A Journey Through India
Shaw, Heather
A Journey Through India approaches interactive documentary from the point of view of the designer as author. This body of work refutes an “all-in-one” formula for approaching interactive documentary, and supports the need for distinct authorship. This work proposes that the viewer does not need to “change the story” to necessarily create an interactive or immersive narrative; that the content itself and the delivery of that content is key towards creating narrative immersion.
Documentary content is driven specifically by the author’s ability to present a concept and/or idea, and it is the author’s responsibility towards the “telling” of that story. Documentaries are created with specific intent and that intent should always remain in the hands of the author, not the viewer, and be clearly defined by the interactive experience.
A Journey Through India approaches narrative content in small “chunks” versus developing a larger, more fluid narrative. This allows to viewer to experience the breadth and depth of information being presented; such as the interface behaviors, and more specific contextual information, rather than focusing on a distinct story path and fluidity. It is through creative use of interactivity, such as intertwining the behaviors of the interface with the content itself, that makes the documentary all the more immersive.
The narrative for A Journey Through India is based on discreet journal entries, allowing for more flexibility in my interface design. The narrative is only part of the journey; eliminating the need for a fluid narrative allowed me to focus on interface behaviors and explore deeper concepts in interactivity; such as “experience creativity.” I feel this approach provides the viewer the overall tone and immersion of my experience, without having to build a multi-threaded narrative structure.
Lastly, the beauty of the interactive documentary lies within its attention to detail. The chakras’ spinning in a clockwise direction when rolled over, the artifacts slowly emerging from the background, the hand opening to reveal information—these details are all about the author’s overall intimacy with the content and intent when presenting the information. All these elements add to the richness of the experience and packaging of the content.
