Cultural memory of local artists and poets is typically cultivated through festivals devoted to these people usually by way of commemorations on the anniversaries of their deaths, and are held in places in which they lived and worked.... more
Cultural memory of local artists and poets is typically cultivated through festivals devoted to these people usually by way of commemorations on the anniversaries of their deaths, and are held in places in which they lived and worked. These methods, however, are intangible and if not passed to next generations may be lost or forgotten. What is more, they do not help to protect from oblivion the environment which once surrounded an artist and was a source of inspiration for their work. This paper uses a case study of Charles Causley, a Cornish poet, to propose a new method for preserving his memory, as well as his hometown of Launceston where he spent most of his life. As poems written by Causley were loco-descriptive (topographical) and described various objects and places in Launceston, the approach proposed in this research relies on this paradigm. Loco-descriptive poems provide a basis for the spatial exploration of the town with interactive narratives based on traversing multiple trajectories. Causley's inspirational environment was recreated by 360° images taken in his home and in various locations in the town and also 360° videos were recorded between these locations to allow movement along paths which the poet walked on a daily basis. The approach adopted in this project borrows the concept of traversing from surveying and applies it to the movement between different locations in loco-descriptive narrative that has its roots in polychronic narrative and uses Kinoautomat paradigm when presented in the panoramic immersive environment (360° screen). The project described in this paper was presented on multiple screens for a large audience and is also available on-line for a single user (panoramic virtual environment).
Still and video panoramas provide exciting opportunities for individual users to take virtual journeys through a wide range of environments. The opportunity they provide for the basis of interactive storytelling has not been substantially... more
Still and video panoramas provide exciting opportunities for individual users to take virtual journeys through a wide range of environments. The opportunity they provide for the basis of interactive storytelling has not been substantially investigated. A combination of computer graphics and 3D modelling enriches the educational aspects of narratives created using a spherical video camera by illustrating objects that are hidden, not only physically but also due to the passage of time. Video panoramas created using a spherical video camera and within 3D modelling software are discussed in this paper employing the example of two heritage sites: Charles Church in Plymouth, UK and the town of Launceston, UK. Objects and artefacts created through the process of laser scanning and QTVR object movies can be placed within panoramic environments using XML and Flash based panoramic viewers enriching the experience of the audience by merging educational components with entertainment.
This paper presents a method for the merging of poetry into interactive storytelling that is based on still and video panoramas. This non-linear approach aims to give a young audience a new understanding of poetry, by exploring the poet... more
This paper presents a method for the merging of poetry into interactive storytelling that is based on still and video panoramas. This non-linear approach aims to give a young audience a new understanding of poetry, by exploring the poet Charles Causley’s house and the town of Launceston in England where he spent most of his life. His poetry mentions a number of locations from this town and artefacts located in his house. The user of the interactive application based on Adobe Flash plug-in and Lucid Viewer (panoramic viewer), take a number of narrative journeys in order to search for hidden poems, voice marks or trails signs that have references to the town. Still panoramas localised at decision-making points were linked by using video panoramas (360-degree video), which were recorded with a spherical video camera – Ladybug2 mounted on a motorised wheelchair. Still and video panoramas are elements that create a branching narrative. The aim of this application is to develop the interest not only in the Causley’s biography but also in literary output of the poet.
The rapid development of digital communication technologies in the 20th and 21st centuries has affected the way researchers look at ways memory – especially cultural memory – can be preserved and enhanced. State-of-the-art communication... more
The rapid development of digital communication technologies in the 20th and 21st centuries has affected the way researchers look at ways memory – especially cultural memory – can be preserved and enhanced. State-of-the-art communication technologies such as the Internet or immersive environments support participation and interaction and transform memory into ‘prosthetic’ experience, where digital technologies could enable 'implantation' of events that have not actually been experienced.
While there is a wealth of research on the preservation of public memory and cultural heritage sites using digital media, more can be explored on how these media can contribute to the cultivation of cultural memory. One of the most interesting phenomena related to this issue is how panoramas, which are immersive and have a well-established tradition in preserving memories, can be enhanced by recent digital technologies and image spaces.
The emergence of digital panoramic video cameras and panoramic environments has opened up new opportunities for exploring the role of interactive panoramas not only as a documentary tool for visiting sites but mainly as a more complex technique for telling non-linear interactive narratives through the application of panoramic photography and panoramic videography which, when presented in a wrap-around environment, could enhance recalling.
This thesis attempts to explore a way of preserving inspirational environments and memory sites in a way that combines panoramic interactive film and traversing the panoramic environment with viewing the photo-realistic panoramic content rather than computer-generated environment.
