Update on FVM story development and release plans

A core group of Fort Vancouver Mobile developers met recently and put together production plans for the next few months, including a staggered release of content and a consolidated launch party to coincide with the annual Brigade Encampment at the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site on June 18, 2011.

The Android module related to William Kaulehelehe and the influence of Hawaiians on the cultural development of the Pacific Northwest is nearly complete. It has been through extensive beta testing already and is nearing the stage when it will be converted into an iPhone version as well.

The Village Opening module, an expositional exploration of the site, aimed at newcomers, has a developed concept and is partially constructed.

The module about the lives of women in The Village and the one that recounts Paul Kane's Wanderings also are nearing production phases.

In addition, we are working on getting more production equipment, including a camera and hard storage cases, as part of the 2011 Historical Promotion Grant funded by the Clark County Commissioners.

What was the York Factory Express like?

The York Factory Express route, courtesy of Wikipedia Commons

A student in CMDC 354.02 at WSU Vancouver, Marcia First, created this Google Earth tour, showing what travel was like between England and the Pacific Northwest in the mid-1800s.

York Factory Express tour 

As far as I know, Google Earth doesn't allow this sort of tour to be embedded in blogs (please let me know otherwise). So to watch the tour, you will need to download the .kmz file and play it in the Google Earth system.
For those unfamiliar with "The Express," here's the first paragraph from the Wikipedia entry on it:
"The York Factory Express, usually called "the Express" and also called the Columbia Express and the Communication, was a brigade operated by Hudson's Bay Company in the early 19th century connecting York Factory and Fort Vancouver. It was named "express" because it was not used only to transport furs and supplies but also to quickly move departmental reports and letters. It was the main overland connection between the Columbia Department and the Hudson's Bay Company's headquarters at York Factory. Bulk cargo to and from the Columbia Department was shipped by sea. The express brigade was known as the York Factory Express on its eastbound journey in the spring, and as the Columbia Express or Autumn Express on its westbound journey in the fall. The same route was used in both cases. Its length was about 4,200 kilometres (2,600 mi). To expedite messages the express messengers would often speed ahead of the main bodies carrying supplies and furs."


And a link to the full entry.

Paul Kane's wanderings

A group of five students in CMDC 354.02 (Digital Storytelling) at Washington State University Vancouver -- Brady Berkenmeier, Lorraine Botros, Cathy Manwell, Cassie Watson and Linda Zandi -- have been working on a new Fort Vancouver Mobile module, based on artist Paul Kane's "Wanderings," that we will be trying to develop into a real working piece during the next couple of months. Here is a Flash animation presentation, created by Berkenmeier, that the students presented on the project, minus the extensive verbal accompaniment. Yet the images show a lot about the inventive ideas this group has for the project. Will post more as this develops.

Historical Promotion Grant success!

The 2011 Historical Promotion Grants, administered by the Clark County Commissioners, have been awarded, and the Fort Vancouver Mobile project once again was a major recipient; this time for: $19,912.
That money will be used to build much more mobile content at the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site. Updates will be posted here as the plans develop. Thank you again Clark County Commissioners (and the Historical Promotion Grant committee)!

Chinuk Wawa in the Village

WSU Vancouver student Lorraine Botros recently attended a weekly discussion group in Portland, Ore., in which people practice and discuss Chinuk Wawa. Wawa is the jargon that was spoken around Fort Vancouver during the mid-1800s, allowing the more than 35 different ethnic groups living in that village just outside the fort's stockade to communicate. The local discussion group is led by Wawa language expert Evan Gardner. Botros and her CMDC 354.02 team plan to incorporate Wawa into their Fort Vancouver Mobile module under construction.

More information on Chinuk Wawa from the Oregon Encyclopedia

Here are some of the initial pilot clips that Botros, a student in the Creative Media and Digital Culture program's Digital Storytelling class this semester, shared (Thanks, Lorraine!):
House1
House edited
Chluch

And here are some other notes Lorraine shared:

Chinuk Wawa (Chinook Jargon) resources:
From Lorraine: "Evan Gardner provided me with resources to record the Chinuk Wawa phrases. He is willing to work with people to get a more complete recording in the future."
Gardner is the creator of the language game, "Where are your keys?"


