Education
University of California, Los Los Angeles
University of California, Los Los Angeles
Born in Cleveland, he received degrees in Design and Film from University of California, Los Los Angeles He began his work in computer graphics in the 1950s, as an apprentice to John Whitney. In the 1960s and early 1970s, Abel wrote or directed several films, including The Making of the President, 1968, Elvis on Tour and Let the Good Times Roll. In 1971, Abel and Con Pederson founded Robert Abel and Associates (Research Associate&A), creating slit-scan effects and using motion-controlled cameras for television commercials and films.
Research Associate&A began using Evans & Sutherland computers to previsualize their effects.
This led to the creation of the trailer for The Black Hole, and the development of their own software for digitally animating films (including Tron). In 1984, Robert Abel and Associates produced a commercial named Brilliance for the Canned Food Information Council for airing during the Super Bowl.
lieutenant featured a sexy robot with reflective environment mapping and human-like motion. Abel & Associates closed in 1987 following an ill-fated merger with now defunct Omnibus Computer Graphics, Incorporated., a company which had been based in Toronto.
In the 1990s, Abel founded Synapse Technologies, an early interactive media company, which produced pioneering educational projects for International Business Machines Corporation, including "Columbus: Discovery, Encounter and Beyond" and "Evolution/Revolution: The World from 1890-1930".
Abel died from complications following a myocardial infarction at the age of 64.