Building Bridges Between Technology and Storytelling
Hello!
As a transmedia storyteller based in Pittsburgh, PA, I specialize in creating immersive and interactive narratives that span multiple platforms. With a Masters in Entertainment Technology from Carnegie Mellon, I'm always looking for new and innovative ways to engage audiences and bring my stories to life.
Recent Work
Hybrid Murder Mystery Experience
Gather your crew and get ready to dive into the dark and dangerous Cyberpunk world of to solve the mystery of Ava Kaine's murder!
"Emma" Animated Music Video
Follow Emma as she takes a journey to rediscover her sense of creativity.
Music by local Pittsburgh Band Brightside
Virtual Worlds
Five unique, multiplatform, and interactive virtual worlds created within two-week sprints with multidisciplinary teams.
Abilities
Quick Learner:
I'm a dedicated learner who enjoys staying up-to-date with the latest trends and technologies in the industry. I have a talent for quickly mastering new tools and techniques and using them to create innovative and compelling work.
Adaptable:
I work well in diverse environments and enjoy collaborating with different teams to deliver high-quality work. I'm always open to feedback and am comfortable taking on new challenges.
Worldbuilder
One of my core strengths is creating immersive and engaging narratives that transport audiences to new and exciting worlds. Whether it's through film, animation, interactive media, I'm dedicated to bringing my creative visions to life
"Emma"
Animated Music Video fully rendered in Unreal Engine
Team
Director / Virtual Cinematographer: Tuesday Becker
Environmental Artist: Joy Wang
Character Artist: Sandra Liu
Technical Artist: Rick Ka
Motion-Capture Handler / Animator / Rigger: Sheenu You
When a Song Becomes a Story: A Creative Journey
Our project was born out of a student pitch, which gave us the rare gift of complete creative control. Our initial plan was to craft an action-packed sequence using motion capture and Unreal Engine. However, as we began to explore different ideas, we found ourselves drawn to the power of music and its ability to inspire and drive a narrative.
When it came to selecting a song for our project, we found our inspiration in the high-energy beats and captivating lyrics of 'This Time.' As creatives ourselves, we know all too well the feeling of being stuck in a rut, struggling to find the spark of inspiration that will fuel our next project.
But with 'This Time' as our jumping-off point, we were able to tap into the raw emotion and creative energy of the song, and channel it into creating a music video that would bring the song's lyrics to life. It was a thrilling challenge and one that allowed us to push the boundaries of our creativity and hone our skills as visual storytellers.
"This Time" by Brightside
From Brain to Board: How We Crafted Our Vision
I started my creative process by immersing myself in the song, listening to it on repeat, and jotting down any ideas or images that came to mind. From there, I met Emma – a young woman, much like myself, struggling to find inspiration for her art.
I pictured her in a messy room, standing before an empty canvas with a paintbrush in hand, feeling the weight of her creative block. With this image in mind, I began to sketch out the storyboard for our music video.
As a team, we wanted to have two contrasting worlds and visual styles. In order to incorporate this idea, I decided to set the beginning of the story in Emma's studio apartment, and have her enter an alternate reality.
We also knew that we wanted to utilize motion capture as it was the core exploration of our project. We decided that dynamic motion, such as dancing, would be the best way to link the music and dynamic motion.
SEVERAL ITERATIONS LATER...
Once we had our story firmly in place, our talented artists began creating the visual assets that would breathe life into our two contrasting worlds.
With the final rough storyboard in hand,
I set to work creating an animatic in Premiere. By timing the shots to the music and story beats, we were able to hit our mark and capture the transformative, rediscovery moment that's so crucial to the narrative.
To further solidify the connection between the music and visuals, I divided the song into its different parts and created a visual script that matched the lyrics to specific images. This helped ensure that every moment of the music video was in sync with the song's narrative and emotional beats.
Final Storyboard:
Storyboard Artist: Zizhuo (Joy) Wang
Directing the Dance: Bringing Emma to Life with Motion Capture
We partnered with a few talented choreographers and modern dancers at Attack Theatre Dance Company in Pittsburgh.
