Click here to view the embedded video.

We are educated as industrial designers; conceptual thinkers whose point of departure is not to think from fantastic technical solutions, but from a user experience point of view. This did not stroke completely with the nature of the assignment where a technical solution was already given; the app.

In combination with the short time span of this project, we realized that the concept was not as sharp as initially thought. More complex and interesting questions came to the surface:

• How can we enrich documentaries with the actual location?
• How can we turn things around: can we enrich the location with the documentaries?
• What is the role that other existing, relevant content can play?

With the app as the ultimate answer to an opportunity that had yet to be clearly defined, the question that remained was if the road to the answer should be restructured and redefined. In order to get meaningful answers, we broke the concept down in parts, and started working from the ground up. Our in-depth analysis can be found here.

In the end, however, it is not only about abstract methodology and how to state meaningful questions. The important part is translating these insights into something that can actually be experienced by the user.

RESULT

Click here to view the embedded video.

The end result is a mobile web-app which allows the user to roam around the NDSM harbour and discover and uncover tatters of the past, making use of content from the selected documentary, as well as additional content. The documentary is Haven, omzwervingen in de nacht.

There is a very clear and explicit link between content and location. At first the notion was to reveal content depending on location. By implementing a GPS location-based tracker, content popped up on screen as certain areas were visited. In hindsight, the short period of time we had to solve any technical difficulties made us abandon any GPS-based solutions. Instead, we placed special stickers all around the harbour, each with an unique code. Entering this code into an especially designated menu in the app unlocks that specific piece of content. As a result, you really have to look around to find those stickers instead of looking at your mobile phone and waiting for content to pop up. By seducing the users to look around and absorb the environment, we hold them away from the device screen.

A sticker on location

Another sticker on location

There is an overload of stickers placed, making sure there is enough content to be found. Because of the open-endedness of the project, it is not required to actually find all of the stickers, or use them in a specific order.

As an addition, there is also a possibility to tune into the radio. This radio gives access to a number of soundclips that really convey the general feeling and mood of the harbour, both in the present as in the past, but are not as strongly tied to specific locations as the other content. Put on your headphones, and stroll around the harbour to take in everything you see.

Different screens from the app

In conclusion, we used technology as a means to unlock content and enhance both the location as well as the documentary. A cornerstone of the project was to use this technology as a means, and not as a goal. We can use the good part of technology, while not forcing the users to live behind their screens. A presentation at Screening the City was given to further explain the project. Here is the IDFA project page.

Docs on the Spot was developed by Jeffrey Braun and Billy Schonenberg

By determining commonalities across values of both end-users and stakeholders, the various layers of meaning came to surface. As the documentary Haven: Omzwervingen in de Nacht
itself is set in a literally dark ‘in-between’ period where the surroundings and inhabitants needed to redefine their purpose and function, it became evident to explore the notion of Zeitgeist.

Zeitgeist for this project can be defined as the general cultural or spiritual climate within a specific group, along with the general ambiance and mood associated with an era, but in this case also intrinsically bound to a specific, relatively small, location; the NDSM-wharf.

Adding content to specific spots at the NDSM-wharf; including viewpoint.

The location itself, a former shipyard on the northern banks of the river IJ, still exerts a mysterious seductiveness. Remains of a once prosperous harbor are still present and are inhabited by different types of residents over the years. It is these types of residents that form the building blocks of our narrative. The stories that they tell, the dreams they hold dear, their day-to-day worries.

By providing them with two actual radio channels that can be tuned into, themed towards past and present (e.g. riveting hammer sounds to portray a 1950s vivid harbor), visitors can roam the NDSM-wharf freely and experience it through their own eyes. By hearing sounds of the past and empathizing with the surroundings, visitors can imagine the past in their own way.The supply of content (approximately 10 minutes of documentary max., 25 Polygoonjournaals of around 1 minute each and about 40 images) could be seen as either a blessing or a curse. As said in the blogpost before “Changing any aspect, will change the target and also the roles of the other aspects. That is why, before you can realistically say (or even see) what the target is, all the other aspects should be well defined.”. As the content was only provided one-and-a-half week before the actual deadline, by definition the target was only finalized at that moment. However, it allowed us to make concessions and quickly wander down the decision-making process with various stakeholders.

