NAHUI OLLIN, “IN SEACH OF THE DIVINE FORCE”

NAHUI OLLIN, “IN SEACH OF THE DIVINE FORCE”
A PHYICAL IMMERSIVE INTERACTIVE DANCE EXPERIENCE
by
Andrea Angelica Rodriguez
________________________________________________________________________
A Thesis Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE SCHOOL OF CINEMATIC ARTS
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
MASTER OF FINE ARTS
(INTERACTIVE MEDIA)
August 2009
Copyright 2009
Andrea Angelica Rodriguez
Dedication
To All My Relations
Dedicated to all my ancestors who walk with me and are a guiding force in my life. Axe
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Acknowledgement
Nahui Ollin, a project including a short film and physical immersive interactive dance
installation, has been two years in the making. Many, many thanks goes out to the people
who believed in this vision and helped bring the film Mujer Maiz to life: Wonoh
Massaquoi, Guinny Pires, Jamal Rashada, Marisol Esparza y familia, Katalina Ausin, d’
Sabela Grimes, Laurel Holmes, Barbra Andrade, Brenda Banda, Alaina Montoya, Sarah
Sutton, Richard, Kuwan, Ubaldo, Poppin AK, Pandora, Hiro, Lady Neva, Adam Berg,
Martha Ramierez-Oropeza, Kaitlin Guerra-Shaner and the SCA Production Division
especially Elizabeth Daly, Joe Wallenstein, & Robert Zemeckis
Very special thanks also go out to the Nahui Ollin (installation) crew and advisors from
the Interactive Media Division. Chair of IMD Scott Fisher, Thesis Chair Advisor, Perry
Hoberman, Advisor, Marientina Gotsis, and External Advisor Ann Page. Much love and
respect to the following crew members for their moral support during this hectic
semester: Isadora Specialist, William “Billy” Lackey, Dr. Eric Wade of School of
Viterbi, graphics artist Daniel Ponce, Rudy Ramirez, Juan Camillo Gonzalez, sound
designer Bethany Sparks, and technical support Bryan Jaycox .
To my parents Lupe y Jose, thanks for your love and encouragement during the times
when I wanted to give up. My sisters, Yvette, Tee, and Ticia and my beautiful nephew
and nieces Keith, Nevaeh, Thalia, Ysaia, and Tatiana, you are the next generation of
young scholars.
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To my cousins, uncles, aunts, and grandparents, thanks for keeping me grounded and
never letting me forget where I come from. For my abuelita, who still keeps dancing…
To my love, Jamal Rashada, thank you for always pushing me, and standing by my side. I
couldn’t have done this with out your love and support.
Special thanks also goes out to the Hispanic Scholarship Fund McNamara Family
Creative Arts Grant, Mexican American Alumni Association, Flourish Foundation,
National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts and Dr.Rodolfo Montes Scholarship.
To all my teachers and mentors who challenged, inspired me, and gave me a chance—
thank you. It truly does take a village to raise a child. Dr. Osa Hidalgo de la Riva, Karla
Castillo, Sandra Garcia, Cathy Arellano, Amy Shim-Sham Santo, Patricia Ovando, Tania
Santiago, Heather Watkins, Mr. Ortez, Tonya Mayo, Maria Elena Garcia, Vanessa
Mosqueda, Germaine Acogny, Rennie Harris, and the teachers of the Urban Pioneer
Program, where my transformation and drive for success was implanted by a few words,
“give me a fish and I eat for a day, teach me to fish and I eat for a lifetime.” Wayne, Jay,
and Karen thank you for changing my life and helping me see the light.
Who would’ve thought…
This is just the beginning, I am stronger.
