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Interactive Sculpture Blog Post

Here is the link to my pitch for my interactive sculpture: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1udhcNG_BfvJvT96M0iBMdBztU966nM-RGLxNLJi6Zno/edit?usp=sharing  

My interactive sculpture consists of a picture of a pyramid of dominoes, and in front of the picture is a small table with a pile of dominos sitting in front of it.  People are allowed to stack the dominos in whatever shape they want, and leave it that way for the next person to find.  The most important part of the sculpture is that I am present to observe how people interact with it, but I would need to be somewhere far enough from the sculpture for people to not think I was overseeing.  I created this sculpture because I wanted it to be somewhat open-ended.  With dominoes there are multiple different possibilities for the audience to take the sculpture in a different direction.  I’d want to watch and see how many people try to replicate the structure in the picture.  I think that this would be an interesting interactive sculpture to be able to observe.

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Midterm Part 2

The results of your in-class user-testing. What did you learn from watching someone experience your Decision Tree? How did the user test help move your project forward?

For my in-class user testing, I presented the twitter thread via screen sharing and read the decision options to the class, then walked them through the game.  By observing the class and watch them try to anticipate the next correct decision choice, I could tell that my game came out the way I intended.  When I was creating the game, I kept in mind that I did not want it to be too predictable because it was modeled after a horror movie, and one thing I disliked about these types of movies is how predictable they are. The user-test that I did in class with Hollis helped move my project forward in that she gave me advice on how to make my game’s decision options more clear for the audience to understand.

 The public link to your Twitter Thread (This twitter account will need to be public)

https://twitter.com/genspockets/status/1374317873741594630?s=20

Final thoughts and insights on the project.What did you find challenging or interesting about this project? What would you do differently next time?

What I found most challenging about this project was figuring out how to use twitter in order to make a long thread.  It took me some time to realize that I would have to make separate threads for each decision option and then link them back to the main thread.  This part was a bit confusing.  I actually forgot to do this a few times and ended up having to delete some posts and re-do some of the decision options.  I think the most interesting part of the project was being able to watch my audience engage with my thread.  It was good to see them enjoy the game, because I intended for it to be entertaining.  They seemed to have enjoyed my game and the media that I included.  Next time I think I would try to use a different platform instead of Twitter for my game.

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Week 1 Blogpost (Decision Tree Questions)

1. My Text Based Adventure is based on the show American Horror Story.  The game takes place in the ninth season of the show, at a cursed summer camp where a serial killer is on the loose and murdering campers every day.  My intended audience is my followers on twitter.  I think this topic will be compelling because everyone has seen a horror film at some point and should be familiar with most of the tropes that I include in the game.  Most people also understand how frustrating it is in a horror movie when the characters die because they made a decision that was obviously not the right choice to make.  I think the entertaining part of the game is that the audience will have a chance to move this storyline in the direction that they want it to go, and the gifs and pictures I use will help to illustrate the plot.  

2. Questions used: 

You and your friends are in your cabin a 30 minute walk from the entrance.   Do you stay in the cabin or make a run for it?

You survive the night.  On your way to breakfast, you notice a trail of blood leading towards the pool.  Do you investigate or mind your business and continue to breakfast?

You finish breakfast.  On your way to your first camp activity, a police officer stops you.  He says he is a detective and asks you if you have seen any unusual activity around the camp.  Do you say no or tell him about the blood at the pool?

The officer thanks you for your time and you continue on your way to your first activity for the day: volleyball.  When you get there your teammates are talking about the murderer on the loose and wondering why he hasn't been caught yet.  Do you join the conversation or wait for the game to start?

You tell your teammates about the trail of blood that you saw going towards the pool and that suspicious looking cop who stopped you earlier.  One the kids' eyes widens and he starts shaking.  Do you ask him what's wrong or change the subject?

The kid explains " Well I'm a daily commuter and on my bus ride to camp, I noticed a police car off to the side of the road.  It was kind of rocking so me and my friend were laughing because we thought the officers were being unprofessional.  But as our bus approached we took out our cell phones to get a video, and we saw a man inside of the cop car slicing the police officer's throat open with a machete. So that means the cop you saw on your way here...wasn't an officer" You're shocked.  Do you stay and  play volleyball or go back to your cabin and start packing?

You go back to your cabin and while you stuff all of your things into your bookbag, your homegirl Jess walks in.  You explain the situation to her.  You guys make a plan to sneak out past security and get to the nearest bus stop, 2 miles away.But first you have to sneak into the office and get your cellphones that were confiscated on the first day of camp.  You get to the office and peek through the window.  The secretary is sitting at her desk and behind her is a big file cabinet labeled "cellphones".  Do you try to distract her or just walk into the office?

