Digital Media Level 3 Semester B

After testing out the PicoPix, I tested a range of other desktop projectors in order to compare there effectiveness to the PicoPix.

An advantage of the PicoPix is its internal memory, meaning it doesn’t to have to be plugged into a source to work. The desktop projectors require a source to work. However, this gives them an advantage as it allows them to display a wider range of content, as it can display anything that is present on the source device.  To use these projectors, the source, as well as the projector, will need to be hidden from the audience.

One main advantage of being connected to a source device is the ability to display live content, such as a video call. This is not possible on the smaller PicoPix.

However, unlike the PicoPix, the desktop projectors lack the ability to display sound. This means that the sounds will come from the projectors source. although this could be a disadvantage, a laptop source can connect to an external speaker, allowing the audio to come from closer to the final image output. By coming from the projector, the audio is coming from a different location to the final image. An external audio output will be more ideal, to keep the audio and visual elements together.

The size of the projectors make them harder to hide than the PicoPix, and they have large fans in order to keep them working over large periods of time, such as the final exhibition. The presence of these fans means it could be dangerous to cover the projectors, as this could result in over-heating. This will mean that the projectors will have to be integrated into the environment or left out in the open. Not hiding the projectors is a more ideal solution in the final exhibition, then covering them and risking them shutting off. Ensuring that the projectors work is the main priority, and hiding them comes second.

To practice ahead of my ghost tour, I used the Phillips PicoPix to experiment with projecting pictures. By practicing in different settings, I can determine what works, and what doesn’t, ahead of the final piece.

The PicoPix allows for images to be stored directly onto the projector. This means it does not have to be connected to a device in order to display an image, making it easier to hide the device, as opposed to a big projector, as it does not need to be connected to a computer.

The first thing I experimented with was backgrounds, to see what wouldn’t show up when projected. The colours I experimented with were black and white. The black blended into the background, where as the white stood out too much. However, pictures with no background looked the best when projected.

The next element I experimented with was lighting. Obviously, the darker the room, the brighter the projected image would be. The darkness also adds to the atmosphere of the haunted setting. However, the images can still be seen when the lights are on. These are harder to see and look more faded, which could work well with the spectral aesthetic. This use of lighting can be used to create a contrast between the different ghosts in the event. It can also be used to ‘hide’ a ghost, and then bring it into the fore-focus by dimming the lights, and making the projected image stand out more. The distance of the projector from the surface the image is being displayed on also has an effect on the brightness. The closer to the surface, the brighter the image. However, this makes the image smaller. Distance will be a key part to consider, in order to get the correct balance of brightness to image size.

Positioning was the next element I experimented with. A key part of creating the illusion is hiding the projector. In order to do this, I tried shining the projector onto a mirror, and then using the reflection as the final projected image. I was able to reflect the image onto the intended surface, giving me more options when looking to hide the projectors in the exhibition. By angling the mirror, I am able to direct the image further from the projector location. This could allow for the projector to be hidden in a location the audience would not expect, making the appearance of the image more of a surprise and make the source easier to disguise. However, this could have negative effects on brightness due to the increased distance. If the source is hidden too well, then the audience could walk in front of it, breaking the illusion.

On Sunday Feb 26th, I went to the Barbican centre in London to watch Hatsune Miku: Still Be Here. Hatsune Miku is a volcaloid; a holographic Japanese idol. Still Be Here was an art piece that talked about the lifespan and creation of Miku, her impact on the fan base, and how her music is created and presented. It also featured a ‘live’ performance by Hatsune Miku herself.

https://www.barbican.org.uk/music/event-detail.asp?ID=20330

For the performance, the character of Hatsune Miku is projected onto a plain of perspex positioned in front of screens on the stage. Miku herself is then projected onto said screen by multiple projectors in, in order to make her look 3D and like an actual person on stage. This perspex screen separates her from the background, further making Miku look like she is a real person on the stage. Miku then sings and dances as if she is a real person performing on stage. This is created using both the Volcaloid software, for the singing, and a mixture of programming Kinect software, and motion captured choreography in order to give her realistic dance movements.

Still Be Here commented on the Miku-phenomeon as a whole, and examined how a projected character could become a world wide celebrity. Afterwards, the creators of the piece talked about how they created Miku for this performance; giving insight into how they made a projected character look and act as if they were a human performer on the stage. They created content in the real world and then transformed it into a digital piece; merging the two in the process.

Hatsune Miku shows how a digital creation can go on to be a celebrity. By being a projection, she has the advantage of being able to be anywhere, and perform to any audience around the world. This also gives her the ability to be in more than one place at the same time, furthering her reach. By being a digital creation, Miku is the ideal celebrity, as she is unable to do anything that could be harmful to her reputation.Her content can be created by fans, and anyone can put their work into the Volcaloid program.