AXE
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Table of Contents
Dedication
ii
Acknowledgement
iii
Table of Figures
vi
Abstract
vii
Keywords
viii
Introduction
1
Project Description
2
Design Process
6
User Experience: Exploring Nahui Ollin
9
Prior Art
12
Process: Design and Development
21
Nahui Ollin: Early User Feedback
23
Current Status Of Project
29
Lessons Learned / Implications
27
Future Work
28
Conclusion
29
Bibliography
30
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Table of Figures
Figure 1:
Mujer Maiz: Marisol Esparza “Xila”, Pandora “Serpent”, Hiro “Jaguar”
2
Figure 2:
Logo Nahui Ollin by: Rudy Ramirez
3
Figure 3:
Participant Nahui Ollin exhibit at USC. IMD “Look & Feel” Showcase
5
Figure 4:
3D Model Nahui Ollin Installation design by Kurosh Valanejad
7
Figure 5:
Wii Wearable w/ dancer Poppin AK
9
Figure 6:
Lady Neva imitates Jaguar movement
11
Figure 7:
Lady Neva imitates Eagle movement
11
Figure 8:
Video Place screen shot by Myron Kreuger
13
Figure 9:
Ed Tannenbaum “Recollections
15
Figure 10:
Troika Ranch
16
Figure 11:
Funky Forest by Theodore Watson and Emily Gobeille
17
Figure 12:
Nintendo Wii Console
19
Figure 13:
(em)BODY :Wii Dance Project by A. Rodriguez
21
Figure 14:
Nahui Ollin Dance Card Game
22
Figure 15:
Veronica Paredes in a user test of Nahui Ollin
23
Figure 16:
Ethan Kennerly Pose 1 parsing data from the Wii Remote
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Figure 17:
Ethan Kennerly Pose 2 parsing data from the Wii Remote
24
Figure 18:
Image of Miktlampa North cornfield labyrinth Daniel Ponce
25
Figure 19
Image of Huitzlampa South cornfield labyrinth Daniel Ponce
25
Figure 20
Eagle, Jaguar, Serpent, Rabbit designed by Rudy Ramirez
26
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Abstract
The intersection of the digital space, cinematic screens and body involves cross-sections
through multiple fields of study. This body of work is intended to answer the question:
can a film, a screen-based interactive experience and immersive interactive dance
installation weave through one another as a single channel to create a transmedia
storytelling experience?
A variety of works by dancer/choreographers, filmmakers, interactive media dance
artists, computer scientists, and video game design shaped my research and analysis on
transmedia storytelling.
Nahui Ollin, “in search of the divine force,” is a transmedia experience incorporating a
physical immersive interactive dance installation inspired by Aztec Nahuatl philosophy
and a film, Mujer Maiz, “La Hija Del Quinto Sol” (Daughter Of The Fifth Sun).
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Keywords
dance and technology, improvisation, choreointeractivity, dance video games,
interactive installations, digital performance, transmedia, gestural interfaces, wireless
devices
viii
Introduction
If you can talk, you can sing. If you can walk, you can dance.
African proverb
Dance is a collaborative, physical experience that involves the body. It is often combined
with music to evoke the sacred, to tell stories, and to express ideas and sentiments. Dance
offers a ritual form and a set of techniques, which can enable both spiritual and
psychological levels. The relationship between dance and music can be a fertile site for
interactive exploration. For instance, Bomba an interactive dance form created on the
island of Puerto Rico, requires a dancer to use a large skirt and parts of her body to direct
sounds played by a drummer. The solo dancer enters the soberao, or dance circle, and
throws out piquetes, dramatic gestures using her skirt or parts of her body. The drummer
responds by creating music and accents based on her movement with a subidor, a small
barrel drum. Bomba’s model of interactivity and improvisation can provide a working
model on which to base new forms of dance interactivity. In this paper, I explore the
conversations between the user and interactive media. In the body of work stemming
from this thesis, the user becomes the Bomba dancer, interacting with the immersive
environment, in place of the digital soberao.
Interactive technology can be used to enable and encourage dancers and non-dancers to
build interactive environments by improvisation, creative movements and gestures. In
this project, I used materials and themes from my dance film, Mujer Maiz, “La Hija Del
Quinto Sol”(Daughter Of The Fifth Sun), to create an immersive interactive dance
installation, Nahui Ollin, In Search Of The Divine Force.
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Project Description
“Transmedia storytelling represents a process where integral elements of a fiction get
dispersed systematically across multiple delivery channels for the purpose of creating a
unified and coordinated entertainment experience.” (Jenkins) The film The Matrix. is an
example of transmedia .The Matrix contained a linear film, video game, comic books and
animated shorts. One single channel can represent the world of a subject. Transmedia is a
way to expand the knowledge and ideas from that one channel into an entire experience,
through the user of storytelling and interaction.
