Educate, Engage, and Equip Yourself this Earth Day

FableVision is celebrating the 51st Earth Day! While it is important to be grateful for the world around us year-round, Earth Day is an opportunity to increase our awareness and knowledge of the ways in which we can take better care of our planet. This includes being more mindful of the impact our actions and behavior can have on the world and its current and future residents—people, animals, plants, and more. Here at FableVision, we understand how imperative it is to educate people, especially youth, to treat the planet with respect. It is also crucial for all of us to stay educated and informed about the value of our natural resources and the impact our every move can have on the earth today and every day.

So this year, we rounded up our favorite resources to showcase the Earth’s beauty and different ways we can preserve and protect it. Whether you’re looking to explore the mysteries of the deep sea, or seeking clarity about natural phenomena you never quite understood, our collection has something for everyone. Keep reading for engaging animation, clever PSAs, and fun games and interactives that will hopefully teach you something new!

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Animated Atmosphere (University Corporation for Atmospheric Research)

Come rain or shine, UCAR’s new FableVision-created Animated Atmosphere series is sure to blow you away! If you have ever wondered why sea levels are rising or what the difference is between rain, hail, and snow, this is the video series for you. Learn more about why ozone can be good or bad, how you can take care of yourself during a heatwave, and what exactly makes the wind blow. Watch these 17 animated videos to answer questions you may have about climate change, the weather, and natural phenomena. 

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Secrets of the Sea (Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital Access)

Take a deep dive into the magical world of coral reefs! Secrets of the Sea allows viewers to familiarize themselves with the beautiful mysteries of a coral reef and learn from explorers who have dedicated their lives to studying the organisms that make up these habitats and leading the fight against climate change to protect these precious habitats. Immerse yourself in this digital experience, created in partnership with the Smithsonian and featuring FableVision-designed 2D zooplankton and 3D models.

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Sorajiro: PSAs (Big Tent Entertainment)

Japan’s favorite weather mascot has made his way to the USA! In four funny, approachable PSAs, Sorajiro and his friends, Potsie and Kumo, tackle topical environmental issues, such as marine litter, air pollution, climate control, and environmental health. Created in partnership with Nippon TV and the United Nations, this series offers a call to action to viewers. Each 30-second video shows one of the friends committing an environmental faux pas and being corrected by the other members of the trio, ending on an empowering note by suggesting ways in which we can protect the environment. We all know someone who needs a gentle reminder to engage in better environmental practices—go ahead and send them a Sorajiro PSA!

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Go Wild! With Ranger Rick (National Wildlife Federation)

The animals are calling! Go Wild! With Ranger Rick includes three activities to encourage children to get off the couch and outside to appreciate nature! Children between the ages of 4 to 8 collect badges and awards while expanding their knowledge and acknowledging the beauty of the outside world. In Mystery Animal, kids rack their brains to guess an animal based on a range of clues. That’s Wild! seeks to astonish kids with fun facts, riddles, and jokes all based on their favorite animals. And in Rick’s Pix, kids unleash their creativity to decorate photos with stickers, frames, and nature backgrounds, saving their favorites to the app’s scrapbook. Ranger Rick is waiting—have a safe journey! 

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The Paper Girls Show (Global Tinker)

Earth is cool, but have you been to Confetti? Join Caily and Reese, best friends and makers, on their adventures to a fantastic world crafted entirely out of paper. Guided by paper kids Kami and Dev, the girls unleash their creativity and problem-solving skills to bypass obstacles and avoid the wrath of Queen Frivol, discovering solutions to real-world problems along the way. In addition to displaying inspiring ingenuity through their creations, the girls also touch upon and display the importance of sustainable practices, educating viewers on topics such as renewable energy sources and recycling. The 12 animated episodes are centered around storylines with STEAM-inspired curricula to remind young girls that “If you can dream it, you can make it!”

Uncovering "Resonances" of History

FableVision and CyArk welcome all to experience the history and wonders of Mesa Verde through Virtual Reality! Introducing Resonant, an immersive VR game prototype that transports players across time and cultures.

Created in collaboration with CyArk—a nonprofit organization that digitally records, archives, and shares the world's most significant cultural heritage—the Resonant prototype digitally preserves and accurately tells the stories of Mesa Verde by immersing players in the complex histories. Using CyArk’s 3D model of the Balcony House and content from leading experts in archaeology and culture, FableVision designed immersive VR gameplay and crafted a story that allows players to form a unique and powerful connection with the national park and spaces around them, taking photos and documenting what they find along the way.

