Sunstone (1979) is film version of computer animation: it was made using a digital paint program at New York Institute of Technology — a collaboration between Emshwiller and Alvy Ray Smith. Sunstone exhibited at many places, including SIGGRAPH '79 in Chicago, New York's WNET television show video/film Review, 1979, and the Mill Valley Film Festival, Mill Valley, California, 1981. Originally released as a videotape.
Synopsis: Sunstone is a prime example of Emshwiller's artful use of technology to create stunning images. A timeless face, carved from stone as a 'third eye', appears radiating color and forms that are computer generated.
Sunstone proved a artistic breakthrough for Emshwiller, with a technological subtlety of color and shape that gave the three-minute metamorphosis of a face and a cube.