The Future of Storytelling: the Opportunities and Challenges of VR Experience Design

18 Hubs-Havas Media and UCLAs School of Theater, Film, and Television (TFT) are collaborating on the Future of Storytelling project to examine the increasing impact of UX Design and navigation on the digital media and entertainment landscape. The research analyzes how interfaces structure the distribution and presentation of content to consumers, and how this shapes the overall media experience. It especially focuses on the role of dominant ecosystems like Amazon, Facebook, and Apple.

The goal is to deliver best practices for brands to engage UX-driven marketing strategies. The following is an original essay on the new Virtual Reality production landscape.Its probably too early to proclaim 2016 the year of virtual reality (VR), not least because consumer-facing VR devices have failed to catch on before Nintendo, for example, released the unloved Virtual Boy way back in 1995.

However, we will soon see VR hardware releases from Facebook, Sony, Samsung, and Google and new, immersive 3D content from major film studios and video game developers. This wont be the year of VR in every home (or pocket or purse), but it may well be the tipping point that brings the technology to the mainstream.Brands and advertisers need to be prepared, because virtual reality revolutionizes not only UI/UX design but storytelling as well.

VR requires a new set of skills from designers and creatives alike.A few definitions may be useful. Virtual reality is a fully immersive experience that, for now, requires a headset or goggles covering the users eyes.

All of this years new devices take that form. The most powerful will require a higher-end PC (in the case of Facebooks Oculus Rift and the HTC Vive) or PlayStation 4. Less advanced but far less expensive VR headsets pair with smartphones.

Examples already on the market include the Samsung Gear VR, the kid-friendly View-Master VR, and Google Cardboard, with a more sophisticated variant from Google expected later this year. Even the lower-end devices render 3D and respond to a users head movements. None of these are truly mobile devices; the user must usually be seated or standing in one place, and a bulky, vision-blocking headset probably wont be overly popular on the subway or street corner.

A different technology, augmented reality (AR), superimposes digital imagery on reality. Microsofts HoloLens promises to advance AR; for now, only a developer version release has been announced. Meanwhile, 360 videos are viewable on VR devices as well as standard smartphones and computers.

Users can turn their heads (or swipe/click in 2D) to see different parts of the video. Googles YouTube and particularly Facebook have been pushing 360 videos as a stepping stone to VR.What are some of the challenges of user design for VR?

Most obviously, traditional UI designers are accustomed to designing in two dimensions. To be sure, 3D environments open up enticing new UI possibilities; imagine, for instance, reaching a home screen by simply turning to the right. Thinking and building in 3D, though, requires new tools and best practices.

For that reason, many companies interested in VR have turned to video game designers more versed in 3D worlds.Yet video game designers, too, must adjust to VR design. For example, many console and PC games have a screen overlay, or HUD (Heads Up Display), which displays a players health, score, remaining time, and so forth.

Such displays dont usually work in VR; the text would appear to be right in the users face, too close for focus. In VR, this sort of information must be displayed at a comfortable reading distance or conveyed diegetically (within the story world), such as a clock on the wall to indicate time. The wrong relationship between UI elements and a virtual environment can even cause motion sickness.

In short, VR is a new beast, and most designers will need significant training and experimentation time.Writers, directors, and producers of all media, from online advertising to feature films, must also rethink their approach as they turn to VR. Consider the (deceptively simple) concept of onscreen and offscreen space.

Of course, filmmakers have long used offscreen space the area beyond the frame, outside of the viewers gaze to tell stories with artistry and economy. Rather than build (or digitally generate) a convincing monster, say, a director can rely solely on offscreen sound effects and an actors reactions. VR blurs the line between onscreen and off.

The VR user might turn his head to look at the monster; what happens then?Thus VR, and even 360 video, increases production costs and time. It also creates a story problem.

How do filmmakers advance the plot when the viewer can look wherever he chooses? Certainly there are solutions, and many exciting creative possibilities, but the task is not straightforward. Given the challenge, its not surprising that some of the first brands to embrace VR are those, like Marriott, who want to display existing physical spaces.

Another effective approach has been one-time experiences in storefronts or other public locales; Madison Square Garden offered New York Rangers hockey fans the chance to take to the virtual ice and become goalie Henrik Lundqvist. A clearly delineated experience like that avoids some of the emerging storytelling pitfalls. Virtual reality may start out as a novelty, but most tech insiders are betting it will become something much more.

Were working on VR because I think its the next major computing and communication platform after phones, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said recently. Brands who take the VR plunge now will face challenges but may be richly rewarded. 18Hubs is the innovation research facility of Havas Media, headquartered in Paris, with offices in Los Angeles, Seoul, and Tel Aviv.

Together with UCLAs School of Theater, Film, and Television (TFT) and the Digital Incubator & Think Tank, 18 Hubs is developing the Future of Storytelling research. Led by Dr. Denise Mann and a group of Ph.

D. students, the project studies the impact of user interface and experience (UI/UX) design in the converging media and technology industry. Written by Daniel ZweifachEdited by Thomas Jorion and Matthias Stork RELATED QUESTION Which custom lighting design manufacturers would you choose to work with (as in, your preferred list of custom lighting design manufacturers for new projects, renovations, and/or construction of a new home and/or commercial property) and why?

Residential and commercial lighting are different products. You do not give a reason for wanting custom vs. off the shelf products.

A unique custom lighting product is backlit onyx and hinoki wood walls, desks, columns, and stairs by GPI Design of Cleveland. The onyx and hinoki veneer are sandwiched between glass. Boyd Lighting is a San Francisco Bay Area maker of high end lighting.

Phoenix Day is another Bay Area custom manufacturer. Holly Hunt is a collection of custom lighting manufacturers. Working with a lighting designer will save you time and money while guaranteeing your project will meet codes, function, and look good.