:
Figure 1: Mujer Maiz: Marisol Esparza “Xila”, Pandora “Serpent”, Hiro “Jaguar”
The film Mujer Maiz, “La Hija Del Quinto Sol” is a coming of age story, about Xilonen
(chee-lo-nen), a shy teenaged girl who overcomes her fears of dance when her
grandfather’s spirit leads her into an enchanted cornfield labyrinth. Xila receives
inspiration and guidance along the way from four mythical Energy Forces (spirits)
representing the four cardinal directions. Each Energy Force takes on an animal character
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and element. For example, the Energy Force of the North lives in the Region of
Miktlampa and represents the qualities of a jaguar and the element of Earth. The South
Energy Force resides in the Region of Huitzlampa and takes on the characteristics of a
rabbit and element of fire. The East Energy Force dwells in the Region of Tlauizkampa
and emulates a serpent and element of water. The West Energy Force roams the Region
of Zihuatlampa and portrays an eagle and element of Wind. The Four Energy Forces
represent spirit guides. Users learn about Meso-American philosophy through three major
digital media platforms: 1. A film, a single channel that provides the linear narrative
experience. 2. A screen-based interactive experience that gives in-depth information
about the Energy Forces. 3. A physical immersive interactive dance installation, in which
a user connects her whole body to the narrative and taps into a kinesthetic experience.
Figure 2: Logo Nahui Ollin by Rudy Ramirez
I wanted to create a physical immersive interactive dance installation that would teach
the participant about the Four Energy Forces. In Nahui Ollin, the user journeys through a
virtual cornfield labyrinth that represents the Four Energy Forces and their respective
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worlds. In order to connect to a full-body experience, users emulate animal gestures and
dance movements. Users wear two Wii Remotes strapped to their left leg and right arm,
each containing accelerometers with a three-axis tracking system, which communicates
with Isadora software. Based upon the data transmitted from the Wii Remote, Isadora
triggers a collection of sounds and images in the space. Users virtually enter a digital
cornfield labyrinth and embody the Energy Forces and their animal spirits. In the book,
The Intimate Act of Choreography, Blom and Chaplin state, “space is a 3-D canvas
within which the dancer creates a dynamic image. Breaking it down in component parts
brings a wealth of possibilities for movement exploration.” (Blom and Chaplin 31) The
goal for the user is to embody the animal of that particular Energy Force. Visual feedback
from the user’s movement is displayed on a screen and related sounds from their
movement are assembled into a dynamic composition. Each region’s animal moves
across the screen with an accompanying sound byte to inform users when they have
succeeded in the region. A screen-based interactive interface and one-minute vignette
provides a textual description of each Energy Force that accompanies the film and
interactive installation. The vignettes feature the four Energy Forces dancing in their
regional environments, embodied by the animal spirit.
The design of the world for the film, Mujer Maiz and for the interactive installation,
Nahui Ollin share a common thread. The digital version uses silhouettes of the dancers,
sound and colorful animation, and draws from the traditions of the film. Transmedia story
provides a platform for the user to preview the film and to learn about Meso-American
philosophy and art. Users develop a proprioception, which is an experience that includes
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the whole body and all five senses, when interacting with Nahui Ollin. In a transmedia
storytelling experience, users learn about Meso-American philosophy and culture and
learn a new way to experience dance.
Figure 3: Participant Nahui Ollin exhibit at USC. IMD “Look & Feel” Showcase
5
Design Process
Building an immersive interactive dance environment creates an opportunity for
participants to explore new forms of virtual embodiment, within the world created for
Mujer Maiz and Nahui Ollin. Embodiment in this context refers to the connection and
interaction between technology and the body. To connect users with the arc of the film, in
which the Energy Forces encourage Xila to dance, required that users understand Xila’s
character. How could a user emotionally connect and empathize with Xila’s fear of
dance? Users are placed in an enclosed, darkened space with projectors displaying
images accompanied by an instructional narration giving directions for interacting with
each of the Energy Forces. Thus, a user can be immersed within the cornfield
environment without feeling insecure about dancing in front of other people.
Expanding upon a single-channel short film, Nahui Ollin, my aim was to translate the
story into a rich experience and environment. This thesis proposes new forms of
storytelling to contextualize notions of history. For example, my knowledge base of
Aztec/Nahautl philosophy came through oral traditions of storytelling. Nahui Ollin
attempts to augment transmedia storytelling by adding physical movement. As Carolyn
Miller explains,
“Transmedia storytelling, which also goes by the name of multiplatforming,
integrated media, and cross-media productions, is a relatively new approach to
narrative. In this approach, a single entertainment property is merged over
multiple forms of media, at least one of which is interactive. It is a special way of
combining media to tell a single story.” (Miller 47)
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My objective is to expand the narrative of my film by designing an interactive
environment that responds to a user’s physical movement while creating an embodied
sensorial experience.