A Brief Introduction to the "Where Are Your Keys?" Fluency Game from Willem Larsen on Vimeo.
He can be reached through Whereareyourkeys.org in the Contact Us section.

Another resource:
Eric Bernado, 'I am a Member of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde from the Watlala Band of the Cascades of the Chinook peoples. I have a Masters in Education from the University of Oregon and am a semi-fluent speaker of Chinuk Wawa and will be teaching a community language class at Portland Community College starting in January (2011).' Learn Chinook Jargon blog.

More public domain resources for period music

Music from the Romantic period in the public domain, via MusOpen.org:

List

And Civil War big band music from the Library of Congress:

List

Fort Vancouver Mobile - A video overview

Aaron May over the past few weeks has created the video overview of the Fort Vancouver Mobile project that now adorns the top of this site. May, a FVM intern, is a talented senior in Washington State University Vancouver's Creative Media and Digital Culture program, and he will screen the final cut of this video for the CMDC Digital Storytelling class on Dec. 8.
May's mission has been to create a video to help people to understand and visualize the project, even from afar. The distinctions of mobile storytelling are difficult to describe, and, it turns out, tough to show, too. But May's vision, from my viewpoint, makes the material accessible and clear and also shows how much fun a mobile-historical experience can be. Thanks, again, Aaron!
Please let us know what you think about this video, and what questions you still have about the project. We want to answer them, and we want the development of Fort Vancouver Mobile to include input from users or potential users at all levels of creation.

Great news from iDMAa

The Fort Vancouver Mobile project was part of the WSU Vancouver display given honorable mention at the annual International Digital Media Arts Association conference earlier this month in Vancouver, B.C. Typically, iDMAa only gives one award, first place, but the judges were so impressed by the sampling from the Creative Media and Digital Culture program at WSUV, including the FVM project, that they created the honorable mention award as a way to recognize the effort. Thanks again to FVM intern Aaron May for taking the project out into the larger world and helping to bring back the glory.

Public domain music from 1800 to 1860

Found this fabulous reference list of public domain music roughly from the Fort Vancouver period:

http://www.pdmusic.org/1800s.html

While the versions here aren't always great, they do give a sense of what the song sounds like, and enough reference information to find other public domain versions.

Beta testers needed

More in-depth research on the Fort Vancouver Mobile project is planned in the next two weeks. We're looking for a few additional beta testers. If you are interested in history and open-minded about technology, and want to help, please send your contact information to: FortVancouverMobile@gmail.com, with the subject line Beta Tester. Thanks!

Fort Vancouver Mobile video intro

FVM intern Aaron May, from Washington State University Vancouver's Creative Media and Digital Culture program, has spent the past couple of weeks working on a video that helps to explain the project and illustrate it, especially for people not familiar with the fort and what we are doing.

In addition, he is taking a digital display, plus a paper handout, to the iDMAa Conference this weekend in Vancouver, B.C. (see earlier post).

This video will be part of that display, along with other strong projects representing the CMDC program. In the near future, I will get the piece posted in a more permanent and prominent spot on this page.

Thanks, Aaron! And for everyone who helped with this part of the project, including lead actor Brady Berkenmeier, the CMDC 354.02 Digital Storytelling class (providing feedback and serving as extras in the footage), Forrest Burger of RiverBend Productions (providing fort footage from The Village opening), Chief Ranger Greg Shine (an extra in the film and major supporter of the project) and Dr. Dene Grigar, who made May's internship possible.

