Extended Reality Meets Theatrical Design: Virtual and augmented reality technologies offer exciting opportunities for the theatre world, presenting new ways to design and collaborate.
Is VR just the latest buzzword? Or "buzz-letters?" VR, AR, MR, XR: Are they really useful to the everyday theatrical designer? Like all emerging technology, VR (virtual reality) and AR (augmented reality) can be a bit baffling at first. New technologies develop over time, and potential users may not immediately identify how best to use them or what future possibilities exist from their use. While the technology finds its footing, users may be scared off by skeptics who are quick to label a new device as a gimmick. VR and AR technologies might not be 100 percent ready yet, but a seed of something great could be being sowed. As this technology matures, it may revolutionize the way we work and collaborate as designers.First, some definitions. XR is an umbrella term for all interactive virtual experiences, often involving wearables. XR is short for "extended reality" or "cross reality." The X can also stand for any of the other letters--VR, AR, or MR. Wearables are headsets, goggles, and other devices that allow the user to view and interact with the virtual experience.
Virtual reality may be the most familiar XR technology to the average user. By now, you have likely seen or heard of some type of virtual environment where the user is simulated to fly over Mount Everest or float through outer space. Perhaps our familiarity with video game culture makes this type of technology the most approachable. What differentiates VR from a traditional computer-based videogame is that participants interact with the content in a three-dimensional fully-immersive environment. VR also requires the user to wear a Head-Mounted Display (HMD).
Augmented reality is different than VR in that the participant is not immersed in a virtual environment. Instead, computer-generated graphics are superimposed within the user's view (typically through the use of a wearable headset or by looking through a smartphone), providing the appearance that the graphics are living within the real world, rendered as they would appear from the viewpoint of the user.
Mixed reality (MR), a term coined by Microsoft, allows augmented graphics to appear to interact with objects in reality. MR is a first cousin to AR. For example, if a virtual puppy were running toward a coffee table, AR would show the puppy move across the table, as if the table was not there. By contrast, MR is aware of the world around it and would show the puppy disappear as it went "underneath" the table, only to appear again as it ran out the other side. This is called occlusion. MR is intelligent enough to have the puppy occluded by the table as it appears to interact with it in the real world.
There is one more sub-category to this world of XR technologies simply called Mobile VR/AR. Mobile VR/ AR uses everyday smartphones as the display, making it a less expensive alternative. Once the environment is accessed through an app or web browser, the phone is placed inside a simplistic viewer, much like a primitive head-mounted display. This viewer, sometimes even made of cardboard, holds the phone in place and contains two lenses for stereoscopic viewing, creating the illusion of immersion within the environment.
So how can these tools be useful in theatre? Recently, large entertainment companies have begun to explore this technology's possibilities by creating their own proprietary applications. For example, in 2017, Cirque du Soleil began partnering with Microsoft to develop a new application that is quickly changing Cirque's design process. While using Microsoft's Hololens, the production team is able to collaboratively build a virtual set in real physical space by using primitive geometric shapes. Because this application is AR, a stand-in (representing a performer) can even enter the scene for scale.
Industrial Light & Magic has also been breaking new ground with XR technology. During the filming of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the design team used VR to create full-scale scenic environments, or "walkthroughs," that allowed the director to be fully immersed in the film's virtual locations. The use of this technology allowed him to quickly respond to design ideas: Does this wall need to move a bit for better composition? Should the set feel larger or further away? Using VR instead of a physical model and storyboards enabled concrete responses, resulting in a more efficient design process and less surprise changes during filming.
Fortunately, you don't have to work for a large entertainment company to enjoy this technology. Several XR apps are available in a range of prices for everyday theatrical designers. Following are some of the most successful and user-friendly options on the market.
Rendering
Several apps in the VR world can be used for rendering in any discipline. (In this discussion, "rendering" means drawing by hand). A popular app dedicated to rendering and self-expression is called Tilt Brush by Google, which is currently available for the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift head-mounted displays. Tilt Brush enables rendering in three dimensions. A set design or lighting sketch can be quickly mocked up to present to a director or, for costume designers, a dress form can be inserted into the environment for developing costume concepts.
Tilt Brush provides users with many different options for expression, ranging from typical paint brushes to unique alternatives like painting with light, fire-like embers, or even duct tape. Colors are available in all tints, shades, and tones. The overall experience is a peaceful one that promotes creativity. Users can walk around their creations to view them from all sides or teleport further away to evaluate readability. The app even allows users to take photos so renderings can be easily saved for presentation.
