Immersive theatre design for <The Three-body Problem>
Background
Project Overview
The Moodboard Whenever we lack idea and look at it subconciously, it gives us inspiration
The 4th Dimension Room
1st prototype - The bread slice
The Gravity Hall
The Boarding Room and the boarding elevator
immersive theatre project by SenseTime, a leading artificial intelligence company in China who bought the copyright of the Hugo Award won science fiction The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu. I joined an amazing team of the most talented and most creative people tackling various problems on a mission to bring the narrative in fiction to a physical setting with great passion.
In this project, I mainly work with Isabelle Le (Stage Designer), Simon Shi (Interaction Designer), Changting Lu (Art Director), Yushu Zhang (Screen Writer) and Lucia Xiao (Theatre Producer), while I mainly work as a designer bridges between space and interactive medium. I primarily participate in brainstorming sessions, designing and prototyping spatial experience, making physical and digital models, and rendering images for intergroup presentations.
I joined the team amid the time they found that they needed outside talents to support Isabelle. She not only takes responsibility for stage design but also does the narrative building for the whole experience. They hired me as an in-house part-time designer based on my former experience in Kapple Seasons City`s immersive project.
Team
Isabelle Le (Stage Designer), Simon Shi (Interaction Designer), Changting Lu (Art Director), Yushu Zhang (Screen Writer), He Zhang (Project Manager), Lucia Xiao (Theatre Producer)
Responsibility
I mainly work as a designer bridges between space and interactive medium. I take responsibility for participating in brainstorm sessions, designing and prototyping spatial experience, making physical and digital models, and rendering images for inter-group presentation.
I joined the team amid the time they find that they need outside talents with spatial and interactive design background to support Isabelle, who not only takes reponsibility for stage design but also does the narrative building for the whole experience. Based on my former experience in Kapple Seasons City`s immersive project, they hire me as a in-house part time designer. have
At the time I begin to work, they already build a more detailed storyline based on a part from the third book of the trilogy - Earth`s Death and have made the first phase stage design. The stage has been divided into 9 independent sessions. They need me to work on the prototyping and detailed design of some parts of it.
model of stage part (1st edition)
The stage is divided into 9 parts, while I work with Isabelle and Simon on The Gravity Hall, 4th dimension room, The waiting space, and The Space Elevator of it.
This is one the most complex and difficult to handle scene of the whole stage. The original plot is when the space fleet enter the 4th dimension space the fleet crew see the ship space reflected in the 4th dimension.
The original text from novel I paraphrazed - a google doc link.
I attend the brainstorm session held by the team, that`s how I first know about this project.
1st prototype - The bread slice
Our first idea is to build a kinetic stage that uses a module resembling a bread slice that can shape the space and change the viewers` circulation by moving it.
Brainstorm and ideation process
1st iteration of the breadslice ptototype
After talking with physical scientsit, our team, based on the description of the novel, our team designed the space ship-The gravity ship. In the middle of the ship is a Gravitational wave generator shapes like a long spear. The Gravity Hall is where you can see it.
And we come up with the idea of the giant kinetic installation of the generator in this space.
From the hall, visitors can also see the interior of this ship.
we get inspiration from the PCB ( printed circuit board) and adapt our project plan to resemble a PCB board because of concept. Our concept is the whole living space of the ship is on the backside of the ship`s facade. All units (incuding the rooms in our project) are plugable like the elements on a PCB board.
concept of the living space of the ship
In our storyline, this is the place for visitors to board the spaceship and it`s the first room in our immersive experience.
Bsed on the plots in novel, we set up an installation to show the time after the Three-body invasion to earth in center of the room.
