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My strengths during this project have included the initial concept, I wasn’t afraid to try something new this semester and I knew projection mapping would be a challenging and rewarding digital context to work within.

 

My overall presentation and design has improved greatly from last semester and ‘The Envision Cube Online’ is the highlight of all my work, the website reflects my personal style, as well as the themes and branding throughout the project, the navigation and quality of content matches the expectations found in a final project.

 

Some of my weaknesses could include the final exhibition design, unfortunately the entire cube could not be projected as previously discussed and this initially put my motivation down, however it did allow for an opportunity to create the documentary, this wasn’t something I originally thought about.

 

Furthermore, the playback of the documentary, in terms of the screen flickering when being recorded lowers the clarity and presentation of the final work, some of this was improved in post-production, however perhaps in a larger setting or industry equipment, such as the cameras found in the TV studio, this could be improved upon, something I should have planned.

 

One opportunity the project presented me included making use of the photographical skills I already had, my work in freelance photography meant most participants felt comfortable with me taking their photo and this allowed for easier content collection.

 

A further opportunity came from understanding the difference between generations and what can be learned from this, various opinions and dreams differed based on how old the individual was. The older generation looked forward to retirement plans, where as a young participant idealised a future filled with love, kindness and acceptance.

 

A threat I faced during this project was time management, working on two separate modules lead to fitting in parts of the project as it went, including the various photoshoots, exhibition time and website building. However, this was managed reasonably well and only caused a mild level of stress.

 

A final threat came from construction and set up of the cube itself, plywood is a thin material that can break if too much pressure is applied, there were several moments where the whole cube nearly broke beyond repair, including almost collapsing during the exhibition recording, this would have been costly and time consuming, if it weren’t for the constant maintaining of the cube.

 

 

Overall ‘The Envision Cube’ project was a success and demonstrated several key areas of production, experimentation and design, with all areas of the project challenging me to learn new skills and overcome several problems at developing stages.

 

The projects main aim was to leave a lasting legacy for those who participated, whilst presenting the information in the most creative and digital way, I believe this was achieved, with many individuals expressing their admirations for the project through both the social media channels or personal conversation.

 

The concept was a long process and involved many changes along the way, in particular around the final exhibition and the best way to present the content, it was quickly obvious that projecting onto two sides of the cube with one projector meant some warping occurred, therefore the cube would require 5 projectors onto the 5 available sides in order to clearly display each short film.

 

Furthermore, only one HDMI projector was available for the project, meaning only one side could be filmed at any one time, this meant piecing several clips together in the concept of a documentary, to demonstrate how the exhibition could look if it were to be repeated.

 

Working alongside Yasmin Palmer allowed for a second voice on the project and for our creativity to mix and finalise ‘The Envision Cube’ project, Yasmin produced some amazing work alongside the two main concepts (Documentary and Website) after following some instruction. She is responsible from the crisp branding, exhibition poster and information booklet, found through this research and development document, all of which add more content and professionalism to the final project.

 

There was plenty of research available on both projection mapping, generation ideology and tutorials on the animation and technical sides of the project. Many examples have shown how to display an idea in an exhibition setting and choosing projection mapping as the main digital concept keeps the project fresh and current.

 

The construction of the cube generated £29 in cost, but the intention was to build something that was light enough to be suspended in the centre of the room, originally timber was going to be used, however I decided plywood would be better because it was lighter and easy to cut, which made the construction process more manageable and saved time.

 

The bed sheet acted as a perfect screen in which to project onto, however original test footage showed the sheet to be too thin, casting the projection onto the space behind.

This actually created a more unique effect, as seen in the documentary, because it lit up several sides and acted as a template projection for the cube’s sides that lacked any projector, therefore accidently adding an interesting shot.

 

The photographical side of ‘The Envision Cube’ was perhaps the simplest part, I already have a large understanding of photography, therefore this became a fun and rewarding section to the project, with many participants willing the help, 15 individuals and their envisions were collected in total, with several more participants willing to help, after the submissions had closed, already demonstrating how this project could be repeated again in the future.

 

The content generated was varied and allowed for a short understanding into different generations and ideology, some older participants included a discussion of simple dreams, including surfing and cold callers. Whereas the younger generation demonstrating an understanding of the future and how people should progress, with the focus being success, happiness and love.

 

‘The Envision Cube Online’ demonstrates the success and style of the project, the website acts a clear portal from which a future audience can reflect or contribute to the previous or upcoming Envision Cube project.

 

Everything from the layout, navigation, colour and font needed to reflect the modern designs and interaction we currently see, it was also important to keep the same branding across multiple media, in order to keep the same ideas branched under one project, this is reflected across the documentary, website, project research and development.

 

The project needed to include digital aspects, therefore several areas of the short films include animation to digitally bring them to life. Initially ‘The Envision Cube’ branding was manipulated using a trap code effect in Adobe After Effects, this would form the branding based on dust particles, then disperse them again.

 

However, the trap code software required a full and expensive license in order to export any footage, therefore Graham Cooper suggested using Pixel Polly, this effect shattered the logo into fragments after fading in, the new piece of animation was an ideal way to make the projects branding more exciting and resolved the earlier problem.

 

During the documentary, just showing a photograph and then the individual envision appeared boring, so I decided to create 7-second-long animations that would display a graphic over stock footage. Therefore, a visual representation of that participant’s contribution, for example one additions discussing love, so a heart graphic beats over a pink mist, these inclusions added more depth and colour to a previously static projection.

 

In future, motion tracking would add an interesting element to the project, the cube could be moving from side to side and a projector could track a digital display onto each side, this idea came from a project called INORI (PRAYER) and uses a fast motion tracking projector and laser light show. The envision cube could perhaps even turn in the centre of a space, with each film changing and tracking from each side, creating a real potential for the project to expand in the future.

 

Finally, a lot was learned from previous work in Media Project 1, in order to make Media Project 2 a success, I wanted to move away from digital concepts that I was comfortable with and challenge myself to produce something different, I’m proud of ‘The Envision Cube’ and I feel it reflects both my personal design and final envision.

During the exhibition, only 3 projectors are available to be used in order to create the 5 sides of projection mapping.

Therefore two of the projectors will have to split the films across to separate screens, this process can be achieved by splitting two films together, and then angling the projector, so the split goes down the corner of the cube, placing the two films on opposite sides.

Furthermore, each envision is now accompanied by a short animation + stock footage that visualises their thought.