Interview with Japanese Demoscener – 0b5vr

→日本語で読む Welcome to “Interviews with Demosceners”! This time, we welcome Japanese demoscener 0b5vr, who mainly creates 64K and 4K intros. For many, 0b5vr is best remembered for his 64K demo “0b5vr GLSL Techno Live Set”, released at Revision 2023. In this interview, he talks about how this piece was created, as well as his recent live music performance. He also talks about trends around the Japanese demoscene, like music production with GLSL, machine live, and generative VJ. I also took the chance to ask how he feels about sceners like me—that is, people who know nothing about programming or technology! Happy reading! Note: If you don’t know what demoscene is, you may want to start from here! First of all, could you introduce yourself? I’m 0b5vr, and I don’t belong to any particular group. I mainly work on 64k intros and 4k intros/exegfx using WebGL. I also compete in Shader Jam and perform live coding and VJ sets at club events and similar venues. Your demo “0b5vr GLSL Techno Live Set” had a strong impact on me. I was curious about this. It says “Live Set,” but was released in the 64K category. What is this exactly? Is this live coding? 0b5vr GLSL Techno Live Set (“0mix”) is indeed a 64K intro demo. Just like any other 64K intro, this audiovisual piece is generated from a 64KB file―an HTML file, in this case. That said, as described in the title, its format is “Live Set.” It can be somewhat tricky, because it looks like a recorded video of a live performance at an event, but it’s actually a 64K intro. Hmm… I’m still not sure if I understood correctly. Could you elaborate a bit more? 0mix was inspired by three different scenes: techno demos, live coding, and 64K intros. Let me start with techno demos. There are many techno-themed demos in the history of the demoscene. If you look at the demos such as “Medium” by Einklang.net, “X-MIX 2004: Ion Traxx” by Kewlers & mfx, and “Emix” by Epoch, they use multiple tracks mixed together like a DJ set, rather than a single techno soundtrack. They also use VJ-style visuals to create an atmosphere similar to a club event. Emix has black-and-white visuals with unique textures that fit perfectly with cold, mechanical techno, and it’s one of my favorites. Next is live coding. Live coding is a live performance where visuals and music are generated with programming in real time. On the screen, you’ll see the visuals and sound waveforms being generated alongside the code you’re writing. This highlights that the artwork is generated by code. In the demoscene, live coding sessions focus mostly on visuals in GLSL (eg, Shader Showdown, Shader Jam). But in live coding events like Algorave and Eulerroom, music live coding is as popular as, or even more popular than, visual coding. From what I see, Tidal Cycles and Sonic Pi are the most commonly used tools in those environments. (Reference video) Finally, there’s the 64K intro. It’s a category where you create visuals and audio with an executable file of just 64KB. This is the most challenging category since every element has to be procedurally generated within the intro. Most 64K creators build their own engines and tools from scratch. This category requires a broad range of knowledge and skills including modeling, animation, rendering, post-processing, music, and compression. If I managed to merge all three inspirations and create a 64K techno demo with music generated by live coding, I knew I could present it to demosceners and other creators around the scene with confidence. I came up with the idea about a year before Revision 2023. Over the course of that year, I refined a demo engine, built a live coding environment, composed music, and created visual assets almost entirely on my own. Here’s the working environment for 0mix. The top screen shows the preview, timeline, etc., while the bottom screen is the code editor. Basically, I spend most of the time in the code editor. So, you climbed the highest mountain by yourself. What was the process like? It was extremely tough and painful to spend a year working on a challenging 64K project by myself. My advice is to collaborate with others. At the very least, you should find someone you can discuss the progress with. It was indeed fun to surprise many friends at demoparties, but at the end of the day, completing the project is more important. You entered 64K compo, but it ended up being released in the PC Demo compo. Did that bother you? It’s true that 0mix was released in the PC Demo Compo at Revision 2023. That was because it was the only entry in the PC 64K intro, which wasn’t enough to hold a separate compo. So the two compos were merged. The same thing happened at