Figure 4: 3D Model Nahui Ollin Installation design by Kurosh Valanejad
Creating an interactive experience built around the most important scene in Mujer Maiz
was an opportunity to elaborate Xila’s experience in the film.
The scene occurs when the Energy Forces enlighten Xila and invite her to dance in the
center of the cornfield labyrinth. The user’s goal is to explore his or her own bodily
movement by traversing through each cardinal region and discovering a new way to
move, thereby embodying the animal from each region. In the film, the viewer gets a
short glimpse into the world of each Energy Force, but might not know what each Energy
Force represents, as they are represented visually and aurally, but with no text to
distinguish them. The interactive application allows for a richer engagement of
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storytelling by allowing a user to kinesthetically emulate the Energy Forces movement.
For example, the narrator may say “Welcome to the Region of Zihuatlampa, the place of
femininity and wind. Lift up your wings Eagle and fly across the earth.” When the user
does what is asked and lifts their arms, the Wii Remote attached to the users arm will
trigger a wind sound byte that can track the range of movement.
Participants are encouraged to explore the virtual environment and are given a set of
physical movement instructions pertaining to each region and animal within the
environment. This is designed for users to physically connect with the technology, but
also enjoy actually moving and dancing in non-conventional ways. Since the installation
is in an enclosed space, users have the privacy to physically improvise but follow the
rules of the voice over guide in the installation. Users communicate with their bodies to
dance moves loosely based on a street-dance form known as poppin, a flexation of the
muscles to a syncopated beat. My objective is to provide a space that creates a physical
and emotional experience for participants to connect with their bodies in relation to
learning about the four cardinal regions. Nahui Ollin offers a transmedia storytelling
experience both digitally and physically. In the following section, I focus primarily on the
physical immersive interactive dance experience that pertains to my research.
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User Experience: Exploring Nahui Olin
Nahui Olin is comprised of a flash interface, three-minute movie trailers, four one-minute
vignettes of each dance scene from my short film Mujer Maiz, and an interactive dance
chamber designed for a single-person experience.
Figure 5: Wii Wearable w/ dancer Poppin AK
A user walks into the dance chamber wearing a Wii Remote armband and an adjustable
Wii Remote knee band. A “narrator” voice-over is used in the installation space to guide
the user through a creative physical experience. User’s gestures and bodily movement
trigger sound and visual imagery that read the Wii Remotes’ accelerometers. In effect,
this changes the dynamic of the cornfield labyrinth environment. The goal of the user is
to connect with each cardinal direction. The user is rewarded with the animated animal
that relates to each region only after they have danced long enough in each region.
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The installation is designed for users ages five and older who have a desire and a
curiosity to tap into their “inner dancer.” This installation requires users to be active
agents using their arms, legs, limbs and imagination to engage and react in response to
the cornfield environment. This virtual cornfield environment varies depending on the
cardinal region. Each region provides a different mood setting that is enhanced by sound
composition, and computer graphics. The experience begins with user viewing an LCD
screen with the flash interface. Clicking with a mouse on a hop spot will allow the
participant to read information about what each region means and watch a three to five
minute trailer of Mujer Maiz. Each user will have an opportunity to experience the
physical immersive interactive dance installation and engage in movement, both
throughout the space and in response to imagery and sounds. For example, users will see
a silhouette dancer that imitates the movements of the Jaguar, Eagle, Rabbit, or Serpent.
Each region is a progression of sound and movement from one region to the next. Users
will experience each of the four cardinal regions in order to complete the final task. The
interactive experience is broken down in this order. Introduction: once the user is inside
the space, they will hear a voice-over that is welcoming to that region. A light projected
onto the floor alerts the user there is a presence in the room and this is the voice to listen
for instructions. Inspiration: Users will see a dance video of the Energy Force and watch
it to pick up movements to do in the space. Inter-Reaction: once the user has seen the
video, they will hear a sound cue and when they start to move, they will be projected
back in silhouette imager, or have a 3D particle image track their movement. The
progression of the sound composition will determine if they make it to the next level. The
installation will guide participants to build a dance vocabulary of movement that reflect
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the Energy Forces. The user’s goal is to discover his/her own a range of bodily
movements that embody the archetype of the animal and Energy Force for each region.
