GMU:Immersive Essays/Kristin Jakubek: Difference between revisions

- The finished experience has a specific focus on trying to visualise Ketamine as a felt experience, however, it includes no comment or draws focus to the multifaceted controversial aspects related to Ketamine use and mental health, which initially drew me to the subject.  

== '''Background Info/ Subject Intro''' ==

[[File:chair.png]]

''The treatment chair became the anchoring point for the viewer. I modified a 3D model of a dentist chair from Sketchfab inside Cinema4D by adding a blanket with a print, which make it tie-in with the overall style of the experience.''  

[[File:Scene1.4.png]]

[[File:monitor.png]]

One primary aim for the project was to create a visual style that feels artistic and personal. I wanted to get away from a general ‚computer game style‘ as  the ‚default‘ look of downloadable models (from Sketchfab) that seen inside Unity felt like they had nothing to do with me. To achieve a step in the right direction I modified  textures, created shapes inside Cinema4D and re-composed models before placing them inside the Unity Editor. The look inside C4D vs. Unity is visibly different and signifies that I still have much to learn in terms of shaders and controlling light in a scene.  

Nudibranch are sea slugs, that are small and squishy in extravagant colours and patterns. Originally I wanted to insert one as a kind of ‚spirit guide‘ into the VR experience. Eventually this adapted to creating abstract shapes that float around the viewer in the final scene. The shapes are created inside C4D and had to be reduced to low poly meshes with a backed texture to run correctly inside Unity. I animated  these shapes to float with a script that allows me to modify their coordinates in the inspector window.

== '''Scene 2.1''' ==

The final sequence borders on a sensory overload as the plane on which an edited video sequence is playing, is attached to the user‘s point-of view, meaning wherever the viewer looks the plane is at the centre of vision. After struggling to find other virtual forms for video presentation, with this solution I found a compromise between the established, conventional, flat format for playing videos and an immersive virtual space. Moreover, because of this, by looking around the viewer can influence the interplay between the playing video and his/her surroundings opening up the space for a personalised view while inside the experience. As every Ketamine-therapy trip is highly individualistic this was an additional aspect I‘d hoped to incorporate.  

Here, I find the contrast between video footage depictions from ‚real-life‘ placed inside a virtual environment particularly exciting. To draw from the video essay approach, the video is using moving image as a compilation and assembly in the pursuit of creating something new from previously existing media found in digital archives, like Youtube, hosted online.