Revision 2022. PC 64K intro compo was incorporated into the 8K intro compo because there were only two entries. Nevertheless, I’ve always pursued uncompromising quality, so I was down with it. Along with the works of other demo groups (such as Fairlight, mfx, and Still), I think I could contribute to making that compo interesting. Ah, you’re right. That felt like a never-ending compo! There were so many entries for Revision 2023, and from the chat I got the impression that many participants and viewers were exhausted after the compo. Still, it was a great compo. All of the top works featured demoscene-style visuals built with their own engines, and their narratives were also impressive. So I’m happy with my result. When there’s a big entry in the compo I’m in, I feel more accomplished because it means I helped make that compo exciting together with those great pieces. That’s right, I remember some big names rushing in at the end. Nevertheless, this demo stood out for its originality. Thank you. Revision has an award called “Crowd Favorite” where viewers can vote for their favorite demo in any category, and 0mix received first prize. 0mix is a piece that reflects what I love, so I felt happy that everyone else enjoyed it, too. Congratulations! It was indeed a cool demo. Oh, I have a question for you. How do you feel about the code constantly shown in 0mix? What kind of impression does it give you? (Interviewer’s note: I’m not from the programming field. I’m the type of person who chooses a laptop by its color.) Maybe it’s more like a design or typography? It says “live coding,” so I figured this code is for its visuals, but I have absolutely no idea if the code itself is cool or not. If I didn’t know what live coding is, I’d probably just look at it as part of the design, just like seeing the typography in a language I don’t understand. Ah, that’s interesting! Actually, the code displayed on the screen is not for visuals but for music. I use a programming language called GLSL, which is normally used to generate visuals. But 0mix is a live performance-themed demo where I use GLSL for music, and that’s why it’s called “GLSL Techno Live.” If you look at the code closely, you’ll see the parts for instruments, like “KICK,” “HIHAT,” and “BASS.” And by adding and subtracting these elements, I shaped the flow of music. Ohh, so that was code for music! But even after knowing this fact, my impression of this piece hasn’t really changed. I guess that shows I interpreted the code as part of the design. Is it okay if a viewer like me sees it that way? (laughs) In my post about this production on Scrapbox, I wrote, “for viewers without coding knowledge, it feels like music-making magic. And for viewers who know programming languages and environments, it’s a hint to guess the next move.” So I expected that some people would see it as part of the design. To reveal a bit more about my understanding, now I do understand that “demo is generated from an executable file” and that “a 64K piece has a 64KB file.” But I still don’t see things like “this is real-time rendering, so it’s more impressive than live-action” or “it’s great quality considering this is 64KB.” Basically, I watch demos like I watch music videos, and the only thing that matters to me is whether I find it cool or not. Ryoji Ikeda has a work that presents data including planets and genes using 5×5 pixel fonts. Of course, only experts can truly understand such data, so most of us simply enjoy the visual design that comes out of it. Even if we try to find deeper meaning in it, we probably just end up saying something like, “Wow, the world is huge.” I’ve read that Ikeda actually intended for viewers to see it that way. Oh, then I’m actually one of his intended viewers. When I first saw his installation video, I knew him as a musician, so I thought, “Wow, that’s his MV? Cool! Very futuristic!” I later realized that it wasn’t just design. It’s nice to know that creators and demosceners expected viewers like me, and personally, I feel relieved. I’d always thought they might be annoyed to hear a clueless person like me commenting on their piece. (laughs) To me, how others first got interested in a piece or in the culture is as fascinating as the motives behind its creation. So I do appreciate sceners who are not from the tech side! Thank you! That’s really nice and reassuring to hear! OK, let’s go back to that music code. You wrote in your post on Scrapbox that you put a lot of time and effort into the music. Actually, I had never really made this type of techno music before, so I watched a lot of live performances of this style and tutorials on YouTube. I also bought and tried hardware for “machine