Using a rough shot list, I worked closely with the dancer to create the character's movements for each sequence. We then recorded the dancer's improvised movements in response to the music, giving each shot a dynamic and authentic feel.
Bringing it All Together: Unreal Engine
It was a lengthy process to bring all the components together within the Unreal engine. Our pipeline started with the Lead Animator who refined the motion capture data and sent it to the character modeler to attach to the character rig in Unreal. Then, I took over and placed the animations within the scenes using Unreal's sequencer. As the director, any art asset, VFX, or Animation had to go through me to ensure it was correctly placed within the Sequencer.
To keep the cuts between animations seamless, I utilized various techniques such as camera movements and angles, VFX, lighting, and keyframing visibilities. This required me to get creative and think outside the box, as we had decided to separate the dancer's actions into different captures for efficiency in the pipeline. Overcoming this challenge was one of the biggest accomplishments of the project.
Virtual Worlds
Once Upon a Wolf: AR Experience
My Role: Producer, Sound Designer
Programmers: Shan Jiang, Shiqing Tang
Artists: Wenbo Guo, Eiko Qu
A lonely and hungry wolf living in a fairytale book must venture out into the unknown and enter a different book in order to satiate her hunger. You play a "godlike" role as you make a clear path for the little wolf by manipulating blocks of terrain.
Project Goals
- Produce a playable interactive in two-weeks.
- Keep scope and limitations of technology in check.
- Create background music and sound effects.
Double Birddemnity: AR Experience
My Role: Producer, Narrative/Sound Designer
Programmers: Cleo Ko, James Finkle
Artists: Joy Wang, Leah Lee
At approximately 9:10 PM last night, the heiress Florence Von Swan's prized emerald necklace was stolen from her study. It's now up to you, rookie detective Ruby Retriever, to crack the case. Walk around the scene of the crime and collect clues before choosing one of two suspects: Lucie Goose and Benedict Bear.
Project Goals
- Produce a wholesome noir in two-weeks
- Write clues that lead the player to a solution.
- Create background music and sound effects.
- Write V.O. dialogue that supplements the visual clues.
Little Choir Buddies: Tobii Eyetracker
My Role: Producer, Sound Designer
Programmers: Jeffrey Liu, Hannah Baxter
Artists: Danny Huang, Anlan Yang
Play as the choir conductor and help your students prepare for their choir recital. Conduct the students using your gaze to let them know when it's their time to start singing according to the sheet music. If a section of the choir is initiated too early they will begin doing a vocal warmup and throw off the whole performance.
Project Goals
- Create separate music tracks and singing tracks that are cohesive
- Keep the project in scope for the one-week deadline.
It Was All for You: VR Experience
My Role: Producer, Sound Designer
Programmers: Abhi
Artists: Ruizi Wang, Yukti Gupta
Play as the single father of a young girl as you try to survive an earthquake. A story about the relationship between father and daughter as well as loss.
Project Goals
- Creating a soundscape that would help with player immersion.
- Organizing team meetings
- Keeping project in scope and task managing.
Pickle Mania: Makey-Makey / PC
My Role: Producer, Sound Designer
Programmers: Hui Feng, Zibo Ye
Artists: Em Tyminski, Hagan Miller
Pickle Mania is a two-player PC game with special action buttons using Makey Makey technology. Magic pickles have been disappearing every night from the farm, the culprit--a sneaky raccoon! Play as the farmer or raccoon and face off in a race against time. Will the farmer catch the raccoon before all the pickles are gone?
Project Goals
- Create a multiplayer experience with strong theming
- Make the PvP balanced
- Prototype, playtest, iterate, and polish in three weeks.
Film Projects
"The Swedish Cowboy" : Short Doc
Description:
A documentary about a Swedish Exchange student living in Texas and the similarities and differences he's discovered whilst being away from home.
Process:
Through this project, I learned the importance of having a team and the challenge of documentaries -- creating a story with structure despite having hours of seemingly uncorrelated footage.
Due to scheduling conflicts, I was only able to have a crew on one day of shooting. It was extremely challenging to handle filming, sound, and editing within the time constraints of a semester.