Dr. Faustus Postmortem

    The experience of helping to produce the image and audio content for Dr. Faustus with a diverse group was ultimately rewarding. Learning how the elements of the show evolved and fit together while being under a relatively tight deadline added to the experience. I became familiar with the Isadora program and how it behaved across different platforms and screens. To have a deadline and to negotiate around the desires of the director and constraints of the Isadora program made it apparent that having contingency options was very important. Out of necessity, we had to learn from mistakes quickly.
    One of the main elements I worked on was the dorm room. Kevin found the file and I took it and cleaned up the walls and either removed some features or covered them with other items. I added some books, a fraternity paddle, and a book shelf. The main feature of the room was the circular window which the set designer picked out. I replaced the glass and made the stone frame appear wooden so it would fit better in the room. I had to make alpha masks of the window and of the glass for certain gags to work. I had made simple masks for static scenes when leaning about Isadora, but I found that using the same technique did not work for more dynamic in scene gags and transitioning between scenes. The masks required some adjustments. In hindsight, I would have worked on the entire file more carefully from the beginning rather than doing things quickly in order to test them in Isadora. I would have also offered more previews as the file progressed to get feedback. The dorm would also have benefited from a higher quality file to work with. 
    The next scene I worked on was the club scene. This backdrop was a manipulation of a picture I took close to my house. I created a mask for the sign and to play a video of a neon sign found on videopong.com. I also added the lounge through the windows and a couple of bar signs with masks and more neon videos. Like the dorm, I found that there were some discrepancies between how the projection looked on the big screen and my computer, and I had to make some quick adjustments.
    For the vatican and throne rooms I just took found images and did a feathered erasure around the image so that they would blend better when projected.
    The merchant scene was a group effort. I found two store fronts and cut them out with Alexis’ help. I blended one and turned it into a bar. Yejee found a sign for a Wine bar and I added that in Isadora. Yeejee and Terrance found the other store fronts and cut them out. Yeejee also suggested that we use the brick wall as a background to tie everything together.
    I also worked in control room during the show and cued all the gags, scenes, and transitions. This was fairly tense and every run-through we did during tech week was necessary to get into sync with the stage director. Changes, though relatively minor, were made on both nights of the performance. There were a couple of minor miscues, but I think that everything went well all things considered.
    I am looking forward to gaining more experience with Isadora and learning which adjustments should be made prior to importing into the program and and which should be made inside it. The experience of participating in the production of a staged performance will aid in knowing how to conduct more through file management and improve work flow in the future projects.