live” performances, like the Elektron Syntakt and Dirtywave M8, for research. What is “machine live”? “Machine live” is a type of music performance similar to live coding. Performers use music equipment like grooveboxes and modular synths in real-time to control the sound during the performance. What you can do depends on the features of the equipment, so performers always have to be aware of limitations—something somewhat similar to the demoscene. It’s a fascinating culture. There’s even a “DAWless Live” category where you perform without using a DAW, the standard PC-based music production system. For 0mix, I drew a lot of inspiration from the philosophy and methods of machine live and applied them to GLSL live coding. (Reference video) I just watched the reference video you sent me. Does everyone in this scene really use that much gear? Of course not. Not everyone uses this much equipment, or equipment of this size, for live performance. Lately, it seems like the palm-sized Dirtywave M8 is trending for live sets. The Dirtywave M8 uses a tracker-style UI, and it’s fun to compose with. Plus, it fits well with the demoscene aesthetic. I did a lot of research on machine live and live coding performances, and this gave me ideas about how to create sound and how to evolve live performance. But that only covered the technical side. When it comes to making techno, especially abstract sounds, I had to learn through trial and error and trust my feelings. Even after I learned how to make sounds on standard hardware or software, GLSL follows a completely different set of rules, and I had to be really fired up to tackle it. I heard that you did a live performance recently. What kind of event was it? I performed a live coding set at “draw(tokyo); #2” in March 2025. “draw(); ” is a club event focused on audiovisuals, especially live coding and generative VJ (the so-called “gene-kei” performances). It takes place from time to time in VRChat and at physical venues. At draw(tokyo); #2, I performed using Wavenerd, my custom GLSL live coding environment. For my 40-minute live set, I mainly used techno patterns created for 0mix. It was a really memorable experience, since it was my first time doing a live music performance with Wavenerd. I’d love to do more live performances in the future. The “Wavenerd” system I used for my live coding performance at draw(tokyo); #2. Since we were chroma keying with VJ visuals, the background is blue. The performers are always lit up in blue. When a coder does a live music performance, aren’t you too busy typing code in front of the PC to even look at the audience’s reaction? During the performances, I rewrite parts of prewritten code, so I don’t need to constantly keep typing. But I’m busy adding and removing parts, changing parameters, and doing some DJ-style mixing, so basically I completely zone in on the screen. That said, I can still see the audience’s reactions to some extent, and I felt really happy when they reacted at the moments I expected. Do you know who the primary audience is? I guess this kind of live performance requires some knowledge to really enjoy it. I still don’t know what kind of audience it attracts. From what I saw, I got the impression that many of them are interested in musical experiences and visual production at least. But I’m not sure how many are interested in coding, or actually create things with code. How technical it should get, how strictly you stick to the technical restrictions, and how much you make the audience dance—I think performers are expected to balance these elements well. Probably, this is something gene-kei performers constantly have to tackle. In fact, quite a few performers change their set depending on the tone of the event. Did you have VJs for your live performance? Yes, I asked fellow demosceners, ukonpower and Renard, and they generated visuals that matched the techno. I just told them, “I’m going to do 0mix,” and they both knew what it meant, so everything went very smoothly. (laughs) They created visuals in my style, but their own personalities also shone through. It was really cool. Oh, that’s really cool! According to your discography, you also have 4K as well as 64K works. Is there a reason for that? For the 4K intros I’ve released lately, I can usually create them in one or two weeks. But 64K is my soul, so I want to keep making 64K intros. The thing is, 64K requires hundreds of times more work than 4K. So, when I don’t have the time or motivation but still want to contribute to a demoparty, I just make a 4K intro. I must say that the production environment for 4K intros is well-supported in the current demoscene. Recently I’ve been using 0x4015’s minimalGL. With