Given the trajectory of a simple object, to create the illusion of that object's motion despite its constant position in the screen. Time permitting, this may be adapted to accommodate a wider variety of object shapes, light sources, or motion types. Note that the goal is not necessarily to capture a highly realistic motion but rather the essence of motion.
First, to approach a common artistic problem with a wider set of tools. The idea of motion in a static frame is something traditional artists have struggled with for centuries. Now that the frame is no longer fixed, the application of traditional art techniques to create illusory motion can be re-explored and readapted within these new bounds.
Second, to examine more performance friendly ray-tracing methods. Because the style of rendering will simplify colors and lights to three major regions (in the simplest single light source scene), fewer light rays will have to be constantly cast, despite the motion of the scene. Also note fewer viewing rays have to be constantly cast, as the focal object retains a constant position and motion is depicted primarily through color. While viewing rays will still need to be cast around the edges of the frame, far fewer need to be cast inside.
The nonphotorealistic rendering style draws inspiration from the works of Van Gogh, line of action in art, with Preston Blair as a particular example, and Pixar color scripts. The concept of motion depiction pulls primarily from induced motion, heavily researched in psychology. Nonphotorealistic rendering itself has been the focus of several papers and researches, some collected below.
The base goal of this project is to "move" a sphere at a speed equal to the camera in a simple scene composed of a planar ground lit by a directional light. As time allows, the project will be expanded.