AET Class of 2020 Showcase

Mexicanidades
cover of AET senior Adriana Lara's "Mexicanidades" presentation. green background with floral accents and figure dressed in traditional Mexican clothing in bottom left corner. text reads "Mexicanidades: Independent study by Adriana Lara"

Course: AET 374 Independent Study
Faculty Advisor: Karen Maness

Mexicanidades talks about why the story of the women behind the artisanal crafts Adriana used to ignore changed how she wants to present herself to the world. Bringing attention to Otomi women, she pays forward their underpaid and underrated art.

AET Guide
PowerPoint Title Slide. Text reads "AET Guide" and the "I" in "Guide" is the UT Tower

Members: Opal Bunnag, Sarah El-Zein, Shabnam Sayahi, SooJin Park

Course: AET 373 Senior Design Project
Faculty Advisors: Yuliya Lanina and Chris Ozley

Since Arts and Entertainment Technologies (AET) is a fairly new program at UT, it can be difficult for students to have a full understanding of the courses in which they are considering enrolling. Thus, this team of seniors created AET Guide, a one-stop website that helps students choose which AET classes to take based on their emphasis area. The website includes AET courses offered and instructor profiles. Each course page includes a detailed description of the course, current and past syllabi, current and past instructors, student project examples, and student reviews.

View Website
Annie AbuHamad: The Blacksmith's Daughter & the Wind's Son
sketch drawing of a young man on parchment paper by AET senior Annie AbuHamad

Course: AET 374 Independent Study
Faculty Advisor: Carolina Perez

Over the past year Annie planned out, wrote, recorded and produced an original, conceptual EP. Its six songs were created by weaving together both electronic and acoustic instruments to support the overarching story told through lyrics.

Listen on SoundCloud

Danialle Vongsamphanh: Stuck in My Memory
cover art for AET senior Danialle Vongsamphanh's "Stuck in My Memory." girl sits up in bed with hair partially covering her face. text reads "Stuck in My Memory"

Course: AET 374 Independent
Faculty Advisor: Carolina Perez

This past semester, Danialle wrote her own album to show the story of her college experiences. She says, "I've grown so much, not only as a sound artist, but also as someone who is continuing to discover more about herself each and every day. I'm able to use the skills I've learned from the amazing Music & Sound faculty and the meaningful connections I've formed these past 4 years to capsulize this monumental moment in my life." As a marketing strategy, she's released one song on the album now, and she'll release the full album in the coming summer.

Listen on SoundCloud

Ean Herrera: SuperCollider Final Semester Performance
screenshot of AET senior Ean Herrera live-programming audio in SuperCollider

Course: AET 339 Generative Audio Programming
Faculty: Chri Ozley

A performance created using SuperCollider. The performance was recorded online in Ean's home due to quarantine and the COVID-19 outbreak. In this performance he is experimenting with randomly generated melody choices and chord changes. Additionally, he chose to improvise with violin not only to have contrast between "natural" instruments and "digital" ones, but also to show the similarities of a musician improvising and the code improvising.

View on YouTube

Earth In A Bag
Red title slide with off-white text that reads "Earth in a Bag." words are curved like a rainbow

Members: Anne-Marie Halovanic, Elaina Johnson, Jasmy Chie Hsi Lui, Shaylon Elmore, Will Valero

Course: AET 373 Senior Design Project
Faculty: Yuliya Lanina and Chris Ozley

The main goal of this project is not to resolve all the specific environmental issues that will be addressed, but to raise intentional awareness about the human impact on the environment (particularly plastic pollution). The team chose to showcase this topic with an animation while utilizing the honed skills of each group member.

Watch on YouTube

Harry Wilde Greer: Lullaby
3D black and white particle system made in Notch by AET senior Harry Wilde Greer for the Spring 2020 showcase

Course: ITD 103 Portfolio Critique
Faculty: Jai Dundekar

Using the skills he learned in AET, Harry Wilde Greer wanted to make a peaceful music video to add to his portfolio. He used Notch to make the graphics and Adobe Premiere to assemble the video.

Watch on Vimeo

My Mini Mushroom
2D artistic rendering of a mushroom house in the middle of a forest. text reads "My Mini Mushroom," the title of an original video game created by AET seniors

Group Members: Adam Augustine, Amber Smith, Hannah Wetterau, Louise Hellberg, Tony Nguyen, Jimmy Liu, Walter Bribach, Peyton Breech

Course: AET 377 3D Game Development Capstone
Faculty: Paul Toprac

View on itch.io

Jessica Chambers: Crocodile Sculpt
 3D sculpt of crocodile warrior head from four different angles. made in ZBrush by AET senior Jessica Chambers. modeled after a piece of concept art sourced by Professor Oster.

Course: AET 326C 3D Modeling and Texturing
Faculty: Isaac Oster

A sculpt made in ZBrush of a crocodile warrior, modeled after a piece of concept art sourced by Professor Oster. Jessica created custom alphas to model the pronounced scales.

View on ArtStation

Jessica Chambers: Oni Mask
2D sketches and 3D renderings of AET senior Jessica Chamber's Oni Mask, inspired by hannya oni masks (sculpted in ZBrush and textured in Substance Painter)

Course: AET 374 Independent Study
Faculty Advisor: Isaac Oster

Originally meant to be 3D printed and painted, creating a real mask, this oni mask is a textured pre-visualization of a mask Jessica hopes to print in the future. It was inspired by hannya oni masks, sculpted in ZBrush, and textured in Substance Painter.