Example of one of our plotted GPS field maps

One key step in creating a high-quality mobile interactive experience (or airrative, as I have started to call this form, because the immersive story exists entirely in the air) is to walk the physical site, really get to know it and then design a highly detailed, plotted and annotated site map, with GPS coordinates identified for each spot that the creative team might want to use. That way, say, the team wants to embed a video that relates to the Old River Road entrance at this site. It can get out this map, find that spot is identified as Node 24, then look up the accompanying annotations of coordinates and details about what already is being delivered there as well as nearby, for compositional coherence.

Animated logo - mobile version

Here is the latest version of the FVM logo and opening animation of the Fort Vancouver Mobile app, in mp4 format. Still looking for a better compression format that works with Android devices and looks good (not really impressed with the playback quality here). Suggestions? ...


FVM logo animation in mp4 from Brett Oppegaard on Vimeo.

Kanaka Twitta-graph (Twitter and telegraph inspired communication)

Here is the initial exchange at the fort, related to William Kaulehelehe's hiring. What do you think of how this turned out?

Twitter-like dialogue being incorporated into the Kanaka module

One of the different ways we are putting media into the Kanaka module of the Fort Vancouver Mobile project is a Twitter-like animation that turns historic journals and letters into short bursts of locative information.
The first example is related to a Hawaiian pastor's calling to Fort Vancouver in the mid-1800s. This pastor, William Kaulehelehe, ended up being in the center of an international conflict at the fort, as a loyal British subject ousted from his home on the banks of the Columbia River, as the U.S. Army tried to bring order to the frontier in the Pacific Northwest. That's a much longer story, but my hope with this part of the dialogue is to present the discourse of the period as it influenced his decision to come but also as it reflected attitudes of the period, and rhetorical strategies.
I'm using the Twitter format as an inspiration and basically taking the actual historic text and adapting it to the faux-microblogging format (with design advice from Kapuanani Antonio of the Ke Kukui Foundation).


It will look something like this:

The core script is as follows: 

@RevBeaver: @HudsonsBayCo An ordinary, respectable countryman @FortVancouver, with his wife, might promote good behaviour of Sandwich Islanders

@ChiefFactor John (John McLoughlin): Need a trusty educated Hawaiian of good character to read the scriptures and assemble his people for public worship.

@GerritJudd (adviser to the Hawaiian king): @ChiefFactorJohn Wm. R. Kaulehelehe, @WRKaulehelehe!

McLoughlin: Need him to teach, too. And interpret.

Judd: Not as well-qualified as the first person selected but @WRKaulehelehe has good character, is faithful, industrious, and a skillful teacher. High recommendation.

McLoughlin: 10 pounds per annum

Judd: @WRKaulehelehe in regular standing as a member of the church. Wife accompanies him, no doubt will prove herself useful.

McLoughlin: 40 pounds per annum

Judd: @WRKaulehelehe @MaryKaai Go to the Columbia District? 3-4 weeks voyage away. Parish awaits.

Kaulehelehe: Aloha! @KawaiahaoChurch Aloha! @FortVancouver


More lines and characters will be added in other spots around the site, intending to continue the conversation in a less linear way.

Fort Vancouver Mobile at iDMAa 2010

Fort Vancouver Mobile intern Aaron May (of Washington State University Vancouver's Creative Media and Digital Culture program) is bringing a FVM display to iDMAa, the International Digital Media Arts Association Conference in Vancouver, B.C. next weekend, Nov. 6-7.
This display will include a video that May created, which I will post here soon, and handouts that look like this:

Second round of prototype testing underway

Students in the Creative Media and Digital Culture program at Washington State University Vancouver are giving the Fort Vancouver Mobile app prototype a second round of on-site testing this week. Major improvements have been made already between the first round and this version of the app. Next round of release will be in December, at the Christmas at the Fort special event. A lot of content is in the pipeline right now. Will post updates as they come.

An even better version of the FVM opening animation

Graphic designer Kapuanani Antonio, of the Ke Kukui Foundation, was gracious enough to refine the opening Fort Vancouver Mobile image even more. What do you think now? ... In my opinion, much better. Will turn this into an animation soon to see how it looks.

