A Virtual Roller Coaster of
THE
MOST TERRIFYING
YEAR EVER!
You must be this f***** to ride.
Year: 2020
Client: Self-Initiated
Role: Experiential Artist, Director, Designer, Producer
Artists: Prashast Thapan, GENOMA, Stephanie Davila, Toga Cox, Spencer LaVallee, Lillyan Ling, Christina Lu
VR Developer: Pariah Interactive, Unreal 4.26
Project Duration: 2 Months
Recognition: 2021 Webby Award Nomination: Best VR Video
2020: THE RIDE is a year in review in the form of the world’s scariest VR roller coaster. When the economy drops, you drop. When Covid-19 rates speed up, you speed up. Travel through natural disasters, protests and political turmoil in a ride you’ll never forget (no matter how badly you wish you could).
2020: THE RIDE is where we relive the chaos virtually so that, hopefully, we never have to relive it in real life.
“PERFECT
FOR A
MASOCHIST.”
Art Direction
The decay of society is represented in the rips and tears of the 3D models. The rider decays with each real-time interaction. We designed the cinematography and interactions around the budget and timeline.
The feeling of a roller coaster was inspired by “Harry Potter” Quidditch scene and Drool’s “Thumper.” The colors were inspired by K and Joi’s rain scene from “Blade Runner 2049.” The underwater composition was inspired by Playdead's “Inside.” The real-time interactions were inspired by the popcorn scene from “Big Fish.” The light show was inspired by the time travel scene from “2001: A Space Odyssey.” The logo was inspired by “Back to the Future” movie title. Although not pictured here, I also referenced “Scott Pilgrim vs the World” hologram video game graphics and the Corona Race “Initial D” meme. You’ve officially entered my brain. 🤓
Collaboration & Communication
With less than 2 months to produce 2020: THE RIDE, we implemented a color-coded task system and conducted regular check-ins. Additionally, I storyboarded the entire experience to optimize workflow efficiency. I allocated time for the 3D artists to design assets which were then uploaded to Sketchfab. Using Sketchfab screengrabs, I created the storyboards while the Unreal artist established the backend infrastructure. The sound artist designed music chunks with the understanding that they would be linked together to form a seamless track.
Learnings
2020: THE RIDE was originally designed for PC and Quest formats. We ultimately prioritized the PC version due to its superior real-time capabilities. We could’ve further reduced timeline elements to devote more time to include supers for each 2020 event. Our team gathered valuable insights from Steam, itch.io, YouTube reviews, and comments. However, we’ve already exhausted the budget.
Special Thanks
David Lobser, Fati Jafri, Fuzzy Wobble, James Garvey, Lucas Hearl, Michael Kleinman, Michelle Cortese, mr.doob, Nicole Ruggiero, Winslow Porter