Monday, October 3, 2016

Mini Project Process 1/5 10.3.2016

During our process crit, I wanted to do like a music box. Opening the lid would trigger a switch, and a motor would rotate a dancing figure. The speed of the motor and dancer would ramp, and the figure of the dancer would blur into the silhouette of something more menacing, ie. a skull. This would've addressed the topic of "signal" with the idea of "mixed signals." The act of revealing the classic "everything is not what it seems" would also touch on ideas of femininity, assumptions, and dualistic alter egos. I was thinking about even playing with a tiny speaker to play distorted music alongside the movement of the character. During process crit, Juan even mentioned adding swinging features that would pull with centrifugal force to create a more dynamic movement.

However, since then, I have looked ahead and seen that our second mini project is based on movement. Considering the engineering and designing that have to go into this piece, and how well it fits into the theme of Project 2, I have decided to put it on the back burner for now.

Instead, for Project 1, I want to play with "signal" in terms of semantics. You can relay a signal, but the human interpretation of it can always be taken subjectively. The input we receive and interpret is analog, not digital. Even with a simple "yes" or "no," people still argue that they get the meanings confused. So, I want to do a Wheel of Fortune kind of deal. There would be a knob and a wheel. The former will be lined with pronouns. A potentiometer will connect to a servo, turning the knob to point to a desired pronoun. The latter will operate like a Wheel of Fortune pinwheel. Activating a switch spins the wheel, and aligns a pointer to a noun such as "everything," "nothing," "pain," "joy," "death," etc. A motor will attach to the wheel and momentarily spin at a random value and the press of a switch. This will help randomize the effect. Between the knob and the wheel is the word "deserve."

Who deserves what? On a day-to-day basis, I feel like the word holds such a subjective weight to it. There's no right or wrong, it's just a matter of who you ask. And because the word carries such a weight, it's like saying "love." The context of the phrase directly says something strong about your character, and these unspoken "signals" build your reputation as an individual.

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