell everybody that The Matrix's code is made out of Japanese

sushi is a Japanese cuisine, Japanese dish of prepared , usually with some sugar and salt, accompanied by a variety of , such as seafood, often raw, and vegetables. Styles of sushi and its presentation vary widely, but the one key ingredient is " ...

recipes". The effect resembles that of older generation

green screen Chroma key compositing, or chroma keying, is a visual-effects and post-production technique for compositing (layering) two images or video streams together based on colour hues ( chroma range). The technique has been used in many fields to r ...

displays of monochrome

phosphorescent Phosphorescence is a type of photoluminescence related to fluorescence. When exposed to light (radiation) of a shorter wavelength, a phosphorescent substance will glow, absorbing the light and reemitting it at a longer wavelength. Unlike fluor ...

computer monitors. One predecessor of the digital rain exists in a "code-scene" of the movie '' Meteo'', a Hungarian experimental-pop culture movie from 1990. The 1995

cyberpunk Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction in a dystopian futuristic setting that tends to focus on a "combination of lowlife and high tech", featuring futuristic technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and cyber ...

film ''

Ghost in the Shell ''Ghost in the Shell'' is a Japanese cyberpunk media franchise based on the seinen manga series of the same name written and illustrated by Masamune Shirow. The manga, first serialized in 1989 under the subtitle of ''The Ghost in the Shell'' ...

'', a strong influence on ''The Matrix'',

Joel Silver Joel Silver (born July 14, 1952) is an American film producer. Life and career Silver was born and raised in South Orange, New Jersey, the son of a writer and a public relations executive. His family is Jewish. He attended Columbia High School i ...

, interviewed in "Scrolls to Screen: A Brief History of Anime" featurette on ''

'' DVD.Joel Silver, interviewed in "Making ''The Matrix''" featurette on ''The Matrix'' DVD. features opening credits similar to the digital rain. No official version of the code's

typeface A typeface (or font family) is the design of lettering that can include variations in size, weight (e.g. bold), slope (e.g. italic), width (e.g. condensed), and so on. Each of these variations of the typeface is a font. There are list of type ...

actually used in the ''Matrix'' trilogy and in the website for the game '' Path of Neo'' has been released. Several imitations have been made, mostly in the form of

screensaver A screensaver (or screen saver) is a computer program that blanks the display screen or fills it with moving images or patterns when the computer has been idle for a designated time. The original purpose of screensavers was to prevent phosphor ...

Cultural impact

Dutch musician

Arjen Anthony Lucassen Arjen Anthony Lucassen (born 3 April 1960) is a Dutch singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist musician and record producer best known for his long-running progressive metal/rock opera project Ayreon. Lucassen started his career in 1980 as the ...

named a track "Digital Rain", in honour of the movie, on his 2010 album ''

Victims of the Modern Age ''Victims of the Modern Age'' is the second studio album by Arjen Anthony Lucassen's progressive metal project/ supergroup Star One, released on the recording label Inside Out in the US on 25 October 2010 and in Europe on 1 November 2010. The alb ...

'' by his band

Star One Star One was an Indian pay television network based in Mumbai. It was launched on 1 November 2004 and was it owned by Star TV and distributed worldwide by Fox International Channels. In November 2006, Star One was launched in the UK on Sky. S ...

. The effect also inspired the creation of many unofficial ''Matrix'' screensavers.

References

External links

Example implementation of the Matrix digital rain in Rust

Examples of Matrix digital rain implementations on Rosetta Code

{{The Matrix Film and television opening sequences Screensavers Digital rain

Background

Cultural impact

See also

References

External links