VFX Voice - Fall 2017

six 9’ x 9’ pods that held one person at a time for a personal immersive
experience. “We go to great lengths to consider the audience,”
continues Spiteri. “VR is a powerful medium and you can instill a
high degree of empathy and can also scare people easily. We aim for
the right level of awe. No cheap scares. No shark jumps out at you.”
Rowell adds, “Exploration is the heart of what ‘theBlu’ is.” Meeting
a full-sized whale, even virtually, is awesome. “The creature
acknowledges you’re there and they’re there. The connection is
very powerful.”
According to Spiteri, reactive sea anemones and bioluminescent
creatures are possible because, “It’s a combination of software,
custom development of code and algorithms, and creating
a simulation engine that determines how the fish move and
swim.” Explains Rowell, “‘TheBlu’ code base lives in Unity – the
rendering engine. It’s flexible and customizable and can achieve
many different looks. We set a series of ‘go-to’ points in the story.
Some parts are scripted, but the ocean still needs to feel alive and
random.” Art is also critical, and the work of Academy Awardwinning
visual effects artist Andy Jones was key.
The Museum of Science, Boston has taken a deep dive into tech
in order to excite visitors and inspire life-long learning. “Particle
Mirror” opened this year, and inculcates an interest in physics.
Kids and adults alike gambol in a snowstorm, bounce giant colorful
orbs and frolic through pixie dust – and nothing is real.
Created by Karl Sims, a digital media artist, computer scientist,
and recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, the wall-sized virtual
mirror uses a Microsoft XBox One Kinect Depth Sensor camera to
capture visitors’ motions and depth and project them into the AR
environment. Sims, who previously founded software company
GenArts, developed the systems for “Particle Mirror” using C,
OpenGL and Open CL, which runs on a Linux computer with an
NVIDIA GTX 1080 graphics card. Participants are led through
a series of nine revolving scenarios, interacting with a changing
variety of dots and spots, all following the laws of physics and the
properties programmed into each. Gravity causes “snow” to fall
from the top of the screens – and, just like real snow, it collects on
heads and shoulders, and can be scooped into snowballs. Music
enhances the magic – when particles collide different sounds
are generated. “The bubbly effect makes bubbly sounds. They
gurgle when pushed,” Sims explains. “The goal is to inspire kids
to learn more.”
The museum also houses Sims’s “Reaction-Diffusion Media
Wall,” installed in 2016. He details that the exhibit simulates “two
chemicals that make emergent dynamic patterns.” Consumers
at a kiosk manipulate patterns projected on 24 hi-def screens.
To create the effects, Sims used a consumer-gaming piece of
hardware: a graphics processor on Linux machine with 2000
processing cores and 11 processing GPU.
Museum of Science, Boston develops most things in-house with
a dedicated nine or 10-person team, including a 3D designer, a
physical manipulative engineer, software developers and builders.
According to VP of Exhibition Development Christine Reich,
special effects excite and engage people in learning. “Neuroscience
is now teaching us that emotions are the starting point for
TOP and BOTTOM: “Particle Mirror” is now on display at the Museum of
Science, Boston. Participants are led through nine revolving scenarios,
interacting with a changing variety of dots and spots, all following
the laws of physics. In the “snow” simulation, visitors collect the
falling particles, toss them around, or sweep them off the floor as they
accumulate. In the “blue sparks” simulation, a “trails” effect makes the
“sparks” look like they’re swimming through swirling liquid. Particles
generate different musical chords when pushed. (Photos courtesy of I/O)
FALL 2017 VFXVOICE.COM • 9