The Story of Bodie - Stereoscopic Archiving"
is our project for our multimedia graduate degree. We created
a 3D immersive environment using stereoscopic video to tell the story of the infamous
ghost town of Bodie, California.
The creation of a stereoscopic archive for future generations is in its conceptual
phase and the "Story of Bodie" is the first step into the embryonic stage. Video
by itself is insufficient in capturing the personal motivations and passions of
those who once inhabited Bodie, so interactive narrative is integrated into the
project. The history of the buildings and their former occupants is woven into
a rich tapestry that tells the story of a bygone era in such a way that it captures
the heart and soul of its former community.
Users discover and experience this unique ghost town,
that is presently in a perpetual state of "arrested decay", in a new
and different way. They are immersed into Bodie via the three-dimensional imagery
captured with an adapter-equipped digital camera and displayed via a stereoscopic
visor that is worn by the users during their immersion into the environment.
This allows the users to have a more realistic, spatial feel for Bodie and keeps
their interest while touring the town. Not only do users get a better view of
the architecture and surrounding area but they also get a better feel for its
eerie atmosphere through the use of an appropriate soundtrack, which accompanies
a corresponding audio track that describes each building, artifact or location
along their journey.
Foley sounds are also added to the soundtrack and correspond to each particular
area that a user is seeing as well as to the ground where the user is walking.
For example, if a user walks into the store with a wooden floor, the echo of
footsteps is heard. Likewise, if the user walks past a sawmill, the whirring
sound of blades planing the lumber into boards is heard.
The addition of lively conversation near a saloon, horses neighing and the "hustle
and bustle" of everyday life enriches the user's experience. This not
only give users a feel of how life actually was once in Bodie but it also creates
an auditory spatial reference with which to associate, in case they decide to
walk back through an area again. There is a continuous soundtrack in the background
that reflects the current desolate mood of this town.