this demotool, I can easily create 4K intros just by writing GLSL. That being said, I wouldn’t recommend it to everyone, because you also have to write the music in GLSL. In 2023, I released a 4K intro called “Architectural Shapeshifter” with Renard. For this piece, Renard was in charge of the concept and visuals, while I was in charge of the music and direction. We used minimalGL for this piece as well. It was the first time for Renard to create a 4K intro, but he was able to create it easily. We collaborated by tweaking the source code on GitHub and communicating via Discord. We exchanged ideas and suggestions on each other’s code, and it turned out to be a very efficient workflow. There are many coders who can write GLSL in Japan, but not many of them take on 4K. So I’d love to collaborate more using minimalGL. What’s hot in the Japanese demoscene these days? What category is popular? I noticed there was a demoparty called SESSIONS in Japan last year. It seems like a lot of people are coming into the demoscene from shader culture centered around VRChat. The people I got to know at demoparties like SESSIONS were mostly active in VRChat. In particular, the event draw(); seems to have a strong influence, and many of the people who got interested in live coding or generative VJ through draw();’s audiovisual experience also developed an interest in the demoscene. Live coding and generative VJ becoming a gateway into the demoscene sounds like a new path to me. Yes, indeed. draw();’s main crew, Saina-san, purposefully aims for a crossover with demoscene culture, like SESSIONS, and this accelerates the influx. We’re really grateful for that. I’m sure a person like that is supporting the demoscene in Japan and around the world. OK, let’s go back to the production. Is there anything you do in everyday life to get inspired for your creations? I check Pouet and Demozoo as much as possible to stay in the know about recent demoscene productions. If I ever stopped checking Pouet and Demozoo, I think that would be the end of me as a demoscener. I also try to take in other cultures as well. Recently, I’ve been fascinated by the flashy audiovisual productions in pachinko and pachislot machines. They use dazzling visuals and music to stir up the spirit of gambling. These productions thoroughly pursue how to exploit the human reward system, all within machines that operate under very strict legal restrictions. In a way, I think this represents the highest peak of visual entertainment. I also go for walks frequently. Especially walking around Tokyo late at night gives me a strong sense of urban life and social activity, and it inspires me a lot. “Domain“, a 64K intro I released at Tokyo Demo Fest 2021, was heavily inspired by night Tokyo. I find the concept of the night city very interesting, and I’d like to explore it further. Which areas do you usually walk around? I mainly walk around downtown. I can feel the rhythm of social activity through people’s movements, clothing, and buildings. It’s also very fun to walk around residential areas. When I imagine that this is someone’s everyday life, I can sense their presence through the scenery. Do you have anything you always keep in mind when you create, like a routine or your own personal rule? For my demo source code, I use Git for version control and share as much of the code as possible on GitHub. Basically, I publish my source code under the Creative Commons BY-NC 4.0 license, and users can adapt and use it freely for non-profit purposes. By publishing my source code, I allow other people to refer to my production methods. In fact, I’ve often heard that people have made demos based on my code. Getting more chances to discover other demosceners’ great works is valuable for me too, so I’ll continue to publish my source code. Also, when I do version control on Git, I try to write commit logs—comments you can add to each version—as detailed as possible. Commit logs explain which part of the code I changed, and they also serve as a kind of production journal. In addition to information like what type of change I made and for what purpose, they help me recall my state of mind or what I was thinking during the creative process. For programmers, is it a hassle to write detailed commit logs? Commit logs aren’t considered a direct contribution to a program, just like READMEs or documentation. So, engineers who want to focus on coding and dislike communicating often don’t write them at all. Usually, detailed commit logs are recommended when you work with other people on business projects. However, even for a one-off piece of code written by a single person, I think we should consider how detailed we make the