During our second lesson we looked at coding and we were set a task with the following instructions:  

 'Create a new C# script.​

Create three new public bool variables named:​ catAsleep​, mouseAwake​ and mouseHide​

Set mouseAwake = true ​

Write the code statements to express the following:​

If cat is asleep and mouse is awake then mouse does not need to hide​

If cat is not asleep and mouse is awake then mouse needs to hide​

If mouse is awake and mouse is hiding then cat is awake​

If mouse is not hiding or mouse is asleep then cat is awake​'

The code means that when the cat is asleep and the mouse is awake then the mouse is not hiding. Below that the ! means it is false, meaning that if the cat is not asleep and the mouse is awake then the mouse is hiding and so on...

We began setting up our project. We started with a new project and changed the resolution to portrait so that it looked like a web space shooter game.

When first choosing Interactivity I felt unsure on how I would get along with Unity, which is a program I have never used before however I enjoy challenges and learning new skills, so I was excited at the prospect of using it. Luke explained the unit to us and that we would be making a game. This excited me however I was scared at the complexity of it all and at the beginning I found it difficult to keep up with the others however after playing about with the program for a while I began to get the hang of it.

During the lesson we made a room by making three walls and a floor. We then added colour and lighting to make the room look more interesting. Luke then showed us how to make objects move, which I found really interesting. To do this we had to make a cube and make the surface 'bounce', which makes an object move up and down when you play it.

My project (Boxes hovering were made to 'bounce' so they could move around the box. 

We then looked at coding which was quite difficult to do also as I have no coding experience. We were given pieces of code to allow the different objects to follow commands through what Luke was taught as 'catAsleep, mouseAwake and mouseHide' which were key phrases to make the coding simpler to use. I feel after experimenting with typing code I got the hang of it however the smallest of mistakes can prevent the project from not functioning properly, so I will have to take extra care when writing code. 

To develop our project for the gallery, Thomas finalised the visuals, Julia finalised the brain model and I worked with sound. We then began setting up our brain.

The set up itself took a couple of days to do as Julia was finalising the brain whilst I helped Thomas and Lauren set up the Mac Mini to open up the quartz composer file. After this was done, we set up the brain on the plinth (Julia had to build a stand to put the brain on). This was applied successfully and Julia started setting up the wiring inside the plinth.

The lights were kindly donated by Thomas (as you can see they're a lot stronger than the original!). The sound was originally set up with two speakers in front of the brain, however after some advice from Richard we decided to move them behind the brain, which gave for an interesting result.

After everything was set up we decided to test the brain to make sure everything worked. A couple of the sensors weren't working, so Julia had to lift up the plinth and re-wire it. Fortunately it worked fine after this.

Overall I'm really happy with how the project turned out and I feel the set up for the gallery has progressed hugely since we showed our work before Christmas.

I attended Rob's 24 hour our live stream originally in the evening when Rob first started. I then came along with Julia for the 2-4am shift to make sure everything was okay (Congrats to Rob for raising money for a great cause and doing the whole 24 hours without falling asleep!)

Rob in a beautiful maid outfit at 2am

During day 2 and 3 of our workshop, Rachel wanted us to create an idea for a dance piece in groups. We would later incorporate our ideas into something that could work with professional dancers.

Day 2


During day 2 we did some exercises that involved moving around a space and doing a variation of movements, such as walking, sitting, standing and lying down. We also did other exercises such as learning how to do lifts. We started in a group of 5 lifting one person directly into the air. Each person had to position themselves in a certain way to lift the person in the center. After a few attempts this worked. We then did the same however the lift was different. I was the person be lifted and lift involved the whole body laying straight in the air. This was more difficult as I had to walk into the lift and raise my leg to be lifted rather than stand still. After a few attempts this was also successful. This exercise really helped when it came to learning how to do lifts and helping instruct dancers to do so. 

We then worked in pairs and did several more dance exercises. One in particular required one person to be controller and the other to control their movement. This was a fun exercise at it allowed the person controlling to do whatever movements and gestures they wanted the other person to do. Self-Control was then added into the piece, meaning the person being controlled could decide not to do the movement and do whatever they want. This was also amusing to watch due to the frustration of the controller. 