This research is based on two case studies. The case study of Charles Church in Plymouth represents the topical approach to narrative and focuses on the preservation of the memory of the Blitz in Plymouth and the ruin of Charles Church which stands as a silent reminder of this event. The case study of Charles Causley reflects topographical approach where, through traversing the town of Launceston, viewers learn about Causley’s life and places that provided inspirations for his poems.
The thesis explores through practice what can be done and reflects on positive and less positive aspects of preserving cultural memory in these case studies in a critical way. Therefore, the results and recommendations from this thesis can be seen as valuable contribution to the study of intermedia and cultural memory in general.
Drawing from work produced and exhibited in September 2010 for the 360 Festival organized by ICCI (Innovation for the Creative and Cultural Industries) University of Plymouth, UK, we will consider the use of the mobile panoramic cinema... more
Drawing from work produced and exhibited in September 2010 for the 360 Festival organized by ICCI (Innovation for the Creative and Cultural Industries) University of Plymouth, UK, we will consider the use of the mobile panoramic cinema for the exhibition of a variety of presentational and interactive image formats. In particular we will consider moving image in the 360 format and the rather ironic inversion of expectations as the form, which presents image all around the viewer and even offers a sense of immersions within the visual field, affects possibilities of the experiential space. At various times through the evolution of filmmaking producers have sought to take the viewer to the site of the experiences–from the startling use of ‘close-up’ in early silent film (Munsterberg and Langdale 2001) through early 3D visuals and on with the quest for ‘realism’ of cinema verite and a general whole hearted absorption of each new form of technology that offers the tantalizing prospect of the ‘visual real’. The 360 dome cinema seems to offer such a prospect to filmmakers; the opportunity to place the viewer in the centre of the action. In this paper we will discuss the challenges of conceiving and producing for the 360 dome screen and explore some of the functioning of examples of work made for and screened in the 360 Festival in Plymouth September 2010.
Charles Church in Plymouth was completed in 1657 and consecrated by the Bishop of Exeter in 1665. The icon building in Plymouth’s cityscape, dedicated to King Charles I, was destroyed by incendiary bombs and burnt out on the night of 20th... more
Charles Church in Plymouth was completed in 1657 and consecrated by the Bishop of Exeter in 1665. The icon building in Plymouth’s cityscape, dedicated to King Charles I, was destroyed by incendiary bombs and burnt out on the night of 20th and 21st March 1941. Today, the ruined church is situated in the middle of a busy roundabout and it is closed for the public. The site was chosen by the PhD student from the University of Plymouth to demonstrate not only a computer 3D reconstruction (based on a number of historical images) of the interior of the building, but also to illustrate a story of a wedding that happened inside the bombed church. This narrative tells a story of a couple of Ken Beer and Phyllis Corry who married in the ruins of Charles Church on 22 March 1941. The marriage was the last one that happened on this site. Ken is now 98 years old and Phyllis is 92. They survived the war and they are celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary today. The researcher decided to adapt this linear story to the non-linear narrative that occurs in the virtually reconstructed church. This narrative was recorded using a 360-degree video camera, because such footage enables the illusion of ‘being there’ when projected on a 360-degree immersive screen. Based on a non-linear approach to narratives, the audience gathered inside the immersive environment has a power to change the story about the wedding in this church and they could feel as though they were truly there. . 360-degree environments have their roots in Robert Barker’s invention of panorama painting in 1787. Barker introduced a method of immersing the spectators into a new world. Circular paintings were the first trials of presenting remote locations. They also educated the audience by presenting military or biblical stories. More descriptive methods of presenting narratives were introduced with the invention of photography (1830s), cinema (1890s) and television (1920s). 360-degree panoramic environments proposed in this paper are the next step in the maximization of realism relating to narratives. This paper takes 360-degree screens into consideration and compares this digital medium with an older mass medium such as a panorama painting in a rotunda. It is discernible that this new form of art provides new perspectives for evoking these heritage sites which are in ruin. Panoramic spaces with 360° screens no longer address an individual, but the large audience and this helps them to understand the current conditions of the site. Additionally, a point of view is different and not fixed. In contrast to television, theatre or even a photograph, the audience is no longer observing a fragment of their field of view. In the case of immersive environments, they are inside the image space; it is no longer possible to examine everything that happens around the spectators, who have the chance to change their location while watching immersive narratives. 360-degree interactive narratives based on heritage sites may become not only a scientific and technological innovation but also a new art form presented in ‘digital rotundas’.