4D TV
ROLE
Programmer
DESCRIPTION
This innovative project, 4D TV, was created during my second year at university. This unique concept resembles a television system with an added dimension, presenting the viewer with a range of possible alternate realities that lie behind each channel. With 4D TV, users can immerse themselves in an interactive and engaging viewing experience that blurs the lines between reality and fiction.
YEAR
2021
GENRE
Experimental
CREATED USING
Unity
PROJECT IN ACTION
MY ROLE
As the only programmer on the 4D TV project, I had a valuable opportunity to further develop my C# skills. Features that the alternate television system needed to include were:
-
Channel changes when left/right arrow keys pressed
-
Reality of the current channel changes when up/down arrow keys are pressed
-
When returning to a channel, time has passed based on how long the viewer was watching a different channel
-
Pressing ‘Q’ exits the program
Although creating the basic system was pretty straightforward given my existing knowledge base, I encountered some challenges while trying to program the channels to simulate the effect of time passing while the viewer watched a different channel. This means that if the viewer decides to return to a channel they were previously watching, the channel will now be further through the program it is playing. The challenges I overcame when coding this aspect of the 4D TV project provided me with more in-depth knowledge of C#, teaching me how to deal with time based functions in my programming.
CHANNEL DESCRIPTION
1 / TED TALK
This channel shows a parody of a TED talk, in which the presenter discusses a rather novel subject. On this channel, the use of the 4D TV system changes the appearance of the TED Talk presenter, along with the subject of the TED Talk.
2 / A DAY IN THE LIFE
This channel displays a "day in the life" of a person. However, this channel is presented through the perspective of surveillance cameras. The change of effect on this channel changes the layout, style and presentation of the subject being viewed; almost viewing them in different dimensions
of themselves.
3 / KIDS CARTOON
Channel 3 shows a kids cartoon, and bounces between 2D animation and live action when the 4D TV system is used.
The cartoon changes tone as it progresses, and as the viewers changes through the channels the idealistic kids show turns into an unsettling short film, enhanced by the alternate reality of the live action version.
4 / SPORTS CHANNEL
The sports channel plays two different clips; one of a robot boxing and one of a tennis match. Both clips were recorded using motion capture but were given a different art style to emphasise the idea of alternate realities.