Figure 6:Lady Neva imitates Jaguar movement
Figure 7:Lady Neva imitates Eagle movement
Reward: users’ powers will fade away and an animation of one of the animals will appear
on the screen. A sound effect of a conch shell is heard when the animal image fades away
and the user will then see a compass appear on the floor to notify them of their
progression moving from one region to the next. Users must complete all four regions in
order to dance in the center of the dance space. The final task is a result of a progression
of movement throughout the space. Users will physically express what they have learned
as an “improvised freestyle” dance. A rhythm will have a player throughout the
installation and sounds will increase in response to where the users are in space. In
essence, the users’ physical movement becomes an instrument of sound. Similar to
Bomba, your movements are tracked with the computer instead of a live drummer.
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Prior Art
When bridging the field’s dance and interactive media, what is the role of the
user/performer? In Nahui Ollin, the user must navigate the cornfield labyrinth
environment by engaging and reacting to directions provided by the voice-over. If users
follow the directions, they will be lead in sequential order to the center of the cornfield
labyrinth.
Building a system that is based on the reaction to users’ physical movement was
important in designing the installation. I examined and researched the work of interactive
media and performance-based work to gain a better understanding of dance / physical
movement, and technology. The following is a discussion with artist, designers, and
dancers who have influenced the making of Nahui Ollin.
Capturing choreography on screen enthralled my curiosity for how the human body could
interact with projection screens and other types of technology. I learned the mechanics of
dance and video production and was intrigued at how the body could tell a story using the
camera. Maya Deren, an experimental filmmaker, influenced my work. Her film A Study
In Choreography For The Camera, filmed in 1945, is a dance film that captures the
choreography of a male dancer in site-specific locations. The footage is in black and
white without sound. Deren, poetically frames the dancer’s body and cuts in between
footage showing the full dance interspersed in various locations. One becomes immersed
by the choreography. Deren’s work was the first in the genre of cine-dance to create
choreography for the camera.
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Deren’s ability to capture and compose a body for the camera frame is rhythmic and
candid. In the book, Performance Technology, Cook explains, “For Deren, the limitations
of dance arise from the limitations of architecturally defined space germane to live
performance. The mobility of the camera and the manipulation of the editing disrupt such
limitations and transfigure them” There are lots of limitations with the camera, especially
when shooting out in the field. The goal for shooting Mujer Maiz was to explore how
dancing bodies on screen manifest into the corporeal users who then watch this three to
five-minute dance video and entice users to explore what they see, but with no inhibitions
or reservations. The goal for participant is to watch a three-minute clip of Mujer Maiz and
empathize with the main character. After viewing the clip, users are encouraged to
explore the virtual cornfield labyrinth.
Figure 8: Video Place screen shot by Myron Kreuger
Myron Krueger, a pioneer in digital media art and real-time human computer interfaces,
is a major contributor in designing interactive environments for real-time full body
experiences with the computer. In 1970, Krueger designed Video Place, a real-time
interactive environment that used video cameras, projectors, animation, computer
hardware, and silhouette images of users captured on screen. Video Place was a
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groundbreaking project that responded to user’s movement with animation in real time.
In the essay, “Artificial Reality,” Krueger wrote, “The addition of a radically new form of
physically involving, interactive experience is a major cultural event which may shape
our consciousness as much as what has come before.” (Krueger 25) Seventeen years
later, this statement is a turning point in the use of physical interfaces that are
kinesthetically changing the way that users interact with computers daily. Krueger’s work
with Video Place lead the way to digital media artistry using physical interfaces for
interactivity.
Krueger’s historical work in interactive media offers insight into creating physical
interfaces. Nahui Ollin shares similarities with Krueger work, by designing a space for
users to interact with objects on the screen, using silhouette art. In Nahui Ollin, the
silhouette of the dancers is used to simplify the user experience so they only
communicate internalizing the body to make the graphics easier to communicate with.
Krueger uses sensing cameras to track the users. This is now a standard way for video
artist and designers to sense movement with infrared motion-sensing cameras. In Nahui
Ollin, a web cam is used to sense a user’s movement. This movement can then detect the
user’s position and display sound events and visuals. If a designer doesn’t have a good
lighting set-up, testing the installation can prove difficult. During the prototyping phase
of Nahui Ollin, many issues have come up with the threshold of the camera not opening
up due to minimal lighting. Nonetheless, Krueger’s work remains a groundbreaking piece
of video art with in the “responsive” world
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Figure 9: Ed Tannenbaum “Recollections”
Ed Tannenbaum is a video artist who resides in San Francisco. His work focuses on
tracking bodies using cameras with an emphasis on color and shapes. In live
performance, Ed takes the human body's movement and orchestrates it to his live, moving
video. Backstage With Blockhead writes, “It's all about the shapes and the design that
take Ed's work to the next level.” One of Ed’s famous exhibits is “Recollections.” This
work has been on display since 1982 at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. Nahui Ollin
draws inspiration from “Recollections.”
