Résumé: The Ride
My idea is to create an exciting and innovative way to display my résumé using projection mapping to project animations, photos, and videos onto a model that also incorporates other special effects and moving parts to tell my professional and educational story. I am inspired by this project and the potential it has because I feel as though this is something I can truly pour myself into over the course of the next 7 months, and I also feel that I can continue to build upon it and improve it until the day of the show. I get very invested in things that I enjoy, and simply thinking about this project has me very excited. Although this project will be a great deal of fun for me, I feel that it can also help my future significantly, being that I will be presenting my passion for working in theme parks in an innovative way and shows that I want to continue down this path.
Although it is clear why I am extremely excited by this project, I feel that others will enjoy it too, because who doesn’t love theme parks? My project will be exciting to watch and aesthetically pleasing. With music, narration, moving parts, practical effects, and projection mapping, the presentation will be a little bit over the top, but I feel that that is the best way to go with something like this. As far as my research has shown me at this point, nobody has done something exactly like this just yet. With projections mapped onto a tabletop model with moving parts and different effects, my project will likely be the first of its kind and will let the viewer feel as though they are visiting a miniature theme park.
I plan on using the makerspace to fabricate a model that would be suitable for my project. The model will be created using wood, metal, and plastic, with motors, lights, and a few other systems that will be used to create effects during the “show”. The model will likely be a combination of a few things, such as a castle, a mountain, a roller coaster, or others. I will likely need at least two projectors for my project, depending on the design of the model. If time permits, I would ideally add a few small pyrotechnic and water effects into the show to highlight different parts of my career. By the end of this semester, I hope to have a solid plan for the model, with construction possibly beginning, and I would like to have a full draft of my “show” written up with a rough cut of the video/audio being put together. If I can achieve these things, I feel that I will be on the right track to completing this project, and I will know where I need to focus more of my time, being that I will be attempting to begin several parts of this project. I also will begin to study projection mapping and start to play around with it so I will be comfortable with the software I choose.
As we discussed in class, it would be interesting to build this as a linear on-rails ride, and have a camera attached to the car.
It would be satisfying if the metaphors you use in the ride — mountains, castles, caves, etc — were somehow tied to the story you’re trying to tell — your story — rather than just being literal references to that particular item on your resume.