Liberty City VR

A VR experience that take users through the ups and downs of Miaimi’s legendary neighborhood, from its heyday in the 1940s and 60s through its slow decline that culminated with the Miami riots in 1980

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Inspiration

Liberty City VR was inspired by a feature length documentary film two members of our team have been producing titled "Razing Liberty Square". The film documents the razing and redevelopment of the first segregated housing project (Liberty Square) which was constructed in the heart of Liberty City, a historic African-American neighborhood in Miami currently at risk of disappearing due to climate gentrification. During the last three years of filming we have collected a lot of oral history and memories from residents who remember the neighborhoods 'Golden Age'. We realized that VR would be the perfect platform to bring this 'Golden Age' back to life.

The VR project invites users to experience Liberty City (and Liberty Square) as it was in its heyday, when segregation and Jim Crow disallowed black men and women to live freely, and yet in this small corner of the country, a community was able to support itself, construct itself, and thrive. We hoped to highlight this former black utopia with our build for this Hackathon.

What it does

Users are transported to Liberty Square, the first segregated public housing project, and the heart of historic Liberty City. Users are then guided by the voices of residents - past and present - explore the neighborhood, and the dichotomy of realities contrasting the experiences of adults who understand the horrid nature of the wall that surrounds the housing project, and the children who play and live at peace, oblivious to the ominous cement barrier which surrounds their home and defines the world around them.

How I built it

This project was built with the Unity engine. Some of our models were created and textured on-site, others were imported for free from the unity web store. We also got several free sound files from online. After we had all of the assets we needed, we arranged them together in unity and created the animations for the story.

Challenges I ran into

We didn't have a 3D modeler, or graphic artist, so our developers and producers had to fill in that role instead. We also had some difficulty procuring our equipment, so we had to try to catch up by the end of Day 1 of the hack. We had problems being able to model the assets exactly as we wanted to. It was also pretty hard to make sure the animation worked properly for all of the models. With some help from mentors and staff, we were able to do so, which was awesome. From a creative point of view, the sound design was very complicated and our team did not have the experience nor the tools to actually create the design that we envisioned.

Accomplishments that I'm proud of

We are proud of the fact that we were able to make and texture the models despite the absence of a 3D modeler. This was a wonderful opportunity to learn something new for all of us. Moreover, our team dealt with a lot of limitations and still managed to make something that gave some of the reviewers goosebumps!

What I learned

We learned how to use Unity to create models. The filmmakers in our team learned to work in a different story telling environment, and also how to contribute to texturing models. Our Developer became a stronger advocate for creative storytelling, having experienced and led a team of experienced storytellers down a into a wildly different environment.

What's next for Liberty City VR

We are now moving forward to creating the entire VR experience. It is stand alone but also part of the larger impact campaign of the documentary "Razing Liberty Square" by Katja Esson, the project will be exhibited publicly in key communities where public partnerships have been established in conjunction with festival/theatrical screening of the documentary. Ultimately, the project will be housed in permanent exhibitions at the Hampton House, the African Heritage Cultural Arts Center and other Liberty City/Miami historical museums.

We want to tell the story of this neighborhood that four generations of African-Americans have called their home. We want to debunk misconceptions about the impoverished and chronically violent area of today and educate users on the factors that caused the decline of this once vibrant neighborhood.

The project intends to stimulate conversation among various Miami communities, as well as communities around the nation. The VR experience with its strong social justice content will be a tool to empower the community of Liberty City, and bring the neighborhood's history and struggle to the forefront of a citywide conversation.

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