For this scene, my aim was to keep the design as close as possible to the style and tone of my original animation, while simultaneously using the medium to empower the narrative, message and empathetic strength of the piece.
By nature VR forms a more immersive experience than 2D mediums, and using this to its full potential would mean adding interaction to the narrative. I wanted to present the divide between foxes and humans by making the fox flee from the player, while watching from a distance.
Setting the Scene
My original animation was very dark, desaturated and gloomy. This was a design decision used in order to make the fox contrast its surroundings, while symbolising the bleak life in which city foxes live. For this reason I wanted to translate this visual metaphor into the Virtual Reality scene, allowing the viewer to feel the darkness/sadness that the fox experiences.
Keeping in mind how the foxes will contrast the surroundings, I begun designing the scene. I wanted some aspects of the design to be easily recognisable in order to provide the viewer with contextual placement. I realised that by creating a more expressive or stylised street design, I would be taking focus away from the design of the foxes, therefore, I decided to make use details with realistic texture and structure.
I decided to make the first 3D model of the bus stop because I had a solid base to work from, and also it provided me with a good scale reference for anything else I put into the scene.
I created similar objects to those in my original animation, since these were designed to present the foxes living in filth, and being treated as 'Vermin', living amongst bins and waste.
I experimented with using animated fire from Quill for the bin fires in the scene, however I realised that it would draw the attention away from the foxes. I wanted the foxes to contrast the surrounding to make them seem out of place. This extends the metaphor of homelessness, since they are forced into a setting that they would not choose to live in.