After we were presented with the Kite Festival Interactive Installations Live Brief, we began by familiarizing ourselves with the key aspects of the project. The Kite Festival, set for February 8th-9th, 2025, celebrates the end of the “Let’s Go Fly the Kite” project by Together Culture. This event will be held in the Kite area of Cambridge, an area with a unique history linked to Cambridge University’s development and its exclusion of local residents from city center amenities. The festival aims to foster community engagement and showcase the Navigator platform, an interactive history website that uses podcasts and maps to tell the stories of the Kite’s past and present.

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Our main task was to design an interactive installation that would showcase the Navigator to a diverse festival audience. The installation needed to bridge the online and physical experiences of the Navigator, allowing visitors to engage with the history of the area in new, interactive ways. We were encouraged to explore transmedia storytelling, which means presenting stories across multiple platforms, making the experience immersive and interactive. The goal was to create something that could engage people with the rich material collected throughout the project, using digital media storytelling in creative ways.

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In class, we began brainstorming ideas and discussing how to approach this challenge. We worked in teams and set up Miro boards for collaborative planning. Our discussions included looking at examples of transmedia experiences and considering how to best integrate digital elements like sound, visuals, and tactile interactions into our installation. We also had the opportunity to experiment with digital media kits like Bare Conductive and Makey Makey, which could be used to create interactive elements in our prototypes.

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The brief also included a series of deadlines: first, we needed to pitch our ideas in Week 1, followed by developing prototypes and receiving feedback in Week 2. By Week 3, we would present our final ideas. This process gave us the chance to work closely with the project clients, StoryLab Research Institute and Together Culture, and to receive direct feedback to refine our concepts. Additionally, there was the possibility of a two-week internship in January 2025 for a group of us to help further develop our ideas for the festival.

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Overall, we started the project by getting a clear understanding of the brief, diving into initial research and ideation, and preparing to bring the interactive Navigator experience to life in a way that was engaging and innovative for the festival attendees.