Production Notes

Fast City contains 60 lexias that present different micro-narratives; a trip-hop drum loop that sets the mood and reading rhythm; a set of 60 identical interactive buttons that trigger the change of lexias as well as corresponding sound effects; and an additional four buttons at the bottom of the interface that turn the background loop on/off, provide brief user instructions, as well as allow users to Exit; all of which trigger different sound effects.

All graphic elements were produced using Photoshop and Freehand illustration software. Text was edited in MS Word, imported into Freehand, converted into image files, further edited and exported to Flash. All audio clips were either generated from a rack of MIDI hardware (including samplers) or imported from royalty-free sound effects libraries, and digitised in SoundEdit software. Media elements were finally animated and authored in Macromedia Flash. Stereo-placement of audio elements was also designed in Flash, to enhance the audio field and convey the sonic character of the story world.

Fast City is also intended as a blueprint for further multimedia installation projects that develop upon its narrative strategies and themes. The visual representation of embedded media -- as expressed in the interface -- lends itself particularly well to being remediated across multiple platforms, and having its lexias and sound effects rendered in dynamic content delivery modes.

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