commit logs, because someone else—or even yourself—may end up reading them like archaeology. Archaeology… that’s interesting. Okay, let me go to the classic question: your favorite demo, a memorable demo, or a demo that changed your life… anything. Tell us about a demo, or demos that are special to you. As I mentioned, “Emix” by Epoch is the demo I like the most. From the theme of each effect to the color grading, glitch effects, music, and direction, this piece defined what a demo should have, for me. Other pieces that helped define my standards include “cdak” by Quite & Orange, “Transformer 3” by Limp Ninja, and “Clean Slate” by Conspiracy. I put them together in my Pouet playlist “0b5vr’s bible”, if you’re interested. Among many other forms of self-expression, why did you choose the demoscene? Or are you trapped by this culture? Tell me what’s so attractive about it. The demoscene is a creative activity free from art as a capital asset or from commercial value. We mostly create and present pieces in a format that has little value in today’s society, and we purely inspire one another’s technical curiosity and the craving for expression. Also, the demoscene ecosystem is cooperative. Anyone can access demotools, ask questions to veterans, and start creating a piece. I respect the works, workflows, and ideas of active demosceners in the community, and that’s what motivates me to create something that earns their recognition. On the other hand, due to the methods used in the demoscene, a lot of pieces look similar, and that’s clearly a weak point of the scene. If I only keep exploring the demoscene, I can’t expand my range of expression. As a creator, I think it’s important to look at various cultures and absorb many different methods of expression. The easy exchange of fresh inspiration is one of the features of the demoscene, so I’d like to take in many forms of expression both inside and outside the scene, and keep inspiring each other. Is there anything you want to do in the future? What I want to do most is live music performance using GLSL, as I mentioned. Seemingly, this format of live music with GLSL is currently performed only by me and “Rakuto-ice” san. So I want to perform more to develop my style further, and I hope more people will enjoy it. And of course, I want to create demos like 64K, but right now I don’t have enough motivation or ideas. To find more motivation and inspiration, I think it’s about time I formed a demogroup. Sounds like there’s much to look forward to! Finally, your message for demosceners and demo fans out there, please. For those of you who are not yet demosceners: I’ve seen many people who have an interest in the demoscene but also fears about the culture itself. And it’s not just Japanese people, people in other countries have reacted that way too. Please don’t be afraid of us. If you are interested in creating something with a computer and having fun at a demoparty, then you are a demoscener. Whether you already have a medium of expression or not, if you join the party, you may naturally feel inspired to think, “I want to express myself too.” Demoparties like Tokyo Demo Fest, SESSIONS, and Revision have various compos, including simple programs, illustration, photography, music, along with the demo compo. Of course, if you want to create a demo, fellow creators will help you. We demosceners hope you will have fun in this scene. For those who are already demosceners (including me): Make 64K! Thank you very much for answering my question, 0b5vr! 0b5vr’s works can be found on Pouet and Demozoo. Also, be sure to check his essay on the production of 0mix on Scrapbox, where he goes deeper into his thoughts on the demoscene and the creative process. Thank you very much for reading this to the end! —————- In case you’re wondering what “demo” or “demoscene” is, better check out the well-made documentary called Moleman2. (and the director, M. Szilárd Matusik’s interview can be read in here.) #1: q from nonoil/gorakubu is here. #2: Gargaj from Conspiracy, Ümlaüt Design is here. #3: Preacher from Brainstorm, Traction is here. #4: Zavie from Ctrl-Alt-Test is here. #5: Smash from Fairlight is here. #6: Gloom from Excess, Dead Roman is here. #7: kioku from System K is here. #8: kb from Farbrausch is here. #9: iq from RGBA is here. #10: Navis from Andromeda Software Development is here. #11: Pixtur from Still, LKCC is here. #12: Cryptic from Approximate is here. #13: 0x4015 aka Yosshin is here. #14: Flopine from Cookie Collective is here. #15: noby from Epoch, Prismbeings is here. Why I’m interested in demoscene is explained in this article. And for some of my other posts related to “demo and “demoscene” culture is here.