When the big Hollywood studios market a film, they often spend millions on public relations, glitzy posters, and over-the-top TV ads. But what about the independent filmmaker who barely has enough money to get a film in the can, let alone market it?

Enter Phototropos, a new Boston-based company that creates and produces digital commercials for the Web and CD. Phototropos combines the talents of Jim Infantino, a Web animator and singer/songwriter; Liz Linder, a noted photographers and Aaron Shadwell, a sound designer. The company officially opened for business in November 2002.

The name "Phototropos" was inspired by the zoetrope, an optical device that was invented in 1834 by William Horner. The zoetrope created the illusion of action and plot by spinning images in a cylinder. A viewer could look through the wall of the zoetrope from any point around it and see a rapid progression of images. The device eventually fell by the wayside in the late 1800s, when George Eastman invented flexible photographic film that could be held on a reel. In 1895, modern cinema was born.

Fast forward to 2002, when Phototropos resurrected the concept of the zoetrope and found a way to breathe new life into an old technology.

"What we do is present pictures in sequence with text and set it to sound and/or music. Like the zoetrope, a 'phototrope' is a jagged, rough continuum of pictures. A lot of people are looking for this type of rough look these days. They also like the emotional impact it provides," explains Jim Infantino, one of Phototropos' three founders.

The company created its first phototrope last Fall. Entitled "State of Security," the piece pokes fun at the government's color-coded alert system and the confusion and paranoia it creates. Infantino explains, " Liz became intrigued with the way people were reacting to the 'orange alert.' So she decided to take pictures of people wrapped in plastic. Aaron then created a soundscape and I had an idea for an original song. We put the montage together and posted it on the Web."

For the cash-strapped independent filmmaker who wants to create a teaser or ad for their film, Phototropos offers two big advantages. The first is cost. A typical 3-minute phototrope will typically cost $6,000 or less, which is tens of thousands of dollars less than what it usually costs to produce an ad or trailer.

Another advantage is quick production time. A typical phototrope can be created in about two weeks, and then easily posted onto a web site or burned into a CD. "A phototrope only takes up 2 megabytes on the Web, allowing it to be dowloaded and viewed very quickly, even by someone who has a dial-up connection," according to Infantino..

The process begins Liz Linder who takes pictures of the people or subject matter to be featured in the phototrope. From there, Infantino and Shadwell collaborate, working on sound and animation and eventually building a soundscape for the photos.

Infantino explains, "Then it's a matter of animating to the sound and brining in other graphic elements, if necessary. The completed phototrope usually runs about 3 minutes. But in that 3 minutes, you're presented with about 100 photographs. There's a very organic and nostalgic feel to it; it's very eye-catching."

Phototropos sees its new medium as both an appealing and affordable alternative for anyone who wants to convey information in a fun and exciting way. "We think this technology will appeal to a lot of different people and companies," says Infantino. "A phototrope can be used as an advertisement, for business proposals and presentations, to display real estate, to promote bands and music, to carry messages for political campaigns. It can even be used to create a virtual wedding album. We also think working with filmmakers would be a blast. We can help them produce a trailer, or something even more interactive."

For more information on Phototropos, visit. phototropos.com The site offers a sampling of the company's work to date.