I recall being a child and attending fieldtrips to the Exploratorium and experiencing this
installation. Tracking the body using projectors, and the use of color filters, were some of
the experiments conducted for Nahui Ollin. For example, I did a dance experiment using
a web cam, tracking users physical movement by projecting images on the screen using
Isadora, a visual computing program. The end result were color blob distorted shapes of
users bodily movements This experiment proved to be a successful encouraging users to
dance and improvise freely
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Figure 10: Troika Ranch
Troika Ranch, a dance, theater, and media company, was established in 1994 and is
directed by choreographer Dawn Stoppiello and composer/media artist Mark Coniglio.
Their work comprises dealing with societal issues and displaying performances,
interactive installations, and digital films. This dynamic software “gathers movement
information from various sensory devices and uses that information to control and
manipulate digital video, music synthesizers, sound modulation devices, theatrical
lighting and robotic set pieces.” (website http://www.troikaranch.org/technology.html ).
Stopplio and Coniglio prefer to call their work reactionary instead of interactive.
“Interaction requires an intelligence on both sides of the conversation. The computer isn’t
actually intelligent. It is more like an instrument” therefore, if the computer is the
instrument, then the dancer’s body is the driving force that conducts the music. Troika
Ranch’s work focuses on the dancer’s agency to build an architecture of sounds and
visuals in real-time to enhance the performance space.
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When conceptualizing Nahui Ollin, the first initial thought was to create an interactive
performance based on the main themes of Mujer Maiz. However, a performance for
spectacle would not achieve the main purpose, which is to encourage audiences to dance.
Building a physical interactive installation would achieve the film’s story and encourage
participation between dancers and non-dancers. As a result, researching artists whose
work create physical immersive interactive installations became apart of my collective
research.
Figure 11: Funky Forest by Theodore Watson and Emily Gobeille
In looking at installation design, two pieces caught my attention. I drew inspirations from
two installations, Funky Forest by Theodore Watson and Emily Gobeille and Intimate
Transactions by Keith Armstrong. Funky Forest, aimed at children, is an interactive
installation that asks users to build an environmental soundscape within a forest
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landscape. The artwork, created by Gobeille, uses textures and colors that give the world
a fun and magical feeling.
One of the strengths of this project is that the two artists have effectively created a simple
design that allows users to interact unencumbered by sensors. The installation is designed
for children to move freely inside of the space. This is a well-designed and interactive
physical experience because users build a forest based on their bodily gestures. The
reaction time may be slightly slow, but the colors and soundscape are so effective that
these issues are made slight.
Intimate Transactions, created by Keith Armstrong is quite different then Funky Forest.
Two players are located in separate rooms, working together, but through different social
networks. One or each user controls the avatar with a haptic peripheral strapped to their
body, standing on a movement-sensing platform. The goal of each user is to maneuver
through the world using their avatar and to engage across the space in collaboration with
other player. In effect, your body becomes the controller.
These two projects are situated in different interactive media genres, yet each one has
certain similarities to my thesis project. The concept of exploration in my project uses
graphics to connect to the space. Funky Forest has one simple, yet very effective,
concept: the user forms the shape of a tree with their body. The soundscape becomes an
evolving narrative that plays a pivotal role in the installation. My work shares with
Intimate Transactions the placement of a sensor on the user’s body that is used to traverse
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through an environment that is constantly evolving and changing. With Funky Forest, the
idea of using the body to shape a dire world with dying trees lent itself to a simple yet
rich narrative using the body.
The Nintendo Wii was released in 2006, marking new forms of game play and physical
interactivity within gaming. This was the first physical console gaming system for the
mass market. The Wii Remote, which contains a Bluetooth wireless remote, changed the
interface of gaming. This remote contains sixteen buttons including an infrared camera,
Bluetooth wireless radio and accelerometer. The accelerometer measures gravity using a
3-axis (x, y, z) system.
