Challenges
Working in a group can always be challenging for various different reasons, but the good thing with us
was that we all had similar interests despite having completely different styles and each one of us
brought a different skill set to the group.
In terms of challenges we did encounter trouble while focusing on conceptualisation, technicalities and production.
Hover over the three key points to access the segment!
Throughout the ideation process, we struggled to find a concrete goal for our project, mainly because of the fact that most of our concepts were extremely vague in nature and linking it both conceptually and visually was challenging. Instead of having a final objective with a set goal in mind, we did a lot of brainstorming and experimentation on touchdesigner to create a better concept both visually and conceptually. After several consultations and discussions, we decided to create a prototype for live events, drawing inspiration from Singapore's concert culture and nightlife.
SOFTWARE
Understanding how touchdesigner worked through inputs and outputs via nodes rather than just code was greatly aided by learning it through YouTube and online classes. Once we got the hang of the software, we all experimented with different Touchdesigner tools and produced results with varying interactive outcomes in terms of motion, light, and sound. To prevent overwhelming the prototype's function, the major piece of advise was to limit the involvement of senses when projecting to one or two.
It is worth noting that the visual designs have an impact on the overall aesthetic of the project. It's also crucial to note that running a particular software on a system that was not meant for it can be difficult. Touchdesigner is developed for a Windows system, and using a Mac system wasn't the best case scenario because Touchdesigner contains functions that are not always supported by Mac. So figuring out how to overcome those obstacles was very time consuming.
We all underestimated how much time and effort would be required for production. It's not always easy to execute a product while attempting to recreate a professional setting. People are unaware of the amount of administrative work that goes into the final execution. Finding an appropriate space for the project while arranging for all the materials like projectors, light, sound systems is also extremely time consuming and expensive.
Since we were experimenting with real-time data, there is always an uncertainty and unexpectedness about how much data could be collected. For us having people interact with the prototype was extremely important in terms of collecting data, it was quite underwhelming to see how less people came to actually participate due to various different reasons.