theo triantafyllidis

staphyloculus

Staphyloculus is a VR piece by Theo Triantafyllidis commissioned by NRW-Forum Dusseldorf. It is an immersive VR experience exploring embodiment in VR and the tension between a player’s awareness of their avatar and actual self. We wanted to engage with this tension through visual and sound design that re-engaged the players with the tether between their body and their avatar. Blending a 3D scan of Joshua Tree National Park with a virtual deconstruction of that site, Theo created a VR landscape teetering between animation and reality. We blended site-specific field recordings with manipulated versions of these to further emphasize the oscillation between a mundane and alien encounter of the landscape. Unique viral forms slowly make their way into the scene and confront your avatar by clinging to it. Each form has particularized behaviors and an accompanying sonic character or personality. To create a sonic personality for each figure, we manipulated the calls of Gambel’s Quail and other wildlife native to Joshua Tree.

CREDITS

Site: Joshua Tree, California
Foley/Sound Design: We Time Audio House
VR/Animation/Video: Theo Triantafyllidis

On Site team: Jenny Rodenhouse, Eli Joveta, Lander

Additional Photogrammetry: Régis Boissenin

Commissioned by NRW-Forum Dusseldorf, DE