New FVM logo

Here is the new FVM logo in a still image:

Any suggestions for improvement?

New logo under construction, and animated

I thought we needed something to acknowledge the main Fort Vancouver Mobile partners right when the app loaded. So here is an animated logo, from the original design by Dr. Dene Grigar at Washington State University Vancouver, with input from Greg Shine, chief ranger at the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site.


Fort Vancouver Mobile draft logo from Brett Oppegaard on Vimeo.


What do you think?

Beta test tonight cancelled, due to rain

I'm not sure why I didn't think of this possibility months ago, when I set this beta testing time and date as 7 p.m. Oct. 9 in the Pacific Northwest. But the rain and cold tonight would make for a poor beta testing environment with mobile phones in an essentially open field, so I have instead given the Fort Vancouver Mobile app to Washington State University Vancouver students in my Digital Storytelling class for testing over the next few days, with a report due by Wednesday. That should continue development of the app at essentially the same pace as planned, and keep all of the phones dry.

New "Kanaka" splash page and more ...

I can tell we're getting close to releasing Version 1.0 of the Fort Vancouver Mobile app, because so many of the abstract ideas we have had about this project are becoming concrete. The image above is one of those small details, a splash page that lets users/learners know they are moving into this particular "Kanaka" module. The user won't actually do anything with this screen, but it will serve as a visual transition into the interactive Kanaka story.

And a couple of important prototype screen shots to share, too, courtesy of technical consultant Joe Oppegaard. The first one shows the main module selection screen at this point. So, the user would open the app, get to this screen, and then choose the module in which to experience (then the splash screen above would launch, followed by other content). Since we are starting with "Kanaka," that is the one bar shown here. But in the near future, we will have various other bars from which to choose, all leading to different content, like a different game cartridge/disk leads to a different game.

Every node of content we create also will have some sort of user feedback loop included. Here is an example of one of the prompts that will pop up, and users will be asked to fill in the data box. That data then will be routed to a particular storage file and, in one of the later phases of the project, we will publish the user responses on a Web site, hopefully live, so users at home can monitor and interact with users on site. That publishing phase is down the road in the development plans, but we are thinking about it, as we create this phase of the project.

Feedback is always welcome! We are trying to develop this project as much in the open as possible. So feel free to post comments here.

Early imagery of the FVM project

Whipped this mini-poster together quickly as a way to help people begin to visualize what the Fort Vancouver Mobile project is: an innovative and new way to share historical interpretation through mobile devices. This historically based digital media -- video, audio, text, animation -- is being integrated specifically into physical locations (pinpointed by GPS) to create mixed-realities, with users/learners sometimes alternating, sometimes blending digital and physical worlds through their mobile phones.

Video production for version 1.0 is finished; thanks, Troy!

After a marathon editing session on Saturday, Sept. 11, videographer Troy Wayrynen and I finally have finished putting together the five video clips that will be included in version 1.0 of Module 1. We decided to try first saving those in mp4 format, at a size of 320X240, in an effort to make small usable files (less that 2 MB) that could be streamed easily. Once we get the kinks of the mobile delivery system of the app out of the way, then I suspect we'll want to increase the resolution to take advantage of the fabulous HD-quality videos we produced. We also are considering posting the high-quality versions of the videos on the web, for users to be able to watch at home. We suspect that will appeal to those who have seen the smaller versions on site and then want to see the high-quality renditions, or for those people who can't make it to the fort, for geographical or some other accessibility issue.

