Immersive story manifesting the emotional turmoil of my career transition
LUMEN VR
Feeling lost and confused in my own career transition, I set out to understand the experience of others who’re on the familiar paths. What I discovered was an unfulfilled need for community and mentorship amongst us.
Lumen is both an artistic and pragmatic culmination of all the research, introspections and stories I’ve gathered along my personal journey of transitioning from architecture into UX design, manifested in the form of a VR experience and mobile app design. The collective need for community, mentorship and a sense of belonging is what motivated me to create a thesis project that would help myself and others like me.
Role: UX XR Designer
Duration: 3 months
Tools: Unreal Engine, Blender, Rhino 3D, Figma, Photoshop, Premiere
Motivation
During my career transition, I identified 4 phases that resonated with me, each embodying a different set of priorities and anxieties as we look to leave our old careers behind in pursuit of more fulfilling one.
An emotional roadmap
Lumen, consists of two interlinked parts: Part I is an interactive VR story built in Unreal Engine 5 and Part II is a community-building app for career transitioners.
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VR Story
Mobile App
Research
I conducted 6 user interviews which revealed to me that having a community of mentors and peers who have also experienced career transitions is of the utmost importance to my potential users. This informed me of the overarching message I needed to deliver in my VR experience on top of my own personal narrative.
Importance of Community
The VR piece emerged from my personal need for a cathartic, immersive experience that captures the tumultuous emotional phases I endured and the role community played in my journey. The mobile app was my digital intervention that seeks to foster a sense of community and mentorship amongst career transitioners. The two experiences, although independent, are inextricably linked to reflect my complete vision of creating beyond just resonance amongst the viewers, but also a tangible solution to the challenges of career transition.
A personal, cathartic piece
Snippet of the “Lost Phase”
Snippet of the “Endure Phase”
Snippet of the “Forge Phase”
Snippet of the “Venture Phase”
Process
To create the VR experience in Unreal Engine, I combined skills from architecture, UX design, and 3D modeling to bring the concept to life. I built the environments by designing modular assets and carefully optimizing them for VR performance. For the interactions, I utilized Unreal Engine's Blueprints system to script intuitive controls, allowing users to adjust lighting properties like intensity, color, and direction. Drawing on my knowledge of architecture, I crafted a dream-like world, while my background in user experience helped shape a seamless and immersive flow. By integrating diverse technical and creative disciplines, I crafted a cohesive and engaging VR experience.
Crafting a narrative
User Testing
Playtesting the VR experience with friends was incredibly rewarding, as it allowed me to see how deeply the story resonated with others, especially those navigating their own transitions. Many shared how they connected with the emotions and energy I sought to convey, understanding the narrative through the interplay of light and space. Their feedback affirmed that the experience effectively communicated my journey, creating a universal sense of growth and transformation that went beyond words.
