Digital Terrarium is an immersive experience showcasing a sense of wonder and curiosity about the natural world, presented through a series of themed terrarium worlds on a dodecahedron installation at the Enhanced Immersive Studio at Media and Immersive eXperience (MIX) Center in Mesa, Arizona. The project aims to inspire a renewed appreciation for nature's beauty and complexity, encouraging people to think about preservation and our role in protecting the environment.
Professor: Sven Ortel
Visual team member: Gideon Friedman, Olivia Reyes, Yannie Szeto
Sound team member: Gideon Friedman, Nicholas Lewis, Orlene Carlos, Myles Hancock, Josie DeBord
I was the 2D animator and media programmer for the project. Most graphics were drawn in Procreate and animated in After Effects. I also used TouchDesigner for the generative particles effect. The outputs were then imported into Pixera for media processing and compositing.
Narrative
A curious rabbit travels through various terrarium worlds that are changed via audience interaction. Shortly after starting its journey, in a pixelated world a robotic arm awakens and begins to chase the rabbit. After running into more worlds, the arm encounters a more abstract piece depicting nature, where it falls apart. After that, the rabbit returns to the normal terrarium and falls asleep.
Previsualization
The first version of Neon Terrarium was projected on a mini dodecahedron for preview.
Design
I was responsible for creating the Neon Terrarium and Abstract Terrarium (bottom two). For the Neon Terrarium, I drew the graphics in Procreate and animated them in After Effects. For the Abstract Terrarium, I did the same thing for the background but the tree animations were created in TouchDesigner using ParticlesGpu.
I created the rabbit run cycle in After Effects and rotated it along the z axis of the dodecahedron later in Pixera.
Normal Terrarium created by Olivia Reyes
Voxel Terrarium created by Olivia Reyes
Neon Terrarium created by Yannie Szeto
Abstract Terrarium created by Yannie Szeto
Media Programming
I created the show timeline using Pixera, programming the sequence of visuals, transitions, and key moments to synchronize with the overall narrative. Most of our artwork was rendered as panoramic images and videos, which I mapped onto the dodecahedron using equirectangular bidirectional layer mapping, allowing the visuals to wrap accurately around the structure while maintaining spatial coherence.
A key visual element of the show was the rabbit’s journey through different terrarium worlds. To achieve this effect, I keyframed the rabbit’s run cycle in Pixera, carefully animating its movement across scenes to create the illusion of continuous motion through dynamic, ever-changing environments. This approach not only enhanced the storytelling but also reinforced the immersive quality of the experience, making the audience feel as if they were traveling alongside the rabbit.