3D Modeling
3D modeling is another popular category in the world of VR apps. These programs offer primitive geometric shapes to use as building blocks, combining shapes to create larger objects, allowing for a quick set idea, prop design, or perhaps a costume accessory concept. Often traditional 3D modeling tools are also available within these apps like scaling and extruding or adding and subtracting solids. The user can build a creation in three-dimensions and physically walk around the object while building it in human scale, enabling a more personal perspective than traditional modeling on a computer.
One particularly productive dedicated 3D modeling app is called MakeVR, currently available for the HTC Vive. A stand-out feature in MakeVR is the ability to send models directly to the 3D printing service Shapeways. The model piece or prop that you build virtually can physically show up at your door within a few days.
Virtual Walk-throughs
Much like the Cirque du Soleil and Industrial Light & Magic examples, scenic designers can create virtual walk-throughs of their work using currently available XR technology. There is no better way to truly communicate scale and space restrictions to a director than to immerse the director into the space at full-scale.
Vectorworks, an industry-standard drafting program, is also on the forefront of VR and AR technology, enabling the user to experience the virtual scenic model in an immersive way. In contrast to the two apps discussed, Vectorworks' MobileVR and MobileAR features are view-only applications, so all 3D modeling work must be done in the original Vectorworks program on your computer, not in the viewers themselves.
Once a drawing is complete in Vectorworks, it can be exported into what is called Web View. Web View will send a link users can open in any Internet browser on any computer or smartphone. This link can be used to interface with directors, who can fly over and walk through the virtual set on screen. Furthermore, for an immersive experience using MobileVR, the app has an option for a stereoscopic view to use with any simple viewer, such as the Google Cardboard. The user can then walk through the model in first-person mode to experience the set in full scale. Although lighting instruments cannot be turned on yet, this walk-through feature can also be a useful function for lighting designers. It enables the designer to view the lighting instruments directly from where they will be focused and assure the fixtures can light the area without obstacles.
Furthermore, users of Vectorworks' subscription-based Service Select can view this same model in MobileAR. While viewing the model through a smartphone or tablet, users can "place" the model on a real-life desk for a design meeting or in the real-life theatre space at full scale for a walk-through experience.
XR technologies provide an exciting prospect for a new way of designing and collaborating. Directors and design teams can work early on a virtual model, landing on that perfect idea before wasting too much time and money on a physical one. Designers can work out complex issues in three dimensions in the early concept stages, providing a more informed direction for their design. And teaching this technology to today's students will only make the possibilities grow stronger. Who knows in what exciting directions they may take it! Emerging technology is never perfect, but it always shows us a pathway to where we might be one day. This is only the beginning of where XR technology may take theatrical design in the future.
Anne E. McMills is head of lighting design at San Diego State University and author f The Assistant Lighting Designer's Toolkit and 3D Printing Basics for Entertainment Design. Her career extends across the many facets of the lighting world---from theatre (including Broadway and the West End) to television and theme parks to architectural lighting, industrials, concerts, cruise ships, award shows, dance, and opera. In addition to designing her own work, McMills has assisted many Tony Award-winning Broadway designers, mounting productions in the United States, Japan, Australia, England, Scotland, France, and Germany. McMills' secondary area of expertise revolves around her passion for emerging technology and its place in entertainment design. In addition to work on 3D printing, she also studies and teaches Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality and their place within the entertainment design process.
Caption: XR Technologies Flowchart
Caption: Head-mounted displays for various XR technologies: HTC Vive (top), Microsoft Hololens (right), Google Cardboard (bottom). Photo by Anne E. McMills.
Caption: MakeVR screenshot: The software lets users send models directly to a 3D printing service. Image courtesy of Anne E. McMills.
Caption: Costume sketch developed in Google's Tilt Brush. Photo by Anne E. McMills.
Software Costs and Requirements
ITEM COST
Tilt Brush with HTC Vive app cost = $1999
HMD cost = $499
Tilt Brush with Oculus Rift app cost = $19.99
HMD cost = $399
Oculus Touch controllers required
MakeVR with HTC Vive app cost = $1999
HMD cost = $499
Vectorworks $2100-$4000 depending on needs
of user
Web View function = included
ITEM NOTES
Tilt Brush with HTC Vive * Powerful PC required with
high-end graphics card
Tilt Brush with Oculus Rift * Powerful PC required with
high-end graphics card
MakeVR with HTC Vive * Powerful PC required with
high-end graphics card
Vectorworks * Mac and PC compatible
* Service Select subscription
required for MobileAR (iOS
only)
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| Author: | McMills, Anne E. |
|---|---|
| Publication: | TD&T (Theatre Design & Technology) |
| Date: | Sep 22, 2018 |
| Words: | 1820 |
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