Hear Me

When we are young, we build worlds of fiction all around us – collaborating with friends or by ourselves – we seem to experience these fantasies so fully. As we age, our capacity for the fantastical fades and reality exists in harsh focus, but one place seems to hold the potential for the impossible: the dark. Unburdened by the stark image of the real world, it’s easy to believe in the irrational. It’s easy to trust that more exists when we can’t trust what we see. The dark, then, is the ideal environment for an immersive audio experience. It is where we may feel the impact of these stories with the most intensity. How could one be compelled to interact with something like this when they so easily allow for multitasking? If these experiences were interactive, then they would demand one’s full attention, and sitting in the dark would not be an absurd task.

The dark is a tense space to be, especially if one is asked to focus and listen and simply be aware of their environment. For many, this would generate fear. Instead of being in contention with the feeling, it seems better to embrace it, to lean into the uneasiness and unfamiliarity.  For my Major Studio 2 final prototype I have created an interactive, audio-only horror experience. Proceed with caution... and enjoy!