Videographer Troy Wayrynen

Troy really deserves a lot of credit for his effort on this project, which truly was on a shoestring budget (we used a shoestring one time as a way to give William Kaulehelehe, played by Frank Van Waardenburg, a tie for his costume). At every shoot, Troy worked harder than anyone, often just reacting on the fly, coming up with solutions for the various issues that arose, from lighting to blocking to narrative holes. And the quality of his work on this project was exceptional in every way, extremely creative and ambitious. The final videos you see in Module 1 are almost entirely the result of Troy's vision and talents, and there simply is no way this project could have been made without his unbelievably high work ethic and generosity and continual push to make better images and final videos.
Just one quick example: We started the final round (of at least five different rounds) of video editing at 6 a.m. Saturday, and by about midnight, I could hardly keep my eyes open. We still were trying to finish the last clip. I had no ideas left. The video clearly needed something more, and Troy just kept innovating and experimenting with different Final Cut techniques, until he finally devised a complex concept of layering two clips that also included animating a historical document underneath it all. I was blown away not only by his vision and imagination but also that he just never gave up and never conceded, that the clip was going to be the best one we could make. When you see these videos at the fort, I think you will know what I mean. It is going to be very exciting to share them with you soon!

The cutter and Kaulehelehe

Fort Vancouver's Chief Ranger Greg Shine and I were talking about the Fort Vancouver Mobile project a week and a half ago, and Greg asked how else he could help.
I said we were trying to create a scene in which the protagonist of module 1, William Kaulehelehe, arrived at the site in the mid-1840s, and if Greg could get the Lady Washington to pull up to the beach, and unload Kaulehelehe, that would be fabulous.
Without missing a beat, Greg suggested we might instead have Kaulehelehe arrive on a cutter, and the fort staff and volunteers just so happen to have a cutter, built under the supervision of Douglas Brooks, and a training program for volunteers eager to get some use of the vessel.

So visual editor Troy Wayrynen and I suddenly were on the north bank of the Columbia River on Thursday night, Sept. 9, between 6 and 8 p.m., with ranger Douglas Halsey and cutter coordinator Jeff Cool -- plus the crew: Craig Webster, Dan Ochoa, Mike Twist, Cassie Anderson, Garron Guest and Ben Coder -- all in period costumes, escorting our Kaulehelehe (the fabulous Frank Van Waardenburg) to shore.

William Kaulehelehe (played by Frank Van Waardenburg) on the cutter on the Columbia River.

The cutter could not reach the beach, so Doug Halsey hopped out of the boat, in water about up to his knees, and Frank climbed on, piggy-back style, and was carried to shore. Doug told me that was the customary way of getting gentlemen to the beach in those days, and he even bowed and gave Kaulehelehe a tip of his hat. It was quite a scene, and I am so very thankful to all of those who took part in making it happen, from Greg Shine to the cutter crew, Troy, Frank, and especially Doug, for helping to put the effort together, and then volunteering to be the crew member who carried William to shore. It was one of the most memorable moments I have had with this project so far, and it just illustrates the kind of generosity and selflessness of everyone who has worked on Fort Vancouver Mobile effort to date. What an amazing group of people we have around here!

More video/audio production completed; with a special thanks to the Ke Kukui Foundation and Tommy O's

Courtesy of Greg Shine and his iPhone

Another major round of video/audio production is finished (completed on Aug. 18), with more than 50 people now contributing to the Fort Vancouver Mobile project to date. Momentum certainly is building!
Before we move on to the next production mountain, I want to acknowledge and thank everyone who worked so hard this week.
That list includes the Ke Kukui Foundation, especially Deva Yamashiro and Kapuanani Antonio, who recruited and organized about two dozen performers for various roles, featuring: Frank Van Waardenburg (William Kaulehelehe), Virginia MacKenzie (Mary Kaii), Kaloku Holt (soloist/dancer), Hono Yacapin (dancer) and Tommy Owens (dancer). When the video shoot went late, into dinner time, Owens also generously catered an impromptu meal for the cast and crew from his restaurant, Tommy O's, one of the best bistros in the area. We highly recommend Tommy O's, which has one location near Esther Short Park in downtown Vancouver and another in east Vancouver, off NE 192nd Avenue. (Thanks again, Tommy!) In addition, the Ke Kukui Foundation, through its halau Kaleinani o ke Kukui, performed various chants in Hawaiian that we plan to use in the piece, recorded in its studio, including "The Lord's Prayer" featuring soloist Bully Magsayo.
The Fort Vancouver National Historic Site, under the supervision of chief ranger Greg Shine, provided generous support for the project in many ways, too, from arranging the ideal setting and props to the organization of volunteer performers, assisted by Kimm Fox-Middleton. That included the recruitment of historical interpreters -- Douglas Halsey, Aaron Ochoa, Dan Ochoa and Roma Len -- to portray soldiers of the period (pictured above with Frank Waardenburg). Those five graciously endured the heat in heavy wool costumes, take after take, and the soldiers even stuck around to be in the background of the hula scenes.
As for all of these costumes, the fort's costume shop, under the direction of Eileen Trestain, also delivered timely and high quality assistance for several days leading up to the shoot.
The invaluable media specialists, and production workhorses, were videographer Troy Wayrynen and assistant director Jonathan Nelson, while Dr. Dene Grigar from Washington State University Vancouver's Creative Media and Digital Culture program also assisted on site with storyline development and production management.
That is an amazing list of supporters, added to the many other people who also have been contributing so far. I really can't say it enough, but mahalo, again, everyone!