We lastly practiced our ideas in our groups. My group, Julia, Lauren, Katherine and Laura decided to do a piece relating to the idea of being unique and different to everybody else. We tested this idea out by getting everyone in a circle doing the same movement, which was moving up and down, moving their arms also. The individual would try to get into the circle however because they are different they find this difficult. it would result in the individual breaking into the center, trying to copy the movements however this eventually fails and she stumbles, causing a domino like effect spiralling around everyone. The end would result in the individual falling but being lifted at the end to represent individuality and how its okay to be different. This idea was tested however it didn't look right and we went off to think more about our idea. 

We then came up with a different idea. The dance would be set in an office with several people doing the same movement, almost robotically due to their everyday routine being the same. We then decided that the person who was unique and creative would come in, sit down at their desk and try and copy the movements of the others. This would be unsuccessful and would result in this person being out of time, constantly making errors. After this, everyone would leave for a meeting, with the different individual following at the back. They would stumble and cause a domino-like effect, where everyone would fall over. This would then turn into the creative individual being lifted into the air to show that its okay to be different and unique. Rachel seemed to like the concept of the idea and felt the idea would be great to test with the dancers the following day. 

Day 3 (Final day) 

On the last day of our workshop we were introduced to the dancers. We began by one by one in our groups presenting our group dance ideas. There were an interesting array of ideas to be tested which was exciting to try out. A lot of groups ideas began with getting the dancers to do exercises such as performing a movement to a keyword. When it came to presenting our dance idea, we set up the chairs in a line to begin with, and chose Sophie to be the individual due to her dance speciality being ballet, meaning she could do some very interesting smooth, fluent moves. We got each dancer to come up with an idea for the robotic movement and incorporated everyone's movement ideas into one. After this we looked at the domino-like fall part and because of the dancer's improv, we decided to change it accordingly to the workers still trying to do the same movement even after falling. I feel the idea is an interesting concept and I would consider following the idea up and developing it further. 

I thoroughly enjoyed the workshop and it was really beneficial when it comes to using choreography in dance and other platforms like film. Rachel was very helpful in doing so, and taught us several dance exercises and techniques that we can use with potential dancers in our dance film or other projects. When being introduced to the project I was unsure on ideas and how I would approach getting dancers to work with my idea. The techniques and skills I have learnt in this workshop I hope to use in future projects. 

During the first day of our workshop, we looked at some examples of different types of dance and discussed different things about them, whether we enjoyed the video or not. We looked at the way the camera was positioned and the framing in particular and what effect it has on the person watching. A few examples of some of the work we looked at are:

Feist- '1234'

The video to this is quite simplistic, yet effective. It is a one shot film, with a Busby Berkley style through the use of hundred of dancers choreographed to perform in sync. The movement within the video expresses the meaning of the song, which is about young love and growing up. The use of colours is also interesting, perhaps representing mood and allowing your attention to focus on everyone, seeing as everyone is wearing different coloured clothing. This was a positive example of a well choreographed dance piece.




Bill T. Jones' 'Ghostcatching'



We were previously shown this in a briefing of the Dance video project we had with Rosie at the start of the year. I was fascinated by this digital dance piece from a previous project I did with light writing, which has somewhat of a similar visual effect. The use of fast and slow motion links well with the movement within a space. This again is a strong example of a different type of dance experimentation through the use of visual effects.


 Ellie Goulding- 'Guns and Horses'



This was shown to us as a negative example of incorporating dance within music videos. The main reason this video didn't work with the dance was the clashing between the dancers and Ellie. The costume also played a part in this, due to the fact that she was wearing normal clothing, whereas the dancers are wearing a different unique style of clothing that tends to clash with what she's wearing. Her movement also clashes with the dancer's movement, as they tend to do exaggerated, stretched movement, whereas Ellie mostly stands and moves slowly with her arms. The two seem to look as if they have been blended together deliberately by the music company that works with Ellie, however this being forced into results in Ellie and the dancers not working together at all.