Mapping the content

Early iterations hinted towards unlocking content depending on the physical location of the visitor. Standing on the ferry towards the NDSM-wharf would unlock an introduction movie, and each step taken towards so-called hotspots (a pier, a rusty hoisting-crane and quay with an industrial harbor view) would open up new movie clips and photographs. From a usability point of view and a more practical and technical side, GPS-based unlocking was replaced by a more intuitive and identifiable form. Easily recognizable stickers were designed and placed around the harbor with a unique number on them. As a sticker was found, the number could be entered into a special menu of the application after which the associated content could be viewed. The location of the sticker was linked to the actual location of the content (i.e. a 1930s Polygoonjournaal of the famous boat hotel ‘Botel’ would be shown next to ‘Botel’ itself).

In line with our concern of “living behind the smartphone”, the web-based application remains simple and intuitive. There are only three menu options (which are always displayed in the bottom); one of them leads towards a basic static information page. The second one displays an interactive map (including a suggestive route and markings of visited and non-visited content) and the radio, and the final page allows visitors to enter a code after which a new window showing the content pops up.

An initial mapping of the different aspects in this projects has been made. Four cornerstones have been identified. Changing any aspect, will change the target and also the roles of the other aspects. That is why, before you can realistically say (or even see) what the target is, all the other aspects should be well defined.

• Place and environment; everything that is filmed is located around the Amsterdam Docks (more particularly NDSM)
• Theme/Meaning; it tries to give the viewer an indication of life on the – at that time almost abandoned – docks, while focusing on the grandeur of the past and loneliness of the present. There is no urge to convince the viewer or make a point.
• The different characters who tell their stories.
• Content; what do we actually see.
• Non-linear. Emergent narrative, meaning there is no real story to follow, but the various characters and series of unconnected events together form an interesting blend.

Location is the second important factor. By location we do not only mean the coordinates of a place, but also other aspects such as time of day, history and state of mind. For example: traveling on the highway towards a destination makes it an entirely different state compared to being on the same highway but returning home. These different attributes depend on the location. For our location, the NDSM werf, the zeitgeist through the years is very important. There is a defined feeling of motion – whether you would call it progression or regression. From being a industrial area (history) transforming through the state of lost/forgotten area (documentary) being the artsy, developing mtv-crowd place (now). These different states call for different mentalities, and these mentalities and how they are interconnected makes the NDSM werf the rich place that it is.

User. Who is going to make use of this – at this point undefined- interactive installation? What motives do they have? Why are they interested? How much time are they willing to spend? These are internal motivations, but that is not the only factor that is important. Also are they technically able to? In other words, do they have the hardware and know-how to use their devices to stream the video on location etc.
By using Internet and IDFA promotions we are selecting a very specific target: the so-called ‘IDFA 3G’-crowd. If these people want to join in the experience, they are already commited and want to invest time and effort. But by also using the location and way to get there (pontje) we can expose the experience to a much bigger audience: the people who are on the boat anyway.

Stakeholders. These are the partners in charge of the project. While everybody is participating in the project because they are interested and want to see it succeed, their individual goals do not always stroke with others. It is important, while designing an interactive narrative, to always have a clear understanding of the underlying goals and targets of each of the stakeholders. It is not about always making concessions, but it’s about keeping the targets clear and the deliverables sharp. For this installation there are three key aspects stakeholder-wise.

1. The experience is most important: how to make this experience is dependant on this.
2. Content from all the partners should be linked and available as integral part of the experience.
3. The methodology and insights should be well documented, so the project can be repeated for other documentaries.

• How can we enrich the documentary with its actual physical location?
• How can we enrich the physical location with the documentary?
• What role can other existing relevant content play?