Figure 12: Nintendo Wii Console
With the popularity of the Wiimote and Bluetooth connectivity, a lot of possibilities
opened up for artist to design their own application using the Nintendo Wii Remote. I
soon became intrigued with physical gaming and curious with the possibilities of using
the Wiimote as a physical interface to dance with. Nahui Ollin uses the Wii Remote as a
wearable device and is worn as a wrist and leg band. Placing the Wii Remotes on the
body as a wearable devices prevent users from holding the device in their hands, which is
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the original intention of Wii Remote as a playable device. For Nahui Ollin, the Wii
Remote is a placed on the body and is used as an instrument to kinesthetically explore the
space and region.
Nahui Ollin is a prototype for a new approach to creating physical interactive dance
games built around narrative structures. Dance arcade games, such as Dance Dance
Revolution or Para Para Para, both consist of a stage platform and are classified as
rhythm action games. In Dance Dance Revolution, interactions occur with the feet
interacting with the floor pad while the user looks up at a screen corresponding with the
arrows and the position of the feet. Para Para Para uses a sensor-based system and
does not include a floor pad. This system breaks away from the conventions of the floor
pad and senses the upper body area, and does not restrict the lower half of the body.
Many different dance video games tend to incorporate either the lower or upper half of
the body. This thesis makes a contribution to a different area within physical interaction
by incorporating the Wiimotes as a body-based device designed to react to movement and
gestures that encompass a story/narrative experience. As applied to Nahui Ollin, my main
development issue was how would I get users to dance using the Wiimote building off
narrative structures? The final outcome was using game design methodologies to
encourage users to traverse through the space.
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Process: Design and Development
In the beginning stage of working with the Wii Remote, several Wii Remote studies were
conducted to test out the Wii Remote as a device for performance and the stage.
(em)BODY :Wii Dance Project is a technical prototype developed using Isadora and the
Osculator. The Osculator is software designed for reading MIDI (Musical Instrument
Digital Interface) input from the Wii Remote and connecting it to Isadora.
Figure 13: (em)BODY :Wii Dance Project by A. Rodriguez
Exploring the Wiimote attached to the body versus holding it in one’s hand provided a
range of possibilities that a performer may have if it was attached to the body. Several
research experiments were conducted that resulted in a live performance. The initial idea
was to physically research the possibilities of using the accelerometer and choreograph
several scenarios in the space. The outcome of the performance resulted in wearing loose
fitting pants and placing the Wiimote in the pocket of my cargo pants. The goal was to
change levels and directions in correlation to gravity. Working with time, gravity, and
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sound, in addition to placing sound for each rotation of X, Y, and Z, along with visual
text displayed on a screen projector, proved successful in this experiment.
This experiment taught a valuable lesson in parsing Wii Remote data. Understanding the
relationship between a peripheral, a device that works in relation with the computer, and
gathering information, resulted in a numerical mapping of body position. Learning this
technique to measure bodily movement for Nahui Ollin has proven to be a successful way
to have users traverse through the space and track users’ movement.
Envisioning a labyrinth environment with four regional zones was the first approach in
developing Nahui Ollin. Space and architecture building paper prototype models were
effective in communicating my ideas and thinking about physical space.
Figure 14: Nahui Ollin Dance Card Game
With the help of student game designers Abtin Gramian, Brian Myher, Ki Tae Bae, we
developed a paper prototype dance card game of Nahui Ollin. Designed as a multiplayer
dancing/party game, players compete to gain access to the sacred area where they will
have an opportunity to complete a series of tasks in hopes of becoming the 5th Energy
Force. The dramatic elements of play required competition to be the first in the center. In
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light of this dance card game, this model served well. Since, this thesis project is about
encouraging participation in the physical space, the challenge was to design a system that
stimulated users to move in the space in a non-threatening way
NAHUI OLLIN Early User Feedback
In the development stage of Nahui Ollin, iterations were made to serve the growth of the
project. I started off with one projector and added a second projector to the ceiling that
would display two screens, one on the floor and another projecting onto the wall. This
completely changed the architecture of the space.
Figure 15: Veronica Paredes in a user test of Nahui Ollin
When additional sounds were added to the room, users felt as if they were in a cave
environment. Working with the choreography of the projectors has served as a poetic
form in the displacing of images. Showing either one or two image projectors at a time
could offer a rhythmic approach to the space.
