The Forest: CCA Inter-Arts Research Grant

The Forest was a Canada Council for the Arts sponsored inter-arts research grant exploring contradicting themes of hyper-connectivity and isolation in today’s world. Additionally, given the unique challenges aerial arts face because of its dynamic nature, it sought to leverage accessible and affordable technologies in order to integrate real-time media into performances by small and local aerial circus troops.

We achieved real-time tracking with a single cellphone camera and Google’s MediaPipe to analyze and provide skeletal data, allowing aerialists to shape their projected stage as they move.

Audience members, on-site or remote, whispered into their device creating a virtual “wind” that shaped how the environment looked and reacted to the performance. ChatGPT analyzed speech patterns focusing on context, tone and complexities. This information was mapped to generative values in Touchdesigner, adjusting the output in real-time.

Combined, these techniques resulted in an ambient proof-of-concept performance that occurred over several hours, allowing audiences to come and go for durations of their choice as the piece evolved over time.