You walk in the office and the secretary rolls her eyes at you because she hates young people.  "Can I help you?", she says.  Do you ask for your phones or take them?

The secretary gets up and stops you. "Um excuse me, I said can I help you?"Do you try explain the situation to her or move around her?

"Sorry lady." You brush past her and she gets on the phone to call the camp director while you and Jess dig through the disorganized cabinet of cell phones.  After a few minutes you find them.  You see the camp director's golf cart pulling up and run out the side door, and you duck for cover behind some trees.  The director is visibly upset that she can't find you.  She pulls out one of her walkie talkies and makes an announcement to the staff about two missing campers that need to be brought back to her office immediately.Great, now everyone is looking for you guys.Do you take your original route to the camp exit or go through the woods?

You head deeper into the woods.  As you guys walk, you realize that taking this route means you'll have to pass by the swinning pool. Do you continue or turn back?

You decide to just hurry up and get past the pool as quickly as you can.  Thankfully the trail leading to the pool is taped off with crime scene tape.  Just when you thought you were in the clear, you see flashing red lights.  It's the cop.  Do you make a run for it or stop and talk ?

You stop and the officer pulls up to you.  "You ladies shouldn't be in this area.  This is an active crime scene"  He pauses and locks eyes with you.  He recognizes you from earlier.  "Tsk tsk the director is very upset with you two.  Get in the back."Do you get in the car or refuse?

"No," you say.   "Now we can do this the easy way, or the hard way.  You two are very nice looking young ladies, and I would hate to have to use force."Do you keep refusing or give in and get in the car?

"NO!!!!"The cop gets out of the car. "Alright then, it looks like you chose the hard way.  He starts getting out of his car.  "Put your hands where I can see them."  This is your last chance to run.  Do you put your hands up or run?

You and Jess put your hands up against the car.  As he starts to put you in handcuffs, Jess jumps on him and they wrestle on the floor.  She kicks him in the mouth and grabs his gun.  Do you stand there in shock or get in the driver's seat?

You get in the driver's seat.  Do you escape or back over him a few times first?

You back over him a few times then handcuff his wrists and feet, and then leave an anonymous tip with the sheriff's office.  You guys decide to leave camp, because this summer has been crazy.  

Explanation:  Most of the questions that I asked were general questions that directly advanced the plot.  Some of the smaller questions that I included during direct confrontations were there to make the dialogue a bit more realistic.  Some of the “correct” choices were actually the opposite of what most people might choose, and I did this partially so that the story wouldn’t be too predictable and also sometimes for comedic effect.    

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Miroboard Decision Tree

Here is the link to the decision tree: https://miro.com/welcomeonboard/Zvb0yYiCc8TvHM58INqwooxcAMpZs7qRFsMI7Gsdw7LRK6OwpbxDyuoc6EGy3rXA

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Art Museum Prototypes

For this interactive Museum I chose to include both artwork that I created myself and art that has inspired me to create.  I tend to draw inspiration from pop culture references and media, which is why I included popular video games and advertisements.   Because I could not fit all of the videos into one post, I posted the videos of each prototype individually to this blog.

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I chose the mario logo because I used it to link to a song that I made which is titled “Nintendo DS”. The song was inspired by me playing super mario brothers growing up, and it features some sound effects from the actual game.  When activated, the song plays in the background.  When creating this blip I was thinking about ways that I could advertise my music in the real world.  I thought that this blip would be an effective way to draw more listeners in. 

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I chose the sonic video game cover as a continuation of the theme of advertising and video games.  This time, the marker brings the users to the title screen for the original Sonic the Hedgehog game that was released for the SEGA Genesis console in the 90s.

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The next marker is an anti-smoking sticker that I drew.  I used it to continue the theme of promoting and advertising.  The image that comes up is a picture of statistics from an anti-smoking campaign.  

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I chose to include my drawing of myself on the train because I wanted to make sure that this project featured some of the visual art that I made.  The theme in this drawing is the daily commute that I had to take to and from high school.  Because the commute was an hour long (sometimes more), I usually slept on the train.  The image that comes up when the marker is activated is another drawing that I made of a nightmare.  The audio that plays in the background is actual audio footage of the subway that I used to ride to school. 

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For the last blipp, the marker I used was a picture of myself. When scanned this marker brings up a video of myself.  I sometimes take walks and go to this area along the East River to watch the sun set and have alone time.  I also keep a video diary where I make video notes or record messages to my future self.  The video that comes up is an excerpt from my video diary.  I included this blipp because photography is one of my favorite forms of media for self-expression, and I thought that using a blip in a photography exhibit would be an interesting way to bring another dimension to my work.  Photos can be very open to interpretation to the audience, but I think that using the photos as part of a blip can help create a different level of interpretation.