Sven Ortel, professor of practice in immersive and entertainment design at Arizona State University, and veteran Broadway projection designer, spoke at Prolight + Sound on the topic of Entertaining Change.
As an educator, Ortel has had an impact on the careers of many students, including some very successful members of the industry on Broadway and in Hollywood. In his presentation, he focused on answering three main questions, which he has been addressing using methods that have evolved over the last ten years and that he continues to refine as he sees what resonates with his students.
- How can we prepare future creative professionals?
- How can we create a meaningful, immersive experience in an educational environment?
- What is the importance of this endeavor?
His approach tends not to focus on any particular kind of career, this is because jobs and careers evolve, and the industry is constantly responding to new trends and technology. It is no longer advisable to settle on one set of skills and capabilities. Ortel, who is originally from Cologne but lives and works in Arizona, has a degree in lighting design and has worked as a lighting designer but switched to projections as his preferred method of telling stories. He says, "I am sort of an expert with only have half knowledge of emerging things, but that's because they are just emerging. I am able to keep learning because I try to stay curious."
As an educator at the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, Arizona State University, he teaches media design, motion capture, 3d projection mapping, previz and prototyping immersive experiences, design and production of immersive experiences. But he believes in four key ingredients for students:
- Meaningful work
- Effective guardrails
- A multisciplinary approach
- The right mix of resources
Meaningful Work
Meaningful work creates engaged learning. He likes to use the word meaningful, rather than purposeful, because it resonates with him. He will often choose projects he believes are meaningful, (although he also chooses work based on being in a team with people he wants to work with.) He says, "Most people like what they are doing in this industry. They may change careers but they stick with it because it is meaningful to them." Entertainment brings a lot of people joy, and that has meaning, but it actually doesn't matter where you find it, it will help you to drive forward with your career.
Rather than imposing existing plays on his students, Ortel asks for their stories as an entry point. "I ask what is the story you are telling, and that provides a skeleton for good design. I also ask my students to propose what is important to them, which gives them agency. When people tell their own stories they already care."
Some examples of his student's project include work about mental health, languages that are being lost, and abandoned buildings, where students used LiDAR scans to recreate spaces.
Effective Guardrails
"Constraints," he says, "Are necessary to set up students for success. It mimics real-world practice and it provides focus, because if people have too many choices they become paralyzed." Ortel requires projects to take place in the Enhanced Immersion Studio (EIS at ASU), there has to be a clear narrative arc, the story should take place beyond the physical space and timeframe (it doesn't have to be a self-contained work in one room, there must be a backstory), and each student team must handle imagery, lighting, and sound.
A Multidiscipline Approach
To ensure there is a good mix of interests and skill sets, Ortel creates a database of what everyone brings to the table, or has expressed a desire to learn. "If one says they need to learn TouchDesigner I know I need to teach it, but I get students from all disciplines, computer science and engineering as well as theatre students. This is a good thing, because in the past there have been a lot of designers and not a lot of people who can make the designs." This also means that students have to collaborate and learn teamwork, and they all have to trouble shoot when things go wrong.
Assembling the right mix of resources
One of the things Ortel does not want is a siloed environment. There should be common challenges met with different expertise and technology. "In large schools, there are very different departments. Art, film, design, engineering etc. but in an ideal world all this comes together for immersive experience design and production," he says. "Typically, to bring all these departments together I would need to talk to two deans and multiple heads of department, but not in Arizona."
He also emphasizes that the production part is key, not just learning software or other tools. He says, "Some students may never have produced a show in their life. Once you make something, you have a sense of accomplishment, and you understand deadlines and how to work as a team." The stakes for this type of learning are very different, you have to entertain people and be ready, it is not just an exam you can retake.
Ortel describes the Mix center in Mesa at the university where he works. "We have a massive list of resources; media servers and audio and lighting and woodshops and metal shops and sound stages and cameras and projectors. The EIS is 45 feet wide, 50 feet deep and 60 feet tall and has a catwalk, balcony, and is soundproof. It is an amazing space to have at a university, and we are able to create mock ups and use previz before each production, which mimics the production process." But one of the important things students learn is that technology isn't everything. "Sometimes the tool you need doesn’t work the way you think it should, or it doesn’t work, so you have to be resourceful," he says. Case in point -- initially the EIS had scrims designed to allow audio to come through, but now it has curved screens with a different projection material because the original didn't work the way they needed it to.
Takeaways For A Career In Live Entertainment
Transformations happen in industries and techonology, but skills in one area can be transferred to other areas.
The abundance of technology highlights the need for discernment in choosing tools. If you might only use something once, perhaps collaborate with someone who is an expert before investing time in that direction. Focusing on the story will help you choose the right tools.
Understand that you will have to learn new skills to move forward with your career, but your interests will also change so you will want to learn.
Ortel's vision for future professionals is that they can navigate the complex ecosystems of technologies and be comfortable having to innovate.