Players become part of the game narrative as they take on the role of a student historian filming a documentary about the effects of climate change at Mesa Verde. Throughout gameplay, the player is guided and advised by their partner, another filmmaker and a Pueblo person. While filming the Balcony House site, the player uncovers “resonances,” hints of the past and present of Mesa Verde that present themselves as silhouettes and sounds of the people who were a part of the location’s history. As the players capture images, they trigger dialogue and commentary from experts, as well as life-size dioramas of how the indigenous people lived and how archaeologists preserved and rebuilt the cliff dwellings in those exact areas. Through these glimpses of history, players encounter different locations and people, including ancestral Hopi and Tewa people, National Park Service archeologists, and more.

Resonant builds an emotional experience vastly different from the typical virtual tour experiences often seen in this space. Developed for Oculus Quest, Resonant capitalizes on VR technology to tie the narrative into the game mechanics that enhance immersion and avoid reminding the player that they are in a digital space. With a 3D photorealistic model of the Mesa Verde Balcony House, lighting effects, and audio, players see the sunlight streaming into the Balcony House, hear their footsteps as they walk around, and take in the stories of the people who lived there with real voices of descendant communities. To create a sense of place and avoid the use of conventional game menus, players can raise their motion-enabled controllers to their headsets to take pictures or view game information in their virtual notebooks that they hold in front of them like a real book.

The game also allows players to become active participants in the story and tailor the learning content to their own current knowledge. As they take in more information from their surroundings, they can also speak with the supporting character through a walkie-talkie by choosing dialogue options throughout the experience. This branching narrative allows players with no prior knowledge to ask more questions about the site and its history, while experienced players can dive into deeper, more complex topics.

In an effort to amplify indigenous voices and provide a deeper understanding of the layered history of Mesa Verde, CyArk worked closely with affiliated communities, Tewa speakers, and members of the Hopi Cultural Preservation Office to develop the script, game design, framework, and audio. The project is funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities through a NEH Digital Projects for the Public prototyping grant. 

To learn more about Resonant, check out CyArk’s blog and “first look” video! And subscribe to our StudioFlash e-newsletter and follow us on social media for more updates.

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This blog was guest-written by David Welsh, game and narrative designer at FableVision and on the Resonant Game Prototype.

Earth Day Spotlight: Smithsonian's Secrets of the Sea

Happy Earth Day from all of us at FableVision!

This Earth Day is especially important because it’s the 50th anniversary of the holiday. To celebrate, we’re excited to announce the launch of the Smithsonian’s Secrets of the Sea. In Secrets of the Sea, viewers explore all the beautiful secrets of a coral reef and learn from explorers who have dedicated their lives to unearthing those treasures and the scientists at the frontlines of fighting climate change to protect habitats such as these. This immersive digital experience comes just in time for this holiday all about celebrating the planet.

While it’s always a good time to make sure we’re doing our part in being green and promoting a healthy, clean environment for people, animals, and plants alike, Earth Day reminds us of just how crucial it is for all of us to do our part. From turning off your faucet during your 20 seconds of handwashing to not buying what you don’t need, there are many little things you can do to help protect and care for our planet, even during this time of social distancing and staying safe at home. 

Education is an especially important aspect of fostering and promoting environmentally-friendly habits, and is central to the FableVision mission. Learning about our environment and how different organisms are affected by our actions can help us to be more aware. From the trees outside our windows to the tiny ocean species most of us never see, finding out more about other living things can broaden our horizons and show us just how important conservation and sustainability are. 

That’s why we were honored to partner with the Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital Access on Secrets of the Sea. To bring the underwater world of the coral reef to life, FableVision created artwork and animation for the digital experience. Guided by reference art and research provided by the Smithsonian, FableVision designed scientifically accurate 2D zooplankton, and designed, animated, rigged, and skinned 3D models.

So this Earth Day, experience the wonders of the Earth’s coral reefs for yourself. And be sure to also check out our other projects created in collaboration with the Smithsonian, such as Weather Lab, an online game that helps you understand how North America’s weather is formed, and Good Thinking!: The Science of Teaching Science, an animation series that enhances science education for K-8 teachers and students. Both were created with the Smithsonian Science Education Center and are available online for free!