Hatsune Miku shows the advantage of working with projections instead of real people, as it allows more to be done with them, whilst still presenting them as real in the real world. Creating my ghost in the real world could be done in the same way as Miku is created, in order to make them look more tangible. Setting them away from the surroundings makes the character look more able to interact with said surroundings, and puts them further into the environment.

On Sunday Feb 26th, I took a trip to the London Dungeon. This attraction gives its audience a tour of London through key events in history, with a gruesome and horror-esche twist. Going through Guy Fawkes and the Plague, up to Jack the Ripper and other historical events. Most of the events are told through live actors and interactions with the environment, however ‘4D’ elements such as water shots, air blowers, and sound effects are also used to bring the experience to life and set the scene.

https://www.thedungeons.com/london/en/

The attraction instantly sets up a spooky atmosphere with the first part of the sequence; an elevator ride down to the rest of the attraction. This takes place in pitch black, with ropes used for the gallows hanging down in the lift. A voice over explains that the audience are all traitors, and conspirators in the Gunpowder plot, setting up the next sequence. The darkness and unnerving atmosphere sets up the entire attraction, putting a sense of unease into the audience that lasts for the entire journey. This is further enhanced by a jump scare right at the beginning of the tour, scaring the audience and keeping them in that sense of heightened fear for the rest of the tour. Setting the atmosphere instantly allows the audience to be engaged with the scenes, and keeps them focused on the action at hand.

Projections are used effectively in the Gunpowder plot segment of the attraction. The audience are escorted to the room where the gunpowder was, and a royal guard is there to greet the audience. Behind them is a projection of Guy Fawkes’ head on a pike. During this talk, the head comes alive and starts talking to the guard. The conversation runs fluidly, and is an expert example of how timing between a live actor and a projection is important. If the actor was out of time, there would either be long pauses between pieces of dialogue, or the projection and actor would end up talking over each other. This timing is important to achieve, else it loses its effect. By projecting the image of a head onto a sculpted one gives it the realistic skull shape it would have if it was a severed head. This effect cannot be achieved by a video alone. Due to the repetition of the sequence, the head is pre-recorded in order to ensure consistency, and lower the chance of human error.

Another key part of the attraction that has helped inspire me is the pub scene in the Jack the Ripper time. Set 1 year after the last of the Ripper murders, it shows the pub being haunted by a ghost of some kind. The bar maid tells the story about the murders and whilst she is, the lights keep cutting out (allowing her to move to a new place no one can see till they come back up) and having items in the room move; a lantern on the bar, the widows slamming shut etc. This slow build up sets the mood, and has the audience on edge for what is going to happen next. This comes in the form of the Ripper, who appears out of nowhere from the darkness in a strobe light. The build up to this made the pay off more impactful, and shows that the best scares come from the build up to them. This not only shows an effective way to build up to a climax, but shows how to demonstrate effective and believable poltergeist activity.

In the Victorian Era, mortality rates were high, especially among young children. In order to preserve their image, families would take pictures together as a memento. However, sometimes they posed with their dead relatives, as this would be the only memory of them they would have. In these photos, the dead would be positioned alongside the living in order to create a family photo. Due to the long exposure method of taking photos in that era, the stillness of the dead made them appear more in focus than the living; the opposite of how ghost are perceived in modern style ghost pictures.

In the modern day, death photography is much less present, and people are early, if ever, seen posing with their deceased relatives. The evolution of digital software means that people no longer have to pose of corpses to be with people who have died. However, this does not mean pictures with the dead no longer exist. One photographer who does this is Joel Paul Witkin. Witkin uses severed limbs and skeletons in his photographs in order to give them a macabre feeling. The surrealist pictures use black and white tones, as well as the people parts in with everyday objects to reflect on the morality of people. This is reminiscent of the Victorian Death Photography style, playing off the style and imitations of the old photography in order to create a style that reflects the same macabre feeling.

By looking at how the dead are portrayed, I can work to incorporate this style into my work. By being able to show those who have passed on in a way that reflects the time period will ground the work in its mies-en-scene, combining to enhance the overall piece. By looking into the victorian era, the photos from the time can be featured in the scene, in order to build up the atmosphere around the exhibition to match the content. However, if I look at a modern ghost story, the modern aesthetic can be used to create and build the scene. By matching the surrounding photos to the scene, I can further enhance the atmosphere of the exhibition, by reflecting the themes of the content in it’ surroundings.