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Figure 16 & 17: Ethan Kennerly Pose 1 & Pose 2 parsing data from the Wii Remote
Measuring movement was an exhilarating experience. Enabling the Osulator software, a
MIDI software that connects to Isadora, could allow for different channels and ports to
communicate with the Isadora system. (http://www.osculator.net/wp/) Isadora’s “control
watcher” actor/object provided access to the different channels available on the Wii
Remote. Several tests were conducted to measure the movement of users mimicking
poses of a dancer on the screen. I was able to get a set of numbers that I could then code
into the control watcher of Isadora. This method of measuring a body’s movement served
as a new way to build choreography interacting with the Isadora program.
Once able to read the position of a user’s movement, the next step was to motivate users
to physically move within the architecture of the space using a sound composition,
visuals, and clips of dancers moving on the screen. Building an immersive cornfield
environment provided an opportunity to collaborate with other digital artists who are
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experts in the field of design. The graphic images of the cornfield labyrinth below were
created by Daniel Ponce.
Figure 18 & 19: Image of North & South cornfield labyrinth by Daniel Ponce
Creating the cornfield environment was an important concept to the theme and visual
landscape. Users are immersed within the architecture and landscape of the space. The
goal was to have the users explore the four regions of the North, South, East and West.
Color and perspective heightened the arc of the visual experience.
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Figure 20: Eagle, Jaguar, Serpent, Rabbit designed by Rudy Ramirez
The animals played just as important a role in the experience. Color brought out each
animal’s individual character thanks to Rudy Ramirez. Voice-over, provided by Maritza
Alvarez, stimulated the auditory landscape of the installation experience. For the
remainder of building the installation user test were conducted and provided feedback to
determine a range of images and sound bytes to create an overall sensorial experience for
the final presentation.
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Lessons Learned and Implications
A discovery was made in the core principle of Nahui Ollin that was in essence exploring
game design elements to enhance the user experience. This did not sacrifice the project’s
original purpose. The main lesson learned was that collaboration with others enhanced
the development of this project and, similar to a film production, interactivity requires a
team. Collaborating with game designer(s) served as a fresh new approach to building
this interactive dance installation. Choreographers/dancers and game designers may not
have anything in common but can influence each other’s work! For example, a
choreographer is familiar with the body, its gestures and bodily placement. A
dancer/choreographer can enhance a game experience by offering design with a sensorial
and spatial awareness to particular movements required in a game. A game designer can
influence a dancer/choreographer’s works by offering a set of numerical organization,
patterns, and visual perspectives to an interactive media performance experience.
Although, the two are an unlikely pair, to intersect a dialogue between these two genres
can enhance a user’s experience of a game, interactive installation, or live performance.
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Further Work
I value designing dance video games that utilize cultural art forms and concepts for fullbody experiences. Most dance video games are music-based and do not include a story.
What if your body had more influence on the expression of the game’s story or tone?
Most dance games consist of minimal to zero narratives. Nahui Ollin is a prototype for a
full-body based interface design. Applying narrative story elements to a dance game
opens up new possibilities within the physical/active games genre.
The potential for Nahui Ollin as a transmedia project can be reproduced into the
following subprojects: a live digital media performance using the Wiimotes as a wearable
devices placed on dancers’ bodies. Children’s and Latin American museums can benefit
from new ways of exploring Meso-American mythology through digital media, dance
and game design. Game publishing companies interested in dance/active video games
could benefit from this new approach to gestural interfaces, narrative and gaming.
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Conclusion
Nahui Ollin makes an innovative and diverse contribution to the evolving form of
transmedia storytelling by bridging the following: Wii technology, the Isadora interactive
software, narrative and cinematic structures and the human body as an interface. The
narrative story for both my film and installation are in dialogue with ancient
Aztec/Nahuatl mysticism delving into ideologies of Xicana, that is, a Mexican-American,
identity. Many discoveries are made throughout the learning process of interactive media,
but one concept not yet included into the lexicon of games are spirituality in games.
Nahui Ollin, as a cultural art form, can also be included into a spiritual genre within
dance, interactive installations and games, since Nahui Ollin crosses multiple platforms
and genres. Furthermore, transmedia storytelling opens up a wealth of resources that tap
into the many ways one can tell a story using digital media and the body. On the cusp of
games and interactive installations, Nahui Ollin weaves in elements of dance, spirituality,
interactive media and the cultural arts. Wireless controllers no longer limit the range of
bodily expression, and the time is now to explore the endless possibilities of physical
movement and video games.
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