Summary

"Render Gohst" is an immersive VR theater work. At the onset of consumer VR's popularity, this piece challenged the concept of large-scale, multi-person VR experiences, exploring actorless ritual theater and post-human themes. The work received the First Prize at the Taiwan Digital Art Performance Award and is recognized as a representative VR piece in Taiwan.

In the theater experience, audience members donned dust suits and carried heavy computers with VR displays, resembling pilgrims in the Tibetan Buddhist "KORA" ritual, climbing a tower constructed from discarded information. At the performance's end, viewers removed their helmets to experience illusions crafted from soundscapes, particle storms, and dense fog, all constructed using lasers and lights.

As our bodies inevitably merge into a new reality mediated by screens, networks, and algorithms, our bodies, memories, and consciousness are gradually transformed through the transmission of fiber-optic cables. With the approach of the "post-human" era, NAXS created a virtual ritual, imagining the future dissolution of the human body into digital information and reflecting on the contemporary reality of technology as a new mythology.

Process

My university classmate Hanyu and I began collaborating in 2012, deeply interested in combining technology with environmental and ritual theater, as well as the relationship between technology and myth. In our early work "DIVE," we experimented with immersive, actorless performances using only smoke, lights, lasers, and projections, which premiered at the Taipei Digital Arts Festival.

In 2014, after experimenting with the Oculus DevKit 2, we started developing a project that combined VR with immersive experiences, winning the First Prize at the 2015 Digital Art Performance Award. Later, we received support from Taiwan's Ministry of Culture and the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, releasing upgraded versions in 2016 and 2017. Throughout this lengthy process, we continuously enhanced the concept, content, and technology. The audience's experience evolved from initially wandering through digital ruins to ultimately climbing a virtual tower in a ritualistic fashion.

2015, Wondering in a digital wasteland with Cardboard VR

Technical Challenges

From the outset, we aimed to create an experience that allowed the audience to wander between virtual and real worlds, boldly setting our technical goal to achieve large-scale, multi-user connectivity and location sharing within a 10x10 meter space.

In the first version, we used inexpensive Cardboard VR to create a shared experience for up to 30 viewers. We filled the theater with iBeacons, allowing the client-side Cardboard VR phones to autonomously calculate their approximate location using Bluetooth signals. Understandably, the precision of this positioning was far from perfect.

Following the release of the HTC Vive, its Lighthouse infrared laser system enabled us to precisely locate viewers within a 5x4 meter area, but this still fell short of our desired space. Subsequently, I hacked the HTC VIVE SDK and placed hand controllers at the back of the head as a second tracking point, expanding our tracking range to 10x10 meters. Initially, we used DIY backpack computers (including gaming laptops, batteries, and cooling systems) with HTC VIVE, which brought significant cooling challenges. Fortunately, in 2018, we received sponsorship from HP, providing us with state-of-the-art backpack computers, thereby perfecting our technology.

2016, Hacked HTC Vive with customized backpack PC

Contributions

On the design front, I was involved in scriptwriting, directing, theater design, and lighting design. In programming development, I was responsible for the multiplayer connectivity and positioning system, and also participated in the development of visual effects and Shaders. Additionally, I developed a customized timeline synchronization and event control system, integrating technologies and protocols such as MAX/MSP, OSC, DMX, SMPTE, allowing the VR content to operate in sync with lighting, lasers, and music.

Lighting, laser, wind and particles

Reflection

Render Ghost was the first major project I led with the NAXS team. Looking back at the naive challenge of completely unfamiliar technology and domains at the start of the project, we were incredibly fortunate to have received enough support to overcome the failures. Over the three-year production, it shaped my instinct for challenging boundaries and resilience in facing difficulties, having a profound impact on my subsequent explorations and development in virtual and real experiences.

Tech Stack

Unity3D, Touch Designer, C#, Firebase RTDB, MAX/MSP, Ableton Live, HTC Vive

Audience climbing a virtual tower inside the VR

Achievement

Award

2015, Digital Performance Art Award, First Prize, Taiwan

2019, Lumen Prize, nominated, UK

Performance

2018 《Render Ghost - XATAR》, Times Art Museum, Beijing

2018 《Render Ghost》 v4, National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Taichung

2017 《Render Ghost》 v3, Taipei Backstage Pool, Taipei

2016 《Render Ghost》 v2, Taiwan Air Force-Innovation Base Badminton Hall, Taipei

2015 《Render Ghost》 v1, Taipei Digital Art Festival, The 6th Digital Art Performance Award, Wellspring Theater, Taipei

Exhibition

2019, Ars Electronica, Screening at EXPANDED ANIMATION, Austria

Credit

Writer & Director: Yi Kuo, Han Yu Feng

Producer: Zhi Han Liao

Technical Director: Yi Kuo

Visual Director: Han Yu Feng

Sound Design: Chuan Yi Yang

Stage Design：Yi Kuo

Light Design: Zhi Yu Xie, Yi Kuo(2015)

VR Content: Han Yu Feng, Yi Kuo

Laser Design: Ting Hao Yeh,

Unity Developer: Yi, Kuo, Kui Ming Zeng, Zhe Yu Lin