William Kaulehelehe and Mary Kaii

The first phase of the Fort Vancouver Mobile project will be to produce a multimedia piece that illuminates the story of William Kaulehelehe (and wife Mary Kaii).

Here is some background material on the couple, contributed by the Ke Kukui Foundation's Kapuanani Antonio: Kaulehelehe bio. 

Are here are photographs of William and Mary next to the performers (an image also provided by Kapuanani Antonio) Frank Van Waardenburg and Virginia MacKenzie:

Audio equipment donated to FVM by Bart Phillips and the Clark-Skamania Fly Fishers

Bart Phillips

A hearty "mahalo!" to Bart Phillips, CEO and president of the Columbia River Economic Development Council as well as a member of the Clark-Skamania Flyfishers!
Phillips and his Clark-Skamania Flyfishers organization worked with Washington State University Vancouver's Creative Media and Digital Culture program recently, through a Digital Technology and Culture 476 class, under the direction of Dr. John Barber, to create this website: Clark-Skamania Flyfishers.
Pleased with the results, Phillips and his group donated money to the program for purchase of hardware and software, some of which directly paid for much needed production equipment for the Fort Vancouver Mobile project. 
That included a lavaliere microphone, reflective panels and audio equipment rigging, all of which arrived the very day, Aug. 18, of the most extensive media creation portion of the project to date. The timing couldn't have been better. This equipment as well as other portions of the donation bolstering CMDC labs also will be used in various WSU Vancouver classes, including DTC 354.02, Digital Storytelling, this fall, a service learning project at the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site involving mobile devices.
So thank you, again, Bart Phillips, Clark-Skamania Flyfishers and CMDC's co-directors Dr. Barber and Dr. Dene Grigar for investing the money in this project.

Ho`ike & Hawaiian Festival, FVM featured in the program

Our cultural partner on Phase 1 of the Fort Vancouver Mobile project, the Ke Kukui Foundation, is offering its annual Ho`ike & Hawaiian Festival July 29-31, 2010, in downtown Vancouver. More details are on the group's website, but here is a draft version of the part of the event's program that features the Fort Vancouver Mobile project (mahalo, Kapuanani!):

Video clips from The Village opening

Courtesy of Forrest Burger, RiverBend Productions (thanks, Forrest!). These will be the basis of a mobile media module we will be working on in August, to test the technological systems of the mobile app in place but also to experiment with what we can do on site with video, including examining download speeds and optimal compression formats:

Village Opening:



Necklace Giving:



Drumming:



Fort Vancouver National Trust president Elson Strahan:



Fort Vancouver ranger Victoria Nakamura:



Fort Vancouver Superintendent Tracy Fortmann:



Artist (needs ID):



Walk to Village:



Ranger (needs ID):



Vancouver Mayor Tim Leavitt:



Fort Vancouver archaeologist Doug Wilson: