Fearful Silence: How an Immersive Experience came to be

Fearful S ilence How an Immersive to be Experience came

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FEARFUL SILENCE Copyright © Text and design 2020 by Raghib Nadeem Silent Hill ™ is a trademark of Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo, Inc. ©1999 Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo All Rights Reserved All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

For information, contact Raghib Nadeem raghib.nadeem.1995@gmail.com

FEARFUL SILENCE How an Immersive Experience came to be

by Raghib Nadeem

The class began with ideas and consideration of what a book is and can potentially be. I was especially drawn to the idea of a “book� being a vessel and delivering an experience by going beyond reading.

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A formal proposal was written and delivered. It was approved and returned to me with notes on how it could be fleshed out and improved, namely regarding deliverables.

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A general outline was drafted for the book portion of my project. Having a narrative connect the information together was discussed during class when ideating and presenting possibilities.

Ultimately some sections were cut because of time and other circumstances.

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The class was assigned roles to specific teams for making the exhibition a reality. I was put into the fabrication team, but the exhibition was not to be.

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Rough sketches were presented to convey the intended look and purpose of the interactive objects. A list of final objects was made to determine which would be built for the presentation.

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In my restless dreams...

by Raghib Nadeem

Contents Filler content Filler content Filler content Filler content Filler content

...I see that town, Silent Hill.

This is the first iteration of how the book would look. It was done quickly and I wasn’t too fond of it. This is while I still expected to build a physical book and make it look aged. I would have used old material similar to this in color.

The text going across the pages is a quote from one of the games.

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COVID-19

I, along with my classmates, went into Spring break expecting to come back. That didn’t happen. COVID-19 caused all classes to be moved online and any projects that required leaving quarantine to be modified or cancelled. Many students changed their projects to books for the sake of digital presentation, but I was determined to keep mine intact and convey it digitally as best I could. Despite this goal, I became unmotivated very quickly. Every student was heavily invested in seeing their projects realized and presented before graduating, as it would have been a culmination of their passion.

Knowing none of that could happen left me uninspired, unmotivated, drained of excitement, and lacking a desire to maintain a routine. But I kept pushing.

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Restless

Dreams

Raghib Nadeem

es What li within

6 Darknesss Des cends Silent Hill

14 A Re stless Nightm Silent Hill 2 are

Father 37 Sins of the 3 Silent Hill

I changed the style of the book to be better suited to a digital platform.

The name changed to “Restless Dreams,� and contents were given titles, although both eventually changed.

I took inspiration from original documentation included with the games, such as manuals and strategy guides. The text was slightly angled to cast a sense of doubt.

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Since the images I wanted to create are so absurd, I had to compile them as best I could with disparate images. For the drip stand mockup, I found images that I felt were closest to my original intention and began combining them.

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Mockup with objects arranged.

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Mockup with headphone wire and Walkman lanyard drawn in.

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I first found a suitable image of a rotary telephone. I then edited it to accommodate the paper illustration between the two pieces.

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An early draft with the accordion folded paper drawn in.

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happy birthday to you happy birthday to you happy birthday dear oh, I forgot your name. happy birthday dear

happy birthday to you it’s time to celebrate your birthday, and I have a present for you which do you prefer?

Final mockup with updated paper illustration and unfolded paper mockup included.

to give pain, or to receive it?

you can have the one you hate the most

ha ha

happy birthday to you

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Luckily I was able to find a VHS sleeve mockup. I made an illustration of the cover I would have originally handmade and placed it in.

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This letter is the only object I was able to make myself. I took a plain envelope and piece of paper, and recreated the letter found in one of the games. I took some pictures of it and compiled them for viewing in the digital gallery.

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HEALTH DRINK

D-X

After illustrating roughly what a health drink label looks like in the games, I placed it into a pill bottle mockup and adjusted the colors.

Originally I would have printed the label and pasted it onto an actual pill bottle.

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These are images of maps used by characters in the games themselves. I incorporated them into the narrative throughout “Fearful Silence� and drew in the pen marks made by the nameless narrator. These would have been printed to resemble real maps.

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Here are the maps with pen marks added.

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These are final mockup images.

Each has text that explains its context within the project and what purpose each serves.

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A short video was recorded explaining the project’s tone and intention as a whole. I included music in the background that would have been used for the audio portion originally.

The book text was also finalized and proofread by my brother, who signed off on it after a few adjustments. As the writing was nearing completion, the title of the project was changed to something more fitting, as were the titles of the book sections. Images were chosen and credited.

Although disheartened at the thought that “Fearful Silence” will not be experienced as it was meant to be, I am relieved I did not choose to change it. I did my best to provide enough context for a digital exhibition, and I’m confident that viewers will receive a worthwhile and immersive story.

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