View on ArtStation

Laura Godinez: The Room
floating transparent cube in space created in Notch for AET senior Laura Godinez' The Room (in partnership with fellow AET senior Harry Wilde Greer)

Course: AET 374 Independent Study
Faculty Advisor: Sven Ortel

The Room is a mystical place. Inspired by artist Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirror Rooms, it is supposed to transport you to a different world where you can get lost forever – or at least for the length of the song you choose. All sides of the cube are mirrors, seemingly creating a warp in time and space. When you walk into The Room, you will see just some faint light, maybe even your reflection on one of the four mirrored walls surrounding you. You will then think of a song and say it out loud. A few moments will pass and suddenly you will be in an infinite space. Your song of choice playing, the visuals in front of you reflecting the song. Magic. Visit Laura's website to read her creative process for The Room.

Watch on Vimeo

Ryan Weisner: The Balance of Everything
3D rendering of a structure in a clearing in a wooded area. text reads: The Balance of Everything by Ryan Weisner

Course: AET 374 Independent Study
Faculty Advisor: Matt Smith

"The Balance of Everything" is a project designed to create a space in the physical world that pinpoints the natural forces in our lives and expands its energy into a single place. This space was intended to immerse audiences in places they cannot go. The goal was to represent the wonders of nature in an abstract way and portray how they would interact with one another.

Watch on Vimeo

Samuel Choi: Forgotten Yesterdays
African American man with arms outstretched facing a rock wall with back to camera

Course: AET 350 Computer Music Project
Faculty: Chris Ozley

This work examines the consequences of historical amnesia and how past events represent themselves. It explores the usefulness in remembering historical occurrences and the consequences of forgetting. "Memory is necessary - we need to know who we are if we have any hope of knowing where we are going." - Sioban Nelson

Watch on YouTube

Search High // Low
text reads "a digital, exploratory demo. Search High // Low is a small digital demo that blends play elements such as puzzles and tactile, movable objects, with bright colors, exploration of the unknown, and the seeking of secrets."

p> Group Members: Alex Donovan, Cassidy Cortez, Jessica Chambers, Olivia Schweers

 

Course: AET 373 Senior Design Project
Faculty: Yuliya Lanina

Search High // Low is a small digital demo that blends play elements such as puzzles and tactile, movable objects with bright colors, exploration of the unknown, and the seeking of secrets. This demo highlights the original project’s intention, ultimately creating a sensory piece that helps demonstrate the puzzles, interactions and themes desired for the physical version.

Shoo, Box!
2D art of two arms placing a shoebox on the edge of a bed. text reads "Shoo, Box!"

Group Members: Jake Crabtree, Adriana Gonzales, Delong "Miki" Lin, Olivia Schweers, Yushan Sha, Edwin Silerio, Nathan Stubbs

Course: AET 377 3D Game Development Capstone
Faculty: Paul Toprac

You’re a shoebox who loves its owner, but one day, they leave you behind in a hotel. You’ll do anything to reunite, even if that means growing legs and walking out the door! Use special abilities from shoes you find to solve puzzles in this heartwarming adventure.

View on itch.io

Sofia Salter: Interlude
text reads "Interlude Sofia Salter"

Course: FA 340 Fine Arts Internship

After going into quarantine, Sofia's manager told her to use this time to work on her portfolio and do the projects she wouldn't normally have the time to do. This clip is an interlude to an EP she's been working on.

Listen on SoundCloud

Will Grantham: SUNSICK (DEMOS)
picture of sun setting over a silhouetted tree line

Course: AET 374 Independent Study
Faculty Advisor: Chris Ozley

An EP written and produced by Will for his independent study during his final semester as an Arts and Entertainment Technologies major at the University of Texas at Austin.

Listen on SoundCloud

Evolution 2020 Quarantine Community Project
split screen: on the right, a student choreographer dances to music composed by Annalee AbuHamad (on the left), a senior AET major

Senior Group Members: Annie AbuHamad, Delong "Miki" Lin, Derek Haumpy, Ean Herrera, Elaina Johnson, Josh Tan, Sam Choi, Sofia Salter, Will Grantham

Courses: AET 350 Computer Music Project / TD 322M Choreography / TD 388J, TD 354T Lighting Design Studio
Faculty: Chris Ozley / Erica Gionfriddo / Michelle Habeck

The Evolution 2020 Quarantine Community Project is a product of the collective labors of four classes including 44 student and faculty collaborators. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Evolution was intended to be the logical conclusion to their courses through a traditional proscenium performance in the B. Iden Payne Theatre at the University of Texas at Austin. From the constraints of remote teaching came the idea to engage all of the members involved in a collaborative project that would rejuvenate their creativity and their sense of community. They hope that you enjoy their creation and wish you good health in your creative quarantine.

Watch Video

Sean Smith: Hammocks and Hookups
colorful 2D graphic of woman laying in a hammock between two palm trees over an ocean with a beautiful pastel sunset in the background. she is focused on her touchscreen phone

Course: AET 374 Independent Study

This is a four-song EP/Beat Tape meant to be listened to while you chill during quarantine. Sean was inspired by the times he and his friends would get together and freestyle